Can a Pathologist Assistant Become a Pathologist?
The short answer is YES! But knowing the differences between a pathologist assistant and a pathologist can help you determine which career choice is right for you.
They both have similar, overlapping roles in a hospital and study similar topics in school. However, a pathologist assistant only needs to complete a 2 year Master's degree program while a pathologist needs to go to medical school (4 years), complete a residency program (4-5 years) and maybe specialize through a fellowship (1-2 years) before they can work in a hospital.
The job duties between these two careers is similar in that they both work in a lab and can end up dissecting surgical tissue, as well as participating in autopsies. A pathologist assistant can do a lot of the dissecting work before tissue ends up under a microscope but only a pathologist can give a diagnosis which is why their training takes so much longer.
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I'm a full time Pathologists' Assistant working in western Canada. I'm making videos about becoming a PA, giving you tips about school and letting you know what this career is like.
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