Real-life CSI: What life and work are like as a forensic pathologist, and what to expect from the degree

You've probably watched your fair share of crime TV shows and movies, where forensic doctors perform and autopsy, and the cops solve a murder case. But this isn't quite what the job is like in real life.

Dr Philip Beh has spent the past 38 years working as a forensic pathologist in Hong Kong, and he says that doctors like him actually play a far bigger role in solving crimes in real life than you see on TV.

For a start, his work is not confined to the autopsy room. “Crime series rarely show the forensic doctor being one of the first people to get to the scene of the death,” Beh says. But in reality, pathologists begin by examining the body at the scene. This allows them to estimate how long the person has been dead, which will be crucial evidence if the person has been murdered, and to look for possible clues as to the cause of death.

To qualify as a forensic pathologist, a student will have to get into medical school and study for six years, then do one year of compulsory paid internship; after that, it’s a minimum of six years to qualify as a specialist forensic pathologist.

Once qualified, forensic doctors work normal office hours but will also take turns to be “on call” after hours to answer queries from police, to attend scenes of death and to examine victims of violence and other crimes.