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The differences between medical doctors and nurse practitioners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a medical doctor, becoming a nurse practitioner takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a medical doctor has an average salary of $181,967, which is higher than the $100,033 average annual salary of a nurse practitioner.
The top three skills for a medical doctor include patients, patient care and internal medicine. The most important skills for a nurse practitioner are patients, diagnosis, and home health.
| Medical Doctor | Nurse Practitioner | |
| Yearly salary | $181,967 | $100,033 |
| Hourly rate | $87.48 | $48.09 |
| Growth rate | 7% | 40% |
| Number of jobs | 60,642 | 27,912 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 2.67 |
| Most common degree | Doctoral Degree, 56% | Master's Degree, 47% |
| Average age | 48 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 2 |
A Medical Doctor, also known as a physician, is a healthcare professional who diagnoses and treats patients from injuries and illnesses. As a Medical Doctor, your day-to-day duties will typically include assessing a patient's symptoms, prescribing and administering treatment to patients, and providing follow-up medical care to patients. You will be responsible for interpreting patients' laboratory results and referring them to other providers when needed. Also, you will need to work closely with other healthcare professionals and promote health education.
A nurse practitioner's role is diverse. It revolves around supervising nurses in a particular area and providing immediate care and treatment to patients through extensive knowledge and clinical experience. Among the duties of a nurse practitioner involves diagnosing and treating medical conditions, performing research and analysis through various tests, evaluating data and results, operating different kinds of medical equipment, and gathering samples from patients. Furthermore, a nurse practitioner must maintain an active line of communication and coordination among fellow health workers in a hospital or clinic.
Medical doctors and nurse practitioners have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Medical Doctor | Nurse Practitioner | |
| Average salary | $181,967 | $100,033 |
| Salary range | Between $95,000 And $347,000 | Between $62,000 And $161,000 |
| Highest paying City | Brownsville, TX | Richmond, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | California |
| Best paying company | Pacific Medical Centers | Pace University |
| Best paying industry | Transportation | - |
There are a few differences between a medical doctor and a nurse practitioner in terms of educational background:
| Medical Doctor | Nurse Practitioner | |
| Most common degree | Doctoral Degree, 56% | Master's Degree, 47% |
| Most common major | Medicine | Nursing |
| Most common college | Duke University | Duke University |
Here are the differences between medical doctors' and nurse practitioners' demographics:
| Medical Doctor | Nurse Practitioner | |
| Average age | 48 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 46.9% Female, 53.1% | Male, 13.1% Female, 86.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.3% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 19.0% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 6.7% Asian, 6.3% White, 77.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 13% | 12% |