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Healthcare · Helping & Teaching

Pediatrician: what the job actually is

A physician who specialises in the health of babies, children and teenagers, and who spends half the day talking to their parents.

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Pediatrician: quick facts

Pediatrician salary in Ontario: Job Bank reports one figure for the whole group of specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine, not for pediatrician alone. For that group the median pay is $295,785 a year (reference period 2023-2024). The group's three-year outlook in Ontario is good. The job usually needs a university degree.

Median pay in Ontario
$295,785 a year
Pay range (low to high)
$110,998 to $599,836 a year
Job outlook, 2025-2027
Good
People working in it in Ontario
14,650
Usually needs
Usually a university degree

Source: Job Bank wages (updated 19 November 2025) and job prospects (updated 10 December 2025), NOC 31100. Pay varies by region and experience.

The work

What this job actually is

  • A medical doctor who looks after the health of children from birth through the teenage years. Job Bank counts this under specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine.
  • Children are not small adults. They cannot always say what hurts, they grow and change quickly, and the right dose and the right test depend on their age. A big part of the skill is working out what a three-year-old cannot tell you.
  • Parents are part of every appointment. You are communicating with two people at once, one of whom may be frightened and the other of whom may be crying.
  • Job Bank reports one pay figure and one outlook for all specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine, not for paediatrics alone. The pay on this page is the figure for that whole group.
  • Work happens in hospitals, children's hospitals, clinics and offices. Some paediatricians look after newborns or very sick children in intensive care, and others follow children with long-term conditions.

A Tuesday

What a normal day looks like

Not a good day or a bad one. The ordinary version, which is what you would actually be living.

  1. 7:30 — Round on the children in hospital. You read overnight notes, then examine each child while a parent watches your face.
  2. 9:00 — Office or clinic opens. First a newborn check, which is mostly about reassuring a parent who has not slept.
  3. 9:45 — A child with a fever and no obvious cause. You examine, think through what it could be, and explain what to watch for.
  4. 10:30 — A teenager who will not say why they are here. You ask the parent to step out for a few minutes.
  5. 11:30 — A child with a long-term condition. You review how they are growing and what the family is finding hard.
  6. 12:30 — Lunch at the desk, with forms for school, camp and sports.
  7. 13:30 — A development check. You watch a toddler play and decide whether to be reassured or to refer.
  8. 15:00 — A hard conversation with a family about a diagnosis. You take the time you need and do not hurry the silence.
  9. 16:30 — Phone calls to specialists, schools and community services.
  10. 18:00 — Notes. The worry about a patient comes home, even when the paperwork does not.

Honestly

Who loves this, and who should not do it

The second list is the useful one. Nearly every careers page leaves it out, which is why nearly every careers page reads like an advert.

You may like this if
  • You like children and teenagers, including the loud, wriggling and silent ones.
  • You are patient and can explain something three times in three different ways without showing it.
  • You like the idea of watching a child get better, and of seeing a long-term patient grow up.
  • You are comfortable talking to frightened parents as well as to children.
  • You can bear the sadness that comes with serious illness in young people.
You may hate this if
  • You cannot stand seeing a child suffer. Some patients are very sick, and some do not recover.
  • You dislike parents' anxiety. Some appointments are more about calming a parent than treating a child.
  • You do not want the long route. Job Bank says a bachelor's degree and medical school come first, then four to five years of specialty residency for this group.
  • You dislike paperwork. Forms for schools, camps and services fill the edges of the day.
  • You would rather not do night work. Hospital paediatrics involves call and unpredictable hours.
  • Debt and delay bother you. The years of study and training before independent practice are long.

The route in

How you actually get there in Ontario

  1. Earn a degree and get into medical school

    Job Bank says a bachelor's degree is usually required, then graduation from an approved medical school. Entry rules differ by school. Our family physician page lists the six Ontario medical schools and how one of them states its requirements.

  2. Do a paediatrics residency

    Job Bank gives four to five years of specialty residency for this group, with two more years of subspecialty training possibly required, for example for children's intensive care or heart conditions. We did not read paediatrics residency entry requirements, so ask a medical school.

  3. Pass the Royal College examinations

    Job Bank says the certifying examinations of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada are required. The CPSO's page for the independent practice certificate asks for the Medical Council of Canada examinations and certification by examination.

  4. Get your CPSO licence and choose a setting

    Licensing by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario is compulsory. Job Bank says demand for this group may be greater in rural and northern communities of Ontario, so where you practise is a real choice.

Where this comes from: Job Bank — Specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine, requirements in Ontario · CPSO — Independent practice certificate requirements

The money

Pediatrician salary in Ontario

Job Bank's own figures, quoted rather than summarised, with the period they describe — so you can tell how old they are and go and check them.

$110,998
Low (a year)
$295,785
Median (a year)
$599,836
High (a year)

Ontario, NOC 31100. Reference period 2023-2024, last updated by Job Bank on 19 November 2025. Wages vary a lot by region inside Ontario and by how long you have been doing it — the low figure is roughly where you start, not what the job is worth. Job Bank reports this one by the year rather than by the hour, because the income is commission and the hours behind it are nothing like fixed.

