10 PA specialties that earned the most in 2021

Physician assistants working within cardiovascular/cardiothoracic surgery earned $147,000 in 2021, marking it the highest paid PA specialty last year, according to the American Academy of Physician Assistants salary survey published June 8. 

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AAPA collects base pay data in the form of salaries, hourly wages, or guaranteed pay within a productivity model to assess the overall compensation across 60 PA specialties. The totals also include bonuses. Only specialties with 100 or more respondents nationwide are included in the report. 

Cardiovascular/cardiothoracic surgery was also the highest paid PA specialty in 2020, with an average compensation of $130,000. 

  1. Cardiovascular/cardiothoracic surgery — $147,000 
  2. Dermatology — $146,000 
  3. Emergency medicine — $129,146
  4. Surgical subspecialties — $127,775
  5. Occupational medicine — $125,600
  6. Critical care — $124,886
  7. Neurosurgery — $124,000 
  8. Urgent care — $123,517
  9. Radiology — $122,350 
  10. Plastic surgery — $122,000 

To read more about the survey methodology, click here.

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