Healthcare & Medical Jobs in San Diego, CA
Healthcare added more jobs in San Diego over the past year than any other sector, and the hiring runs from the Kearny Mesa hospital cluster to Hillcrest, La Jolla, Chula Vista and Escondido. The guides below cover every healthcare and medical role in San Diego, who is hiring and what it pays.
Why Healthcare Work Is Different in San Diego
San Diego's healthcare jobs are concentrated in a few large systems rather than spread across dozens of small hospitals. Sharp HealthCare, Scripps Health, UC San Diego Health and Kaiser Permanente run the main hospital and clinic networks, and Rady Children's anchors pediatric care from its campus on Children's Way. Kearny Mesa, along SR-163 and Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, holds Sharp Memorial, Sharp Mary Birch, Rady Children's and Kaiser's San Diego Medical Center within a few miles of each other. Hillcrest has UC San Diego Health and Scripps Mercy, and the I-5 and I-805 corridor around La Jolla and UTC holds Jacobs Medical Center, Scripps Memorial La Jolla, Scripps Clinic Torrey Pines and the VA Medical Center.
The San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce counts healthcare and social assistance as the largest source of new jobs in the region, up 16,600 jobs in the year to June 2026, with an average healthcare services wage of about $81,000. Pay floors are high too: the city's general minimum is $17.75 an hour, and California's health care worker minimum wage reached $25 an hour on July 1, 2026 at large health systems with 10,000 or more full-time staff. Outpatient care is a big employer in its own right, with Sharp Rees-Stealy's 22 locations and the Scripps Clinic network hiring LVNs across the county, and Family Health Centers of San Diego running more than 90 community clinic sites.
Top Healthcare Employers in San Diego
These San Diego employers post healthcare and medical jobs on their own career sites:
- Sharp HealthCare - Sharp Memorial, Mary Birch, Grossmont, Chula Vista and Mesa Vista hospitals plus the Sharp Rees-Stealy medical group, with a one-year new-grad Nurse Residency Program.
- Scripps Health - Scripps Memorial La Jolla and Encinitas, Scripps Mercy in Hillcrest and Chula Vista, and Scripps Clinic sites from Torrey Pines to Santee.
- UC San Diego Health - the region's academic medical center, hiring for Hillcrest Medical Center and the La Jolla campus around Jacobs Medical Center.
- Kaiser Permanente - San Diego Medical Center on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, Zion Medical Center and medical offices including Viewridge Court and Fordham.
- Rady Children's - the region's children's hospital, hiring RNs for emergency, medical, surgical and sub-acute units under a union contract.
- Palomar Health - North County's public system, recruiting nurses at Palomar Medical Center Escondido with hiring incentives.
- VA San Diego Healthcare System - the VA Medical Center in La Jolla, hiring nurses and LVNs through USAJOBS.
Healthcare Career Paths in San Diego
- Nursing - Registered Nurse, Licensed Vocational Nurse, Certified Nursing Assistant and Patient Care Technician. The largest group of hospital jobs, with clear steps from aide to LVN to RN.
- Clinic and office support - Medical Assistant, Medical Receptionist, Medical Biller and Coder and Dental Assistant. Many of these jobs sit in outpatient networks like Sharp Rees-Stealy, Scripps Clinic and the community clinics.
- Diagnostics and technical - Medical Laboratory Technician, Phlebotomist, Pharmacy Technician, Radiologic Technologist, Surgical Technologist and Respiratory Therapist. Mostly hospital-based roles that often need a certificate or license.
- Emergency, rehab and behavioral health - EMT and Paramedic, Physical Therapy Assistant and Behavioral Health Technician, plus the Healthcare overview guide for the whole sector.
How to Start a Healthcare Career in San Diego
- California RN license - issued by the California Board of Registered Nursing after an approved program and the NCLEX-RN.
- California LVN license - issued by the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians after an approved program and the NCLEX-PN. California uses LVN, not LPN.
- San Diego City College and Grossmont College - associate degree nursing programs on Park Boulevard and in El Cajon, both approved by the Board of Registered Nursing, with an LVN to RN track at City College.
- SDSU School of Nursing - a BS in Nursing with direct freshman entry on the College Area campus.
- Southwestern College vocational nursing - an 18-month LVN program at the Higher Education Center at Otay Mesa, with an LVN to RN Step-up.
- Family Health Centers of San Diego Medical Assistant Institute - a 710-hour medical assistant program with tuition loan forgiveness.
- AHA BLS certification - expected by nearly every San Diego hospital and clinic, with ACLS or PALS for many units.
The RN and LVN licenses are legally required to work under those titles; BLS and the advanced life support certifications are employer requirements, and the training programs are routes to licensure or hiring rather than legal requirements in themselves.
Healthcare Salaries in San Diego
- Entry - about $23 to $28 an hour for nursing aides and similar support roles, based on a UC San Diego Health range, and never below the state health care minimum.
- Mid - about $31 to $48 an hour for LVNs, based on ranges posted by Sharp Rees-Stealy and Scripps Clinic.
- Senior - roughly $58 to $92 an hour for registered nurses, based on ranges posted by Scripps, Sharp, UC San Diego Health and Rady Children's.
These are estimates drawn from employer postings. Union contracts set RN pay at Rady Children's, and placement at every system depends on years of experience, unit and shift. Critical care, emergency, pediatric and night roles pay toward the top of each range, and some employers add incentives, such as Sharp's sign-on bonus of up to $2,000 for LVNs and Palomar Health's hiring incentive for experienced med-surg nurses.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who are the largest healthcare employers in San Diego?
Sharp HealthCare, Scripps Health, UC San Diego Health, Kaiser Permanente and Rady Children's are the biggest, with Palomar Health in North County and the VA in La Jolla. Family Health Centers of San Diego runs more than 90 community clinic locations.
What is the healthcare minimum wage in San Diego?
California's health care worker minimum wage sits above the city's $17.75 general minimum. Since July 1, 2026 it is $25 an hour at large health systems and dialysis clinics, $23 at most other covered facilities and $22 at community clinics, with a lower rate for certain hospitals that rely heavily on government payers.
Which healthcare jobs need a state license in California?
Registered nurses need a license from the California Board of Registered Nursing, and LVNs need one from the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians. Requirements for other roles vary, and each guide above explains the rules for its role.
Where can I train for healthcare jobs in San Diego?
San Diego City College and Grossmont College offer associate degree nursing programs, SDSU offers a BS in Nursing, and Southwestern College runs an LVN program at Otay Mesa. Family Health Centers of San Diego runs a medical assistant institute.
Do San Diego hospitals train new graduates?
Yes. Sharp runs a one-year Nurse Residency Program for new-grad RNs, with cohorts at hospitals such as Sharp Chula Vista and the Sharp Metropolitan Medical Campus. Application windows are often a week or less, so check the career sites regularly.
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