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Educational commitment to become a cardiologist

Many students start working toward their goal of becoming a cardiologist as early as their undergraduate studies. You can take classes or complete internships to learn about cardiac imaging and other job responsibilities as you start your cardiology training.

A traditional cardiology education timeline may look like:

Bachelor’s degree

You do not need to complete a pre-med track, or even earn a science degree, during your undergraduate education to pursue medicine. Of course, you need to complete the education eventually, but it’s possible to get into good programs with a non-traditional background.

Medical school

Med school combines coursework and clinical training. It lasts four years in total, split evenly between the two parts.

Residency in internal medicine

After med school, you’ll complete a residency, which lasts three years. During residency, you work at a healthcare facility and provide basic supervised care. This also is where you decide which specialization to pursue. Cardiologists choose internal medicine.

Cardiology fellowship

After residency, you’ll pursue a cardiology fellowship, which typically lasts three years, though it could be longer. The Columbia University fellowship, which lasts between three and four years, focuses on both patient care and research.

Medical school requirements include:

Coursework

Remember, you don’t need to be a science or pre-med major, but you do need to complete relevant coursework. This includes lab and coursework in biology, chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry, and physics. You also need coursework in humanities and mathematics, typically calculus or statistics. Relevant coursework should be completed at the undergraduate level.

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Heart Failure Cardiology

According to the Cleveland Clinic, these professionals “have experience and expertise in managing symptoms and delaying the progression of heart failure.” They can recommend procedures like heart transplants. Advanced heart failure cardiologists earned a median total compensation of $551,054 in 2020, rounding out the top five sub-specialties.

After you finish medical school, pass your boards, and complete an internal medicine residency and a cardiology fellowship, you’ll typically start work in a hospital or a private practice. Some essential functions cardiologists perform include:

Tests

This could involve performing a cardiac stress test, which monitors a patient’s heart during physical activity. Alternatively, you may assign your patient to wear a heart monitor, either for a few days or a longer period. Non-physical tests include electrocardiograms (ECG) and positron emission tomography (PET) scans, which can help identify issues.

Procedures

Procedures can be minimally invasive or more complex. Minimally invasive surgeries include inserting a pacemaker, cardiac catheterization, and performing angioplasty procedures. Complex procedures can include heart valve surgery, bypass surgery, and open heart surgery.

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Preventative Cardiologist

Preventative cardiology focuses on stopping heart disease before it begins, or arresting the process before it gets worse. Preventative cardiology is considered non-invasive.

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Electrophysiologist

These professionals specialize in treating arrhythmias—irregular heartbeats. They can also be called cardiac electrophysiologists. Electrophysiologists are the highest paid cardiologists, earning $678,495.

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Echocardiologist

Echocardiology is the process of utilizing sound to perform the necessary imaging of the heart. There are several kinds of echocardiograms that can detect disease and see if treatments are working. Echocardiologists are non-invasive cardiologists, meaning they rank among the five highest-paying subspecialties. The median compensation for these professionals was $599,718 in 2020.

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Pediatric Cardiology

These professionals work on children, or even fetuses. According to Salary.com, the median compensation for pediatric cardiologists is $310,414.

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Interventional Cardiology

Interventional cardiology is an important subspecialty where cardiologists perform procedures like breaking past calcification and unblocking blood vessels. According to a 2020 report, interventional cardiologists are among the five highest-paid cardiology subspecialties, with the median earning $674,910 in total compensation in 2020.

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Kinds of cardiology career path

In general cardiology, you’ll work with the heart and blood vessels, evaluating, diagnosing, and treating patients to prevent heart disease and additional heart conditions. Most cardiologists work as noninvasive cardiologists, although some cardiologists branch out into more invasive specialties. Some of your job duties will include ordering and interpreting tests such as EKGs, talking to patients and families, and performing physical exams.