Life As a Midwife
Position Description Provide prenatal care and childbirth assistance.
Life As a Midwife: What Do They Do?
- Assist maternal patients to find physical positions that will facilitate childbirth.
- Respond to breech birth presentations by applying methods such as exercises or external version.
- Obtain complete health and medical histories from patients including medical, surgical, reproductive, or mental health histories.
- Compile and evaluate clinical practice statistics.
- Incorporate research findings into practice as appropriate.
- Provide comfort and relaxation measures for mothers in labor through interventions such as massage, breathing techniques, hydrotherapy, or music.
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What Every Midwife Should Know
These are the skills Midwives say are the most useful in their careers:
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Types of Midwife Jobs
- Birth Doula
- Director of Midwifery/Staff Midwife
- Licensed Direct Entry Midwife
- Licensed Midwife
- Licensed and Certified Midwife
Is There Going to be Demand for Midwives?
There were about 40,000 jobs for Midwife in 2016 (in the United States). New jobs are being produced at a rate of 12.5% which is above the national average. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 5,000 new jobs for Midwife by 2026. Due to new job openings and attrition, there will be an average of 2,600 job openings in this field each year.

The states with the most job growth for Midwife are Arizona, Utah, and Colorado. Watch out if you plan on working in Maine, Delaware, or Illinois. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.
Midwife Average Salary
The salary for Midwives ranges between about $28,500 and $111,740 a year.

Midwives who work in Maryland, New Jersey, or Connecticut, make the highest salaries.
How much do Midwives make in different U.S. states?
State | Annual Mean Salary |
---|---|
Alabama | $41,660 |
Alaska | $69,370 |
Arizona | $47,250 |
Arkansas | $42,180 |
California | $74,900 |
Colorado | $59,050 |
Connecticut | $86,040 |
Delaware | $59,750 |
District of Columbia | $81,770 |
Florida | $55,200 |
Georgia | $64,940 |
Hawaii | $66,670 |
Idaho | $64,250 |
Illinois | $64,390 |
Indiana | $37,050 |
Iowa | $46,130 |
Kansas | $54,220 |
Kentucky | $55,430 |
Louisiana | $54,140 |
Maine | $59,550 |
Maryland | $89,580 |
Massachusetts | $67,500 |
Michigan | $52,990 |
Minnesota | $65,550 |
Mississippi | $37,790 |
Missouri | $66,010 |
Montana | $49,820 |
Nevada | $55,440 |
New Hampshire | $66,080 |
New Jersey | $94,870 |
New Mexico | $52,040 |
New York | $74,750 |
North Carolina | $52,530 |
North Dakota | $63,290 |
Ohio | $69,920 |
Oklahoma | $45,340 |
Oregon | $57,820 |
Pennsylvania | $81,750 |
Rhode Island | $69,790 |
South Carolina | $48,690 |
Tennessee | $59,530 |
Texas | $59,360 |
Utah | $50,690 |
Virginia | $55,410 |
Washington | $68,890 |
West Virginia | $61,190 |
Wisconsin | $52,040 |
Wyoming | $61,750 |
Tools & Technologies Used by Midwives
Below is a list of the types of tools and technologies that Midwives may use on a daily basis:
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Word
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Web browser software
- Email software
- MEDITECH software
- Patient electronic medical record EMR software
How to Become a Midwife
Education needed to be a Midwife:

How many years of work experience do I need?

Where Midwives Work

The table below shows some of the most common industries where those employed in this career field work.

References:
Image Credit: Aphiwat chuangchoem via Creative Commons Zero (CC0)
More about our data sources and methodologies.
Featured Schools
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