Clinical and Counseling Psychologists vs Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists: Similar Median Pay, Different Work

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists vs Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists: what changes?

Consider Clinical and Counseling Psychologists if you want to assess, diagnose, and treat mental and emotional disorders of individuals through observation, interview, and psychological tests. Consider Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists if you would rather conduct research dealing with the understanding of human diseases and the improvement of human health. Both list doctoral or professional degree; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Clinical and Counseling Psychologists and Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists

National median pay (2025): $100,580
Route into the job: Doctoral or professional degree; Internship or residency follows qualifying education. Check its duration, pay, and licensing requirements
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: Internship or residency follows qualifying education. Check its duration, pay, and licensing requirements.
Work to investigate: Conduct assessments of patients' risk for harm to self or others.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 4,100

Know before you choose

Training continues through internship/residency after the degree path.

See the full Clinical and Counseling Psychologists brief

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists

National median pay (2025): $103,410
Route into the job: Doctoral or professional degree
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.
Work to investigate: Follow strict safety procedures when handling toxic materials to avoid contamination.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 10,500

Know before you choose

The helping mission includes documentation, direct care, and safety-critical routines where a missed detail can affect a patient.

See the full Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists brief

How the national numbers differ

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists has the edge on annual openings

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists is at 10,500 annual openings, compared with 4,100 annual openings for Clinical and Counseling Psychologists.

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists has the edge on median pay

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists is at $103,410, compared with $100,580 for Clinical and Counseling Psychologists.

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists has the edge on projected growth

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists is at 12.6% projected growth, compared with 11.7% projected growth for Clinical and Counseling Psychologists.

64.2/ 100

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists

70.2/ 100

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

Detailed evidence

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists vs Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists

Dimension	Clinical and Counseling Psychologists	Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists
Median pay (2025)	$100,580	$103,410
Pay percentile	83.3 percentile	85.1 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	11.7%	12.6%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	4,100	10,500
2025 employment	81,300	181,000
How you qualify	Doctoral or professional degree; Internship or residency follows qualifying education. Check its duration, pay, and licensing requirements	Doctoral or professional degree
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 5	Job Zone 5
Related work experience	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	Internship or residency follows qualifying education. Check its duration, pay, and licensing requirements.	BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.

The table reports national benchmarks and reviewed work descriptions. It does not rate personal suitability, job security, or physical safety.

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Clinical and Counseling Psychologists vs Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists

How the national numbers differ

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists has the edge on annual openings

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists has the edge on median pay

Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists has the edge on projected growth

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists vs Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists

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