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Medical editor education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become a medical editor. Medical editors usually study english, health care administration, or journalism. 58% of medical editors hold a bachelor's degree, and 13% hold an master's degree. We analyzed 1,118 real medical editor resumes to see exactly what medical editor education sections show.

The most common colleges for medical editors are the Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey and the Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

There are also many online medical editor courses to help get the education required to be a medical editor.

There are certain medical editor certifications that you should consider. These medical editor certifications include Medical Assistant and Registered Health Information Technician (RHIT).

What education do you need to become a medical editor?

What degree do you need to be a medical editor?

The most common degree for medical editors is bachelor's degree, with 58% of medical editors earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 13% and master's degree degree at 12%.
  • Bachelor's, 58%
  • Master's, 13%
  • Associate, 12%
  • Doctorate, 7%
  • Other Degrees, 10%

What should I major in to become a medical editor?

You should major in english to become a medical editor. 19% of medical editors major in english. Other common majors for a medical editor include health care administration and journalism.

Most common colleges for medical editors

Medical editors often get their degrees at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Temple University, and University of Pennsylvania. Here are the most common colleges for medical editors in the US based on their resumes.
Medical editor common collegePercentages
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey11.11%
Temple University10.19%
University of Pennsylvania7.41%
New York University5.56%
University of California - Davis5.56%

Best majors for medical editors

RankMajorPercentages
1English19.4%
2Health Care Administration14.4%
3Journalism10.5%
4Biology7.6%
5Business6.6%

Best colleges for medical editors

The best colleges for medical editors are Northwestern University, Columbia University in the City of New York, and Washington University in St Louis.

A medical editor with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for medical editors. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become medical editors.

1. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

2. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$56,225

Enrollment

19,548

3. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

4. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$59,430

Enrollment

8,216

5. University of Washington

Seattle, WA • Private

In-state tuition

$11,207

Enrollment

30,905

6. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

In-state tuition

$53,399

Enrollment

7,356

7. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

8. Pennsylvania State University

University Park, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$18,454

Enrollment

40,108

9. University of Texas at Austin

Austin, TX • Private

In-state tuition

$10,610

Enrollment

40,329

10. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Enrollment

34,564

20 best online courses for medical editors

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18. Internal audit on Medical Device QMS - ISO 13485:2016

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Top 10 most affordable universities for medical editors

The most affordable schools for medical editors are Baruch College of the City University of New York, university of florida, and hunter college of the city university of new york.

If the best universities for medical editors are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for medical editors.

1. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

2. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

3. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,182

Cost of attendance

13,998

4. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,798

Cost of attendance

18,306

5. California State University - Los Angeles

Los Angeles, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,749

Cost of attendance

14,823

6. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

7. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

8. University of South Florida

Tampa, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,410

Cost of attendance

20,456

9. University of Central Florida

Orlando, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,368

Cost of attendance

21,034

10. University of Houston - Victoria

Victoria, TX • Private

In-state tuition

$6,491

Cost of attendance

19,075

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for medical editors

The hardest universities for medical editors to get into are Northwestern University, Columbia University in the City of New York, and Washington University in St Louis.

Some great schools for medical editors are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for medical editors based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

8%

SAT average

1,508

2. Columbia University in the City of New York

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

6%

SAT average

1,512

3. Washington University in St Louis

Saint Louis, MO • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,506

4. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

5. Northeastern University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

19%

SAT average

1,466

6. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

7. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

8. Harvard University

Cambridge, MA • Private

Admissions rate

5%

SAT average

1,520

9. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,513

10. George Washington University, The

Washington, DC • Private

Admissions rate

42%

SAT average

1,380

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for medical editors

The easiest schools for medical editors to get into are Mount Saint Mary's University, barry university, and saint joseph's college of maine.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as a medical editor without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for medical editors.

1. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

2. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

3. Saint Joseph's College of Maine

Standish, ME • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,069

4. Our Lady of the Lake University

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions rate

93%

SAT average

1,002

5. Kean University

Union, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

86%

SAT average

991

6. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

7. Grand View University

Des Moines, IA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,060

8. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

9. Rochester University

Rochester Hills, MI • Private

Admissions rate

100%

SAT average

1,002

10. Holy Names University

Oakland, CA • Private

Admissions rate

70%

SAT average

849

Average medical editor salary by education level

According to our data, medical editors with a Doctorate degree earn the highest average salary, at $70,600 annually. Medical editors with a Master's degree earn an average annual salary of $66,044.
Medical editor education levelMedical editor salary
Master's Degree$66,044
Bachelor's Degree$60,272
Doctorate Degree$70,600

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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