Nurse Midwives vs Physician Assistant: Similar Pay, 11.5% vs 21.1% Growth

Nurse Midwives vs Physician Assistant: what changes?

Consider Nurse Midwives if you want to diagnose and coordinate all aspects of the birthing process, either independently or as part of a healthcare team. Consider Physician Assistant if you would rather provide healthcare services typically performed by a physician, under the supervision of a physician. Both list master's degree; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Nurse Midwives and Physician Assistant. 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

Nurse Midwives

National median pay (2025): $134,040
Route into the job: Master's 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: Provide prenatal, intrapartum, postpartum, or newborn care to patients.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 400

Know before you choose

This is a small national occupation (8,200 jobs in 2025), so location and employer concentration can matter more than the national median suggests.

See the full Nurse Midwives brief

Physician Assistant

National median pay (2025): $135,880
Route into the job: Master's 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: Make tentative diagnoses and decisions about management and treatment of patients.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 11,500

Know before you choose

Exposure to illness or infection is a recurring part of the work context, even when safety procedures are followed.

See the full Physician Assistant brief

How the national numbers differ

Physician Assistant has the edge on annual openings

Physician Assistant is at 11,500 annual openings, compared with 400 annual openings for Nurse Midwives.

Physician Assistant has the edge on projected growth

Physician Assistant is at 21.1% projected growth, compared with 11.5% projected growth for Nurse Midwives.

National pay benchmarks are very similar.

Compare actual offers, expected paid hours, schedule, and benefits before treating either career as the higher-paying option.

54.7/ 100

Nurse Midwives

74.2/ 100

Physician Assistant

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