Source: Job Bank — Pediatrician wages in Ontario

Where it is heading

The outlook for the next three years

Job Bank publishes a three-year outlook for every job in every province. It is the closest thing to an honest forecast, and it moves, so read it as a weather report rather than a verdict.

Ontario, 2025-2027

Good4 out of 5 stars

  • Employment growth will lead to a moderate number of new positions.
  • A moderate number of positions will become available due to retirements.
  • There are a small number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation.

What that rating means: how many openings Job Bank expects in Ontario for this kind of work against how many people are likely to be looking — not whether it is a good job. A “limited” rating means more competition for each opening; it does not close the door, and it can change before you are ready to walk through it.

What is changing in this work

  • Increased need for health-related services to support the growing and aging population in Ontario
  • Greater demand on the health care system because of the backlog of medical procedures and patient care needs
  • Major investments in health care facilities
  • Initiatives to improve home and community-based patient care services
  • Demand may be greater in rural and northern communities of Ontario

Who hires for it

  • Hospitals
  • Offices of physicians
  • Almost 60% of specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine are self-employed
14,650
people work in this job in Ontario
43%
are women (48% across all jobs)
59%
are self-employed (15% across all jobs)

Source: Job Bank — Specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine job prospects in Ontario (NOC 31100). Outlook updated by Job Bank on 10 December 2025; read by us on 5 October 2026.

Before you leave school

Things you can do now

  • Take senior biology, chemistry and English, and keep your marks high. Every stage of this route asks for them.
  • Work with children if you can: coaching a younger team, tutoring, volunteering at a library programme or camp, or babysitting with a course behind it.
  • Take a first-aid and CPR course that covers children and infants.
  • Read the admission requirements of one Ontario medical school so you know what to plan for in university.

Test it

Do this before you decide anything

Reading about a job tells you almost nothing. This is designed to be done alone, this week, for free.

Explain a scary thing to a seven-year-old

About 45 minutes
  1. Pick one medical thing a child might be afraid of, for example a blood test or a hospital stay. Look it up on a children's hospital's own patient page.
  2. Write a two-minute explanation for a seven-year-old, using no word you would not say at a playground, and not lying about it hurting.
  3. Read it aloud to a younger sibling, cousin or neighbour's child if a parent is nearby and happy to let you, or to a mirror if not. Notice what you had to change when you heard yourself.
  4. Open the Job Bank requirements page for specialist physicians and write the route in order.

What it tells you. If you enjoyed finding the plain words and the length of the route did not put you off, paediatrics is a real direction and the next step is the science and the grades. If you found it tiring to translate, or you would rather work with adults, other physician specialties or nursing may match you better.

Better than any article

Questions for somebody who does this job

Most people say yes to a teenager who asks good questions. These are the ones that get real answers rather than encouragement.

  1. “What is the hardest part of talking to parents?”
  2. “How do you examine a child who will not cooperate?”
  3. “What is the best part of seeing a patient grow up?”
  4. “How do you cope when a child is seriously ill?”
  5. “What made you choose paediatrics over family medicine?”
  6. “What would you tell a student about the training and the cost?”

Could you own one of these?

The part other career sites never mention

Sometimes. Job Bank says a large share of specialists in this group are self-employed, and some paediatricians run an office practice. Others work in hospitals. Ask a paediatrician how they decided, because the arrangement affects your hours and your income.

Business 101 is free and teaches that part

Quick answers

Questions people ask about this job

How much does a pediatrician make in Ontario?

Job Bank reports one figure for the whole group of specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine, not for a pediatrician alone. For that group the median pay is $295,785 a year (reference period 2023-2024, updated 19 November 2025). The range Job Bank publishes runs from $110,998 to $599,836 a year. Pay varies by region, employer and experience.

What is the job outlook for a pediatrician in Ontario?

Job Bank rates the employment outlook for this work in Ontario as good for 2025-2027 (updated 10 December 2025). Employment growth will lead to a moderate number of new positions. A moderate number of positions will become available due to retirements. There are a small number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation. A lower rating means more competition for each opening, not that no one is hiring.

What do you need to become a pediatrician in Ontario?

Job Bank says this work usually needs a university degree. The usual route in Ontario, in order: Earn a degree and get into medical school; Do a paediatrics residency; Pass the Royal College examinations.

Where does a pediatrician work in Ontario?

Hospitals. Offices of physicians. Almost 60% of specialists in clinical and laboratory medicine are self-employed. (Job Bank.)

How many people work as a pediatrician in Ontario, and how many are women?

Job Bank counts about 14,650 people working in this job in Ontario. 43% of them are women, compared with 48% across all jobs. That describes who does the work today, not who can.

Health careers in Ontario: outlook and pay What can you do with your degree?

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Wages and training requirements change. Every figure on this page is linked to the body that publishes it, and the review date above says when we last checked. If you find something out of date, tell us and we will fix it.