How To Become An Ob/Gyn Physician: What It Is and Career Path

What is an ob/gyn physician and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Janet Williams Ph.D.

An OB/GYN specializes in obstetrics (including childbirth) and gynecology (female reproductive health). As an OB/GYN, you will perform diagnostic procedures such as pap smears, breast health exams, STI tests, pelvic exams, and ultrasounds. Your duty is also extended to responding to your patients' queries on pregnancy, sex, and reproductive health and offering counseling and infertility treatment. On a daily basis, you can expect to perform surgical procedures such as C-sections (or non-surgical vaginal births), hysterectomies, and the resection of tumors, cysts, fibroids, or any cancerous growths.

As an OB/GYN, you need to be an excellent communicator and have the empathy to connect with your patients. Dexterity and precision will come in handy, excuse the pun, as you will often be working with delicate and sensitive tissue. You need to be reliable and trustworthy, as many of your patients will confide in you. In order to become an OB/GYN, you will have to complete your undergraduate degree as a pre-med. Thereafter, you go into medical school for another four years. Once you graduate as a doctor, you then undertake a residency program in OB/GYN for four years. After completing your residency, you will then take your specialty board exams. After your success in the board exams, you may practice independently as an OB/GYN in either a clinic, a hospital, or in private practice.

What general advice would you give to an ob/gyn physician?

Janet Williams Ph.D.

Professor of Biology, College of Our Lady of the Elms

Students who wish to continue their education in healthcare (MD, DO, DMD, DVM, PA, PT, OT, and many other areas), should ensure that they have plenty of experience in healthcare by becoming certified as an EMT or CNA, and spend at least 1-2 years working or volunteering in that capacity. Students should graduate with strong GPAs, over 3.5 on a 4.0 scale, and should have taken all of their prerequisite courses. Students should be prepared to take standardized admissions exams, and plan to do well in them.

ScoreOb/Gyn PhysicianUS Average

Salary

10.0

Avg. Salary $200,423

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

10.0

Growth rate 7%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

1.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.17%

Asian 18.93%

Black or African American 5.37%

Hispanic or Latino 10.05%

Unknown 4.52%

White 60.97%

Gender

female 71.05%

male 28.95%

Age - 48

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 48

Stress level

10.0

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

10.0

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.1

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an ob/gyn physician

Explore ob/gyn physician education requirements

Most common ob/gyn physician degrees

Bachelor's

36.6 %

Doctorate

24.2 %

Associate

11.1 %

Start to develop specific ob/gyn physician skills

Skills	Percentages
OB-GYN	45.81%
Patients	29.20%
Patient Care	6.73%
Epic	5.19%
Private Practice	3.83%

Complete relevant ob/gyn physician training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 4-10 years on post-employment, on-the-job training. New ob/gyn physicians learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an ob/gyn physician based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real ob/gyn physician resumes.

Research ob/gyn physician duties and responsibilities

Develop skills in managing diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension.
Manage routine and high-risk obstetric and gynecologic patients as attending physician in private practice.
Work in private practice together with several OB-GYN physicians.
Experience include assisting/viewing various medical procedures including finger amputation, suturing, x-rays and triage.

Prepare your ob/gyn physician resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your ob/gyn physician resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an ob/gyn physician resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable ob/gyn physician resume templates

Build a professional ob/gyn physician resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your ob/gyn physician resume.