Updated October 8, 2022
SKIN DOCTOR or Dermatologist always proves to be as a God for those who wish to have beautiful skin free from acne, rashes, and other skin issues. Essentially, Dermatologists, or skin care specialists, properly diagnose and manage skin, nails & hair-related disorders.
For the aspirants who aspire to make a career in dermatology requires much patience, determination & a lot of effort. More so, the journey to becoming a skin doctor is long & arduous. The article has tried to cover key essentials in becoming a dermatologist, so let’s get started!
What Do You Mean a Skin Doctor?
Skin Doctors or Dermatologists simply refer to the medical personnel who are specialized in providing proper treatment to patients suffering from skin, hair & nails-related complications. Not only cure skin ailments but also find out the symptoms that appear on the skin, which may have severe consequences on human health like Kidney failure.
Considerably, skincare specialists or Dermatologists have a lot of significance in the contemporary world. Factually, every individual encounters skin issues at least once in their life and requires a specialist who can diagnose, prevent & treat the skin diseases.
For the unversed, the skin is the largest & heaviest organ that acts as a shield in order to protect us from heat, cold germs & dangerous substances. Not only acts as a shield but also indicates to us about some changes or problems occurring in our bodies. The Ayurvedic medicine practitioners perfectly apply such changes in treating bodily ailments.
Who can be a Skin Doctor or Dermatologist?
The individuals who wish to make a career in dermatology must have at least a graduate (MBBS), proper training, & post-graduate (MD) degree in the same. Apart from the degree, the applicants might also have to obtain a certificate to practice this dermatology medicine across the world.
How to Become a Skin Doctor?
The path of making a career in dermatology requires a lot of effort, patience & perseverance from the candidates. Applicants in the journey of becoming a skin doctor or dermatologist will have to obtain basic to super-specialized degrees in the dermatology discipline. To make your way easy to become a Skin doctor or Skin Specialist, we have listed the steps which must follow:
Steps to Become a Dermatologist
Step 1: The journey to becoming a skin doctor or specialist starts with an intermediate examination. Here students must acquire a basic understanding of the branches of science like biology, physics, & chemistry so that it will become easy to crack the NEET-UG entrance test.
Step 2: Upon completing 12th schooling with physics, chemistry, & biology/biotechnology, the applicants will then require to qualify for the National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test with stipulated marks. Possessing a good score in the NEET examination will help you to enroll in the best colleges/universities.
Step 3: The actual journey to becoming a Skincare Specialist or Dermatologist begins with enrolling in the MBBS course. This undergraduate degree will help them to holistically learn & embrace knowledge about diverse disciplines that will have a large impact on pursuing a career in Dermatology.
Step 4: In the following steps, the aspirants will have to obtain 1 year of internship to get into either the dermatology field or others.
Step 5: After acquiring a year of internship, you can spread your hand to pursue a post-graduate (residency) program to get specialized in the discipline. The students can take MSc in Dermatology or MD Dermatology-like courses to become skin doctors or dermatologists.
Step 6: If graduates with an MD degree in Dermatology are interested in further specializations, they can take up an MCh degree from an approved institution by the Medical Council of India.
Step 7: In the journey of becoming a specialized dermatologist, they are several crucial steps that students will have to go with. Among them, opting fellowship programs can also become option if they wished to enhance skills, practical experiences & others in concerning the domain.
Step 8: To practice medicine, individuals will have to acquire a license or board certificate from the accredited medical council.
What are the Common Subjects of Dermatology?
In the journey of pursuing dermatology discipline in different programs, individuals learn various significant & crucial subjects from basic to comprehensively. Here are some of the common particulars that are touched by the participants to become a Doctor:
(a) Clinical Practice
(b) Evaluation of pigmented lesions
(d) Skin Biology and Common Disorders
(e) Actinic keratosis and squamous cell carcinoma
(f) Moles, Skin Cancers, Infections and Infestations
(g) Skin Systemic Disease, Hair, Nails and Oral Lesions
(h) Comprehensive Study Of Hair Removal And Ancillary Services
(i) Skin diseases in pregnancy, childhood, adolescence and old age
What are the Skills Required to Become a Skin Doctor?
Though a Skin Doctor is one of the most appealing medical career professions, becoming a dermatologist requires an arduous effort, several skills, and even compassion. Talking about the skills, possessing requisite skills & abilities will be a great advantageous point for the aspirants.
Although some of the skills & abilities imbibe during the journey of pursuing the program, there are various other skills that must be inside before joining the Dermatology program. Given below are some of the crucial skills for the aspirants who wish to become a skin Doctor or Skin Specialist:
(1) Passion: Being passionate about their career as a dermatologist will significantly help candidates hit the target successfully.
(2) Patience: To become a professional skin doctor takes you a minimum of 11-12 years of period. Therefore, patience is the key to success.
(3) Critical Thinking Ability: It is really important to possess a critical thinking ability so that candidates can analyze & evaluate the complications carefully and then provide proper treatment.
(4) Empathy for the patients: As the participants will encounter several kinds of patients with different disorders, it is crucial to possess empathy for patients.
(5) Ability to Work Long Hours: When aspirants possess such skills, they do justice to the field of dermatology & being a dermatologist.
