OB/GYNs deliver babies and treat disease of the female reproductive system, which makes the specialty both a surgical and a primary care field at once. A single week can hold a clinic of routine gynaecological care, a hysterectomy, a night on labour and delivery and an emergency caesarean. Few specialties combine continuity, surgery and acute care as tightly.

This guide covers careers in obstetrics and gynecology end to end, walking through all five accredited subspecialties, the years of training each one costs you, what the work earns and how competitive the path is.

Medical careers in obstetrics and gynecology

Every path below is a formal, ACGME-accredited subspecialty you enter through a fellowship after obstetrics and gynecology residency. Together they hold 1,130 physicians in training.

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

Physicians in training as of the 2024-2025 academic year, from the ACGME Data Resource Book. A larger number means a larger field, not an easier one.

Our full guides go deeper on several of these roles, covering gynecologist, obstetrician.

How long does obstetrics and gynecology training take?

All of the careers in obstetrics and gynecology on this page run through the same first eight years, and separate afterwards. Residency length is taken from the ACGME Data Resource Book for the 2024-2025 academic year.

1. Bachelor's degree, four years. Any major works, as long as you finish the medical school prerequisites and sit the MCAT.
2. Medical school, four years. Two years mostly preclinical, two years mostly in the hospital, with USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 along the way.
3. Obstetrics and Gynecology residency, four years. Four years of residency after medical school.
4. Fellowship, one to three years. Optional, and the route into the subspecialties listed below.

That is twelve years from starting your bachelor's degree to practising independently, before any fellowship. How long medical school takes covers the middle four in detail.

How much do obstetricians and gynecologists earn?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the median wage for obstetricians and gynecologists at $292,910 a year in 2025, across 21,260 people in the occupation.

Figures from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, national estimates, 2025. Wages at the top of the scale are reported as equal to or greater than $239,200 in some categories, so a published median can sit below what practising physicians in the field report.

Earnings across careers in obstetrics and gynecology swing more on setting and geography than on the specialty itself. Academic posts sit below private practice, and rural positions often sit above urban ones for the same work.

How competitive is obstetrics and gynecology?

Every position offered was filled, which puts it among the most competitive fields in the match. A high share filled by US MD seniors means the field is drawing its residents from the domestic MD pool, which tightens the odds for everyone else.

Figures from NRMP Results and Data, 2026 Main Residency Match, Table 1A.

Match rates describe the field, not your application. What moves your own odds is your Step 2 score, your clinical grades, your letters and your research, and the odds of getting into medical school covers the stage before any of that.

How careers in obstetrics and gynecology compare with the other specialties

Training length. Obstetrics and Gynecology residency runs four years. Of the nineteen specialties on this site, ten are shorter and six are the same length. The spread across all of them is two years to five.

Earnings. At $292,910, it ranks 8 of 13 on median wage among the specialties here with their own BLS occupation code. The highest is diagnostic radiology at $420,860.

Competition. Two of the fifteen specialties here that run through the main match fill a higher share of their positions with US MD seniors, which is the closest single proxy for how contested a field is.

Size of the field. BLS counts 21,260 people employed in the obstetricians and gynecologists category. A larger field means more posts advertised and more geographic choice about where you practise.

None of these numbers should pick a specialty for you. They are the constraints you are choosing inside, and the choice itself comes down to whether the day-to-day work holds your attention for thirty years.

Skills and requirements for obstetrics and gynecology

Where the work happens. Labour and delivery, operating rooms and outpatient clinic, with call that runs through the night because deliveries do not schedule themselves.

Who it suits. People who want to operate but also want long-term relationships with patients, and who can move between a calm clinic and an obstetric emergency in the same shift.

How you get in. Four years of residency after medical school.

Before any of that, the requirements match every other route into medicine. You need a bachelor's degree, the prerequisite coursework, clinical and research experience, an MCAT score, and a complete medical school application.