Urologists

Salary Overview

Salary exceeds BLS reporting threshold ($239,200/yr). Values shown are based on mean annual wage.

Job Outlook (2024–2034)

Key Skills

Knowledge Areas

What They Do

• Diagnose or treat diseases or disorders of genitourinary organs and tracts including erectile dysfunction (ED), infertility, incontinence, bladder cancer, prostate cancer, urethral stones, or premature ejaculation.
• Examine patients using equipment, such as radiograph (x-ray) machines or fluoroscopes, to determine the nature and extent of disorder or injury.
• Order and interpret the results of diagnostic tests, such as prostate specific antigen (PSA) screening, to detect prostate cancer.
• Document or review patients' histories.
• Prescribe or administer antibiotics, antiseptics, or compresses to treat infection or injury.
• Treat urologic disorders using alternatives to traditional surgery such as extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy, laparoscopy, or laser techniques.
• Provide urology consultation to physicians or other health care professionals.
• Treat lower urinary tract dysfunctions using equipment such as diathermy machines, catheters, cystoscopes, or radium emanation tubes.

Tools & Technology

★ = Hot Technology (in-demand)

Education Requirements

Typical entry-level education: On-the-Job Training

Related Careers

Featured In

Careers with the highest skill compatibility from Urologists.

A Day in the Life

A urologist's day balances clinic appointments with operating room time in a rhythm that distinguishes the specialty from purely medical disciplines. Morning clinic sessions involve new patient consultations for conditions like hematuria, incontinence, or elevated PSA, as well as follow-ups for patients undergoing cancer surveillance or post-surgical recovery. Afternoons are often dedicated to the operating suite, where urologists perform robotic-assisted prostatectomies, ureteroscopic stone fragmentations, cystoscopies, and bladder reconstructions. Hospital rounding on inpatients and handling urgent consultations from the emergency department fill remaining gaps, and those taking call may be paged at night for obstructive ureteral stones or traumatic injuries.

Work Environment

Urologists work primarily in outpatient urology clinics and hospital operating suites, with substantial time at endoscopy suites for diagnostic and minor therapeutic cystoscopies. Academic urologists also spend significant time in research laboratories, lecture halls, and teaching conferences. The physical demands of robotic surgery—operating from a console for extended periods—are more ergonomically favorable than open surgery, though fatigue and mental concentration demands remain high. Call responsibilities vary widely by practice setting: solo or small group practices carry heavier call burdens, while large academic departments distribute on-call duties across larger rosters.

Career Path & Advancement

Urology training begins with four years of medical school, followed by a five-to-six year urology residency that provides progressive surgical and clinical training across the full breadth of the specialty. Many urologists pursue one or two-year subspecialty fellowships to gain additional expertise in areas such as urologic oncology, female pelvic medicine, pediatric urology, or andrology. Board certification from the American Board of Urology requires passing written and oral examinations after completing residency. Most urologists practice in multispecialty groups or academic medical centers, with a significant number in private practice, particularly in suburban and rural markets with less competition from large health systems.

Specializations

Urologic oncology focuses on cancers of the kidney, bladder, prostate, testis, and adrenal glands, with subspecialists performing complex open and robotic surgeries and managing multimodal cancer treatment plans. Female pelvic medicine and reconstructive surgery addresses incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, and fistula repair, often in collaboration with gynecologists. Pediatric urology corrects congenital anomalies such as hypospadias, vesicoureteral reflux, and undescended testes in infants and children. Endourology and stone disease specialists focus exclusively on minimally invasive management of kidney stones, ureteral obstructions, and upper tract tumors using ureteroscopes, lasers, and percutaneous techniques.

Pros & Cons

Industry Insight

Prostate cancer management is undergoing a significant paradigm shift toward active surveillance for low-risk disease, precision focal therapy, and new systemic agents for advanced disease—all requiring urologists to continually update their clinical expertise. The rapid adoption of robotic-assisted surgery, now performed on da Vinci platforms in nearly every major hospital, has become a near-universal competency requirement for academic and community urologists alike. A national urology workforce shortage is projected to intensify as the aging population grows, increasing demand for stone disease treatment, cancer care, and benign prostatic hyperplasia management. Telehealth adoption in urology, particularly for post-operative follow-up, incontinence counseling, and testosterone therapy management, is expanding access and reshaping practice workflows.