Physician Assistants build judgment and decision making, service orientation and social perceptiveness skills that carry over to other work. Below are 25 careers ranked by how closely their skills match, with pay from BLS May 2025. The closest match is Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary (71%).
Updated October 2026 · Data: O*NET 31.0 and BLS OEWS May 2025 · How we match careers
Sorted by skill match.
| # | Career | Skill match | Median pay | Pay change | Extra education |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary | 71% | $107,310 | −21% | None |
| 2 | Genetic Counselors | 71% | $100,040 | −26% | None |
| 3 | Medical Dosimetrists | 67% | $147,470 | +9% | None |
| 4 | Clinical Research Coordinators | 67% | $167,220Pay for the broader BLS group “Natural Sciences Managers” | Not compared | None |
| 5 | Health Informatics Specialists | 65% | $105,850Pay for the broader BLS group “Computer Systems Analysts” | Not compared | None |
| 6 | Atmospheric, Earth, Marine, and Space Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary | 64% | $103,170 | −24% | None |
| 7 | Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary | 63% | $80,250 | −41% | None |
| 8 | Economics Teachers, Postsecondary | 62% | $123,920 | −9% | None |
| 9 | Law Teachers, Postsecondary | 62% | $128,500 | −5% | None |
| 10 | Clinical Data Managers | 60% | $120,230Pay for the broader BLS group “Data Scientists” | Not compared | None |
Compared with Physician Assistants, median $135,880. Skill match is our estimate (0–99) from O*NET 31.0 skills, knowledge, work activities and interests, adjusted for preparation and big pay drops. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025, national median.
How important each skill is in work as physician assistants (O*NET importance, scale 1–5).
The gaps that show up most often across your top 10 matches.
Free and low-cost training: use the CareerOneStop training finder below.
A concrete first step, the skills to add, and the hard parts of each job, from O*NET 31.0 education, training and work context data.
71% skill match · $107,310 · −21% pay
Instructing · Equipment Maintenance · Operation and Control
71% skill match · $100,040 · −26% pay
67% skill match · $147,470 · +9% pay
Operation and Control · Operations Monitoring · Time Management
If you want to stay close to what you do now, these roles are the nearest.
The closest matches are Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary (71% skill match, median $107,310), Genetic Counselors (71% skill match, median $100,040) and Medical Dosimetrists (67% skill match, median $147,470), based on O*NET 31.0 data and BLS May 2025 pay.
Among the 25 matches, 2 pay more than physician assistants at the median. The biggest increases: Industrial-Organizational Psychologists (+43%, $193,950) and Medical Dosimetrists (+9%, $147,470).
25 of the 25 matches usually need no more education than you have now, based on O*NET Job Zones.
We compare the importance of skills, knowledge, work activities and interests in O*NET 31.0 for your job and every other career, then adjust for extra preparation and big pay drops. The full method is on our Methodology page.