Overview
Pediatrics has one of the lowest attending salaries among all specialties (~$210K) against a similar debt load to peers. That math makes PSLF the clear winner for the majority of federal-loan pediatricians working in academic or nonprofit settings.
Physician salary & compensation
Median salary
$210K
Range
$180K – $260K
Source
MGMA 2025 / Doximity 2025
Residency training timeline
Training years
3y
PGY-1 salary
$65K
Annual growth
2.0%
Fellowship
Optional
Not baked into training
Most pediatrics trainees follow a 3-year track. PGY-1 pay starts around $65K with roughly 2.0% annual raises.
PSLF & forgiveness strategy
Academic pediatrics and nonprofit children's hospitals are the two dominant career paths — both PSLF-qualifying.
Our pick · PSLF (strong fit)
Repayment recommendation
Low attending salary keeps IDR payments small, which maximizes forgiven balance. Typical pediatric academic-medicine career path gets $150K+ forgiven tax-free.
Run your numbers for PediatricsKey takeaways
- Pediatric subspecialty fellowships (cards, onc, crit care) add 3 years — usually still favors PSLF
- Aggressive payoff only wins if you plan to go into private-practice pediatrics
- Lowest salary in the calculator → highest typical PSLF savings
Ready to model your debt strategy?
Compare PSLF, refinancing, and aggressive payoff for your Pediatrics scenario — pre-filled with the salary and training defaults from this page.
Open the calculator