(6) The candidate must have good problem-solving skills, good eyesight, and agility to perform hand-related tasks in their training in a hospital or medical center on biopsy, skin surgery, etc.
(7) Communication & Presentation skills: The aspirants must possess good communication & presentation skills to understand and dictate the complications to the patients.
Roles of Skin Doctor in Treating Skin Diseases
Obviously, the skin doctor is specialized in treating several kinds of skin disorders, from acute to chronic, but has to follow some procedures. Given below are a few duties which Skin Specialists or Dermatologists carry out:
(a) When Skin Doctors meet with patients, he/she records the individuals’ case histories, examine them & analyzes the core complications.
(b) Upon finding the actual causes of the disorder, the skin doctor communicates with patients about the issues & diagnosing procedures.
(c) If patients agree with the Doctors assessment of the diseases & diagnosing procedures, they prepare the treatment plan.
(d) Dermatologists often perform specialized diagnostic procedures related to skin disorders. They use treatments including:
(i) Externally applied or injected medicines
(ii) Ultraviolet (UV) light therapy.
(iii) A range of dermatologic surgical procedures, such as mole removal and skin biopsies.
(iv) Cosmetic procedures such as chemical peels, sclerotherapy and laser treatments
Common Conditions that Dermatologists Treat
Skin problems often occur to the human body: some are not to be worried about, while others unexpectedly take the severe form of issues. Listed below are some of the common skin complications, disorders, or diseases that Dermatologists or Skin Doctors use to treat:
(I) Rashes
(II) Scars
(III) Hives
(IV) Severe or persistent acne
(V) Warts
(VI) Hair loss
(VII) Nail disorders
(VIII) Skin cancer
(IX) Psoriasis
(X) Skin Infections
(XI) Eczema
(XII) Rosacea
(XIII) Long-lasting skin irritation
(XIV) Varicose and spider veins
(XV) Dark spots on your face (hyperpigmentation)
(XVI) A patch of skin or a mole has changed in size, color or shape
Popular Dermatology Courses to Become a Skin Doctor
Listed below are some of the popular & necessary Dermatology courses to become a skin Doctor:
Diploma Dermatology Courses
(I) Diploma in Dermatology
(II) Diploma in Skin and Venereology and Dermatology
(III) Diploma in Dermatology, Venereology and Leprosy
(IV) PG Diploma in Practical Dermatology
(V) Diploma in Advanced Skin Studies and Clinical Aesthetics
Undergraduate Dermatology Courses
(I) BSc Dermatology
(II) Bachelor of Dermal Science
(III) BSc in Clinical Dermatology
Post-Graduate Dermatology Courses
(I) MD in Dermatology
(II) Master of Science in Burn Case
(III) Master of Science in Dermatology
(IV) M.Sc. in Skin Sciences and Regenerative Medicine
PhD Dermatology Courses
(IV) PhD (Dermatology)
(VI) PhD (Dermatology & Venerology
(XIV) MPhil/PhD in Dermatological Sciences
Top Colleges for to Become a Dermatologist
Studying any discipline in the top-ranked universities has its own advantages, and has with Dermatology courses in the best colleges. The top-rated institutes will provide excellent learning ambient that eventually helps participants to grow potentially specialists. Here are some of the popular colleges for the aspirants:
(a) University of South Wales, UK
(b) Boston University, United States
(c) University College Dublin, Ireland
(d) CMC Vellore – Christian Medical College
(e) KPC Medical College and Hospital, Jadavpur
(f) AIIMS Delhi – All India Institute of Medical Sciences New
(g) Australian Academy of Cosmetic Dermal Science, Australia
Salary Trends
Upon completing the requisite qualifications, skills & certification, Dermatologists can stand in a position to earn a very considerable & appealing annual salary. At the beginning of the career, a professional can make somewhere around INR 10 Lakhs p.a. It will go high as the individual years of experiences increases in the field.
However, the participants not only pursue this most responsible profession to make a killing earning but are also largely inspired to serve the needy.
Questions Mostly Asked About a Dermatologist & Skin Doctor
Ans– A skin doctor is called as a Dermatologist, a more formal medical term who are specialized in diagnosing & managing complications related to skin, hair, & nails.
Ans- There is no difference between Dermatologist & skin Doctor, and Dermatologist is a more formal medical term that refers to skin care specialists or Doctors.
Ans- The journey to becoming a Dermatologist is long & takes at least 10-12 years to professionally practice Dermatology Medicine.
Ans- The average cost to become a dermatologist in India is around 25 Lakhs INR [indicative], varying as per the course and university you choose.
Ans- Yes, MBBS is reasonably necessary to become a dermatologist, skin care specialist, or Skin Doctor.
Reads Beyond Dermatologists Under Careers Listings
How Much is an Airline Pilot Salary in India from Early Entry?
What Scope & Salary MSc Chemistry Jobs Can Offer You?
What Do you Think About Becoming a Neurologist & its Salary?
Do You Have any Fair Idea On the Scope of Microbiology?
How Career in Merchant Navy Has Been Fairly Lucrative?
How Do You View Career & Salary of a Drug inspector in India?