Medical Illustration & Informatics

Types of Degrees Medical Illustration & Informatics Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many medical illustration and informatics graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	1,507
Bachelor’s Degree	211
Graduate Certificate	167
Basic Certificate	84
Doctor’s Degree	73
Associate Degree	43
Undergraduate Certificate	4

What Medical Illustration & Informatics Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to medical illustration were asked what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. They weighted these areas on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest.

Knowledge Areas for Medical Illustration Majors

Medical Illustration majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

Skills for Medical Illustration Majors

The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to medical illustration:

• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
• 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.

Abilities for Medical Illustration Majors

Some of the most crucial abilities to master while a medical illustration student include the following:

• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

What Can You Do With a Medical Illustration & Informatics Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with medical illustration:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Business Intelligence Analysts	9.3%	$90,270
Computer and Information Research Scientists	19.0%	$118,370
Data Warehousing Specialists	9.3%	$90,270
Database Architects	9.3%	$90,270
Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators	6.8%	$49,380
Software Developers, Applications	30.7%	$103,620

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Medical Illustration & Informatics?

This is a less frequently chosen undergraduate major. Only 211 students graduated with a bachelor’s degree in medical illustration and informatics in 2021, making it rank #251 in popularity. This major is dominated by women with about 83% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of medical illustration majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	27
Black or African American	33
Hispanic or Latino	14
White	107
International Students	14
Other Races/Ethnicities	16

Geographic Diversity

Americans aren’t the only ones with an interest in Medical Illustration. About 6.6% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• India
• China
• Saudi Arabia
• Nigeria
• Nepal

How Much Do Medical Illustration & Informatics Majors Make?

Bachelor’s Degree Starting Salary

The median starting salary of students who graduated in 2017-2019 with a bachelor’s degree in medical illustration was $46,042 per year. These stats come from the U.S. Department of Education. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $36,905 (25th percentile) and $56,055 (75th percentile).

We don’t know for sure if all of these people took jobs related to medical illustration so take that into consideration.

Salaries According to BLS

Medical Illustration majors often go into careers where salaries can range from $58,370 to $108,080 (25th to 75th percentile). This range includes all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Medical Illustration & Informatics

Some degrees associated with medical illustration may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to medical illustration have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	4.3%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	1.1%
Some College Courses	7.3%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	2.2%
Bachelor’s Degree	60.9%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	1.5%
Master’s Degree	17.9%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	0.3%
Doctoral Degree	4.2%
Post-Doctoral Training	0.5%

Online Medical Illustration & Informatics Programs

In 2020-2021, 167 schools offered a medical illustration program of some type. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	6	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	16	2
Bachelor’s Degree	49	19
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	101	39
Post-Master’s	18	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	20	2
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	1	1
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Medical Illustration & Informatics Worth It?

The median salary for a medical illustration grad is $93,350 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 134% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $1,069,000 after 20 years!

Majors Related to Medical Illustration & Informatics

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to medical illustration.

Major	Number of Grads
Nursing	322,592
Health & Medical Administrative Services	89,359
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services	84,492
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants	84,274
Allied Health Professions	82,308
Public Health	40,596
Health Sciences & Services	35,945
Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions	29,833
Mental & Social Health Services	29,053
Medicine	28,629
Dental Support Services	26,399
Communication Sciences	22,298
Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences	20,393
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science	18,901
Somatic Bodywork & Therapeutic Services	10,751
Health/Medical Prep Programs	9,210
Other Health Professions	7,984
Dentistry	6,770
Dietetics & Clinical Nutrition Services	6,158
Bioethics/Medical Ethics	5,115
Alternative Medicine & Systems	3,564
Chiropractic	2,658
Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies	2,374
Optometry	1,822
Advanced Dentistry & Oral Sciences	1,775
Ophthalmic & Optometric Support Services	960
Medical Science	909
Movement & Mind-Body Therapies	294
Alternative Medical Support Services	227
Energy & Biologically Based Therapies	68

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.