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Internist Education Requirements

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become an internist. Internists usually study medicine, medical assisting services, or nursing. 35% of internists hold a bachelor's degree, and 23% hold an doctoral degree. We analyzed 881 real internist resumes to see exactly what internist education sections show.

The most common colleges for internists are the Harvard University and the Harvard University.

There are also many online internist courses to help get the education required to be an internist.

There are certain internist certifications that you should consider. These internist certifications include Internal Medicine and Medical Assistant.

What education do you need to become an internist?

What degree do you need to be an internist?

The most common degree for internists is bachelor's degree, with 35% of internists earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are doctoral degree degree at 23% and doctoral degree degree at 9%.
  • Bachelor's, 35%
  • Doctorate, 23%
  • Associate, 9%
  • Master's, 7%
  • Other Degrees, 26%

What should I major in to become an internist?

You should major in medicine to become an internist. 32% of internists major in medicine. Other common majors for an internist include medical assisting services and nursing.

Most common colleges for internists

Internists often get their degrees at Harvard University, University of California - Davis, and Wayne State University. Here are the most common colleges for internists in the US based on their resumes.
Internist Common CollegePercentages
Harvard University8.11%
University of California - Davis6.76%
Wayne State University6.76%
University of Alabama at Birmingham6.76%
University of Louisville5.41%

Best majors for internists

Best colleges for internists

The best colleges for internists are Northwestern University, Vanderbilt University, and University of Virginia.

An internist with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for internists. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become internists.

1. University of Virginia

Charlottesville, VA • Private

In-State Tuition

$17,653

Enrollment

16,405

2. University of Connecticut

Storrs, CT • Private

In-State Tuition

$15,730

Enrollment

18,830

3. Duke University

Durham, NC • Private

In-State Tuition

$55,695

Enrollment

6,596

4. New York University

New York, NY • Private

In-State Tuition

$51,828

Enrollment

26,339

5. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-State Tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

6. Howard University

Washington, DC • Private

In-State Tuition

$26,756

Enrollment

6,166

7. Ohio State University

Columbus, OH • Private

In-State Tuition

$10,726

Enrollment

45,769

8. Yale University

New Haven, CT • Private

In-State Tuition

$53,430

Enrollment

5,963

9. University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor, MI • Private

In-State Tuition

$15,262

Enrollment

30,079

10. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

New Brunswick, NJ • Private

In-State Tuition

$14,974

Enrollment

35,656

20 best online courses for internists

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1. Health After Cancer: Cancer Survivorship for Primary Care

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This course presents basic principles of cancer survivorship to primary-care physicians. Developed by a team of experts in caring for cancer survivors, and narrated by a primary-care physician, this course provides practical tips and tools that can be easily integrated into medical practice. You will learn about the complex physical and psychosocial needs and concerns of the growing number of cancer survivors, along with the key role that primary care physicians have in guiding these patients...

2. Trauma Emergencies and Care

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Welcome to Trauma Emergencies and Care. In this course, you will learn about some of the mechanics and physics of trauma on the human body, and how this can cause injury. You will continue to expand your new vocabulary with medical terminology, and learn how to describe the different injuries you may see. You will also learn about the trauma system itself- and when it is important to transport patients to a trauma center. Then we will dive into specific injuries based on what part of the body...

3. Providing Trauma-Informed Care

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Exploring psychological trauma and how to provide care and compassion to trauma survivors...

4. Operations and Patient Safety for Healthcare IT Staff

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Now that you've been introduced to the world of Health IT and the important role played by electronic health records (EHRs), we'll focus on other technologies that play a role in maintaining ongoing operations in healthcare. Telemedicine, patient portals, barcode scanners, printers, and medical devices are just some of the technologies that impact providers and patients. As an IT support specialist, you’ll be asked to troubleshoot issues with a wide variety of tools. You'll see a scenario with...

5. Prehospital care of acute stroke and patient selection for endovascular treatment using the RACE scale

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Acute stroke is a time-dependent medical emergency. In acute ischemic stroke, the first objective is to restore brain flow using sistemic thrombolytic treatment and, in patients with large vessel occlusion, by endovascular treatment. In hemorrhagic stroke there are also specific treatments that can improve the clinical outcome. The sooner the initiation of all these therapies the higher the clinical benefit. Thus, the organization of Stroke Code systems coordinated between emergency medical...

