Career Post #1: Medical Illustrator

Medical illustration is a fascinating career that requires a very particular set of skills. Medical illustrators work to create incredibly detailed, accurate drawings for a variety of purposes in the medical field, including textbooks, journals, advertisements, pamphlets, and presentations. Since the profession requires an extensive knowledge of not just drawing but many topics of medical science, those wishing to become a medical illustrator may take courses such as anatomy, physiology, pathology, immunology, embryology, and neuroanatomy, along with surgical observation to visualize real surgical techniques. Pursuing this career is very exclusive, as most must obtain a master's degree in medical illustration, for which only 4 graduate programs in the United States are accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (Augusta University, Johns Hopkins University, the University of Illinois at Chicago, and Rochester Institute of Technology). Since there are so few schools offering specific medical illustration programs, these universities are closely ranked, but Johns Hopkins University and the University of Illinois at Chicago are usually ranked highest. Salaries for Medical Illustrators can vary, but their median salary is around $80,000 and can range up to $170,000, with some doing additional freelance work or starting their own businesses earning even more.

illustration by Mark Schornak