6. Emergency Care: Pregnancy, Infants, and Children

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Welcome to the final course of lectures in your quest to master EMT basics. In this course, we will cover some of the highest-stress patient populations: pregnant patients and kids, also known as pediatrics. To wrap up your EMT knowledge we will end this course with information about hazmat situations, extricating patients from tight spots and finally how you write a note about your patient care. You will learn to ensure it communicates what your assessment of the patient was, what...

7. Health for All Through Primary Health Care

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This course explores why primary health care is central for achieving Health for All. It provides examples of how primary health care has been instrumental in approaching this goal in selected populations and how the principles of primary health care can guide future policies and actions. Two of the most inspiring, least understood, and most often derided terms in global health discourse are “Health for All” and “Primary Health Care.” In this course, we will explore these terms in the context...

8. The Critical Role of IT Support Staff in Healthcare

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This is a very exciting time to be exploring a career in Health IT Support! In this introductory course, you’ll learn about various roles in IT support that are common in healthcare. IT support staff play critical roles in many different healthcare venues. In addition to helping clinics, hospitals, and emergency rooms, you may end up providing support in a skilled nursing facility, ambulatory surgical center, virtual care setting, or even a patient’s home! On any given day, you may interact...

9. Value-Based Care: Managing Processes to Improve Outcomes

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COURSE 3 of 7. This course is designed to introduce you to critical office-based processes that a value-based practice must manage in the drive towards improved patient outcomes. In Module 2, we’ll focus on office-based and clinical patient-based supporting functions. At every level in healthcare, guidelines, processes, and functions exist to improve outcomes, and following a consistent process will return the best effect. Refine your understanding of value and learn strategies to provide real...

10. Palliative Care Always Capstone Course

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The Palliative Care Always Capstone course is designed to let you test your knowledge about palliative and help others understand the value of palliative care, while showing your creative side. In this course, you will impact community awareness about palliative care, promote self-care and wellness, show-off your communication skills in a virtual environment, and finish the course off by proving your thoughts on ways to offer psychosocial support to a patient and family...

11. Clinical Kidney, Pancreas and Islet Transplantation

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Kidney transplantation is a major advance of modern medicine which provides high-quality of life for patients with end-stage renal disease. What used to be an experimental, risky, and very limited treatment option more than 50 years ago is now routinely performed in many countries worldwide. The number of renal transplants is expected to rise sharply in the next decade since the proportion of patients with end stage renal disease is increasing. Are you interested in clinical kidney, pancreas...

12. Traditional herbal medicine in supportive cancer care: From alternative to integrative

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Please join us for an exciting and innovative journey, examining one of the most important and often overlooked aspects of the oncology setting: Traditional Herbal Medicine in Supportive Cancer Care. This course is presented with short lectures offering a wide range of issues related to the principles and practice of herbal medicine in cancer care. The course includes interviews with leading world experts from the field of Integrative Oncology, from the U.S. and Canada, as well as Europe, the...

13. Medical Emergencies: CPR, Toxicology, and Wilderness

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In this course, you will develop the knowledge and skills to assess and stabilize certain types of patients for transport. By the end of this course, you will be able to: (1) Identify the signs and symptoms associated with a patient in shock, to describe the major categories of shock, to assess a patient with signs of shock and formulate a plan for treatment to stabilize the patient for transport, (2) Identify a patient in cardiac arrest and to describe the components of high performance CPR...

14. Medical Emergencies: Airway, Breathing, and Circulation

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In this course, you will develop the knowledge and skills to assess and stabilize certain types of patients for transport. By the end of this course, you will be able to: 1) assess a basic medical patient 2) describe general pharmacologic principles and the skills associated with medication administration, 3) explain airway physiology, the assessment of the airway and available interventions for airway management, 4) identify, assess and formulate a plan to stabilize a patient with a...

15. Pain Management: Easing Pain in Palliative Care

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16. Addiction Treatment: Clinical Skills for Healthcare Providers

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This course is designed with a singular goal: to improve the care you provide to your patients with substance use disorders. By delving into a model case performed by actors, seven Yale instructors from various fields provide techniques to screen your patients for substance use disorder risk, diagnose patients to gauge the severity of their use, directly manage treatment plans, refer out to treatment services, and navigate the various conditions that may limit your patient’s access to treatment...

17. COVID-19 Training for Healthcare Workers

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COVID-19 is rapidly spreading across the globe and all providers must be prepared to recognize, stabilize and treat patients with novel coronavirus infection. Following completion of this short course physicians, nurses, and other healthcare professionals will have a unified, evidenced-based approach to saving the lives of patients with COVID-19, including those who are critically ill. Learning modules are broken into short videos presented in a richly illustrated and compelling manner. The...

18. Health Care Delivery in Healthcare Organizations

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Have you ever needed health care and thought that there must be better ways to get or deliver health care? For example, have you found yourself thinking that there should be a way to get a diagnostic test or treatment at home? Or do you work in a healthcare organization and find yourself thinking that there must be better ways to deliver health care? If you have, this course is for you. Course content includes an overview of health care delivery including healthcare consumerism, the patient's...

19. Prepare for the EMT Certification Test

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Welcome to your final course in Become and EMT! Prepare for the National Registry exam. The title for this course is a little bit misleading. We do hope that at the completion of this course that you feel more prepared to take the skills portion as well as the written portion of the national registry exam. More than anything else, however, our greatest hope is that we have given you the knowledge and tools to provide high quality patient care once you are certified as an EMT or once you achieve...

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WORKING WITH PATIENTS WITH SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS OR HIGH RISK This optional online course opportunity is made possible through a joint partnership with University of Virginia School of Medicine (UVASOM) and Nursing (SON) and the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry (AAAP), DATA 2000 sponsor. This content was created by the AAAP and has been used with permission. The course consists of one 1-hour session for healthcare providers who wish to enhance their effectiveness in treating high-risk...

Top 10 most affordable universities for internists

The most affordable schools for internists are University of Florida, florida international university, and hunter college of the city university of new york.

If the best universities for internists are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for internists.

1. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-State Tuition

$6,381

Cost of Attendance

21,034

2. Florida International University

Miami, FL • Private

In-State Tuition

$6,556

Cost of Attendance

19,434

3. Hunter College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-State Tuition

$7,182

Cost of Attendance

13,998

4. Florida Atlantic University

Boca Raton, FL • Private

In-State Tuition

$4,831

Cost of Attendance

19,559

5. University of South Florida

Tampa, FL • Private

In-State Tuition

$6,410

Cost of Attendance

20,456

6. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-State Tuition

$7,262

Cost of Attendance

14,046

7. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-State Tuition

$7,309

Cost of Attendance

16,714

8. University of Central Florida

Orlando, FL • Private

In-State Tuition

$6,368

Cost of Attendance

21,034

9. Louisiana State University at Alexandria

Alexandria, LA • Private

In-State Tuition

$6,668

Cost of Attendance

14,488

10. California State University - Long Beach

Long Beach, CA • Private

In-State Tuition

$6,798

Cost of Attendance

18,306

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for internists

The hardest universities for internists to get into are Northwestern University, Vanderbilt University, and University of Virginia.

Some great schools for internists are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for internists based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions Rate

8%

SAT Average

1,508

2. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions Rate

10%

SAT Average

1,514

3. University of Virginia

Charlottesville, VA • Private

Admissions Rate

26%

SAT Average

1,427

4. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions Rate

20%

SAT Average

1,419

5. Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD • Private

Admissions Rate

11%

SAT Average

1,513

6. Duke University

Durham, NC • Private

Admissions Rate

9%

SAT Average

1,516

7. Yale University

New Haven, CT • Private

Admissions Rate

6%

SAT Average

1,517

8. University of Rochester

Rochester, NY • Private

Admissions Rate

29%

SAT Average

1,422

9. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions Rate

8%

SAT Average

1,492

10. Northeastern University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions Rate

19%

SAT Average

1,466

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for internists

The easiest schools for internists to get into are AdventHealth University, d'youville college, and university of the incarnate word.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as an internist without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for internists.

1. AdventHealth University

Orlando, FL • Private

Admissions Rate

87%

SAT Average

1,016

2. D'Youville College

Buffalo, NY • Private

Admissions Rate

100%

SAT Average

1,072

3. University of the Incarnate Word

San Antonio, TX • Private

Admissions Rate

88%

SAT Average

1,044

4. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions Rate

84%

SAT Average

1,031

5. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions Rate

92%

SAT Average

1,031

6. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions Rate

81%

SAT Average

999

7. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions Rate

91%

SAT Average

1,006

8. Presentation College

Aberdeen, SD • Private

Admissions Rate

97%

SAT Average

1,050

9. Midwestern State University

Wichita Falls, TX • Private

Admissions Rate

71%

SAT Average

1,033

10. Washington Adventist Hospital

Takoma Park, MD • Private

Admissions Rate

52%

SAT Average

958

Average internist salary by education level

Internist education levelInternist salary
Doctorate Degree$231,831

Internist Education FAQs

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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