MBA after medical school

[alaa300]

Hello ..
I'm a fresh MD graduate ..and i'm interested in non-clinical careers ..like health administration ,hospital management ..etc ..
Also i want to be an entrepreneur / business owner at some level of my life .
and i'm considering doing MBA ..before going to residency .. (if i got accepted in b-school)

My questions are :

1-What are the opportunities and careers options for MD/ MBA ? (it's separate -not dual program) .
with rough ideas about salaries , work hours..etc
2-for a specialized physician , i know it's almost guaranteed to have a job ,but the debate becomes about salary,lifestyle ,etc.. Is that the situation for MD/MBA ? i mean what level of guarantee to have a long term job.
3- IF i did MBA and then i decided to go back to residency ,will it help to get me in higher residency programs ..comparing to normal MD ? or it will be a negative point because i'm not committed to clinical career ?

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[michaelrack]

3- IF i did MBA and then i decided to go back to residency ,will it help to get me in higher residency programs ..comparing to normal MD ? or it will be a negative point because i'm not committed to clinical career ?

Chances of getting into residency decrease as time away from medical school increases

 

[alaa300]

Chances of getting into residency decrease as time away from medical school increases

this is scary ..
even if i did 1 year full time MBA ? i mean is 1 year away from medical school a big deal ?
it also depends on the question 1 and 2 ..if it's more likely to have a reasonably good job after MBA.. i wouldn't go back to clinical field ... but i have no idea about the job market .

 

[TheDoctorParadox]

Hi,

As ever, the answer always depends.

There are lots of opportunities for those who an MD and MBA. However, much of that value comes from the fact that you have unique knowledge of healthcare having been a physician. You learn an immense amount up to the point of graduation but you're real understanding comes from working within healthcare and really understanding what it means to be a doctor.

If you have an unmissable opportunity to get involved with a startup (And I mean UNMISSABLE) I would consider going for it. Otherwise, you are likely to get far greater value doing your MBA post Residency. You will have a far greater understanding of where you can add value.

The combined MD MBA can lead you in many directions including Healthcare Exec, Pharma or Device Exec, Chief Medical Officer, Medtech Startup Founder. In general though you will be of much greater value post Residency.

Paddy B
TheDoctorParadox.com

Hello ..
I'm a fresh MD graduate ..and i'm interested in non-clinical careers ..like health administration ,hospital management ..etc ..
Also i want to be an entrepreneur / business owner at some level of my life .
and i'm considering doing MBA ..before going to residency .. (if i got accepted in b-school)

My questions are :

1-What are the opportunities and careers options for MD/ MBA ? (it's separate -not dual program) .
with rough ideas about salaries , work hours..etc
2-for a specialized physician , i know it's almost guaranteed to have a job ,but the debate becomes about salary,lifestyle ,etc.. Is that the situation for MD/MBA ? i mean what level of guarantee to have a long term job.
3- IF i did MBA and then i decided to go back to residency ,will it help to get me in higher residency programs ..comparing to normal MD ? or it will be a negative point because i'm not committed to clinical career ?

 

[alaa300]

thanks for advice @TheDoctorParadox
well ,the reason of thinking of MBA is : i don't see myself in practicing clinical medicine ..so i thought that there are more choices in health field with MD/MBA .. i thought that it's a chance to get out of clinical field and go to business world ...
not the other way .. i mean not getting MBA to improve my medical career ..
and i though , after MBA , if i didn't find a job that i really like ..i will go back to residency ..as a backup plan even though i don't like it very much ..
Any suggestions ?

 

[OxToCA]

It seems like you're at a pretty important position in your career pathway. It also seems like you're asking quite a few different, and perhaps too many, questions in one post.

So, I have to ask, what made you decide to look into business schools now? Also, to accomplish what you want, you can do a residency instead of avoiding one to go to business school. If you're unable to do a residency for some reason, then consider doing management consulting for a year or two and then applying to an M7/top 10 business school.

If I were you, I'd check out the wall street oasis forums for business school advice regarding your situation; the crowd over there is pretty knowledgeable.

 

[alaa300]

If you're unable to do a residency for some reason, then consider doing management consulting for a year or two and then applying to an M7 business school.

i can go to residency , but i don't prefer to ..as i mentioned in my last reply : i don't see myself in a clinical medicine career ..
the reason of MBA is to have broader options .. i see it as a chance to get out of clinical medicine .. maybe i will leave medicine if i have a job that i like after MBA.
if i didn't find what i want from MBA , i'll go back to residency ..
about your suggestion : you meant doing a master in management ? i didn't really get what you meant by "doing management consulting for a year or two ".

 

[OxToCA]

i can go to residency , but i don't prefer to ..as i mentioned in my last reply : i don't see myself in a clinical medicine career ..
the reason of MBA is to have broader options .. i see it as a chance to get out of clinical medicine .. maybe i will leave medicine if i have a job that i like after MBA.
if i didn't find what i want from MBA , i'll go back to residency ..
about your suggestion : you meant doing a master in management ? i didn't really get what you meant by "doing management consulting for a year or two ".

Hmm, I think that you should still do a residency. Basically, your value won't be that great with an MD and an MBA without a residency.

Anyhow, management consulting refers to working for a consulting company providing your expertise to their clients; google bain or deloitte.

 

[doc05]

don't do a residency. if you don't see yourself in clinical medicine, it is a waste of time. you need many years of clinical experience to add value as an MD in the business world, and the time in residency alone is inadequate.

look into management consulting right out of MD school. doubt that will be a lifetime gig, but it may allow you some experience prior to doing an MBA or getting another job in the business world.

 

[SPSS]

Its clear to me that you are very confused and still do not know what you want in terms of career/life in general. And i Can tell you from experience those who knew exactly what they wanted and just focused on it made the most success in life.

All doctors who have their own medical practice are self employed/ entrepreneur without need for MBA. some exposure to budget, staffing, accounting, medical insurance codes can be obtained from short courses and other colleagues who own private practice.


Someone said it before in this forum (medical school is the most painful route to healthcare management/administration). There are thousands if not million of healthcare administrators and managers with degrees in healthcare management including masters/Phd who are younger, more experienced in the sector running healthcare facilities with extensive networking. And what ever degree in management you get you will step in the Queue and climb corporate ladder for years and years with low pay by the time you reach somewhere (low probability given the competition).

 

[spicysoup55]

I'm currently in medical school and interested in eventually working in academic medicine and using an MBA to gain skills for hospital administration. My school offers an MD/MBA program but I also want to explore options of doing the MBA after medical school in a way that interferes least with the typical path to an academic position. I'd appreciate it if anyone can help answer these questions:

1) Is it possible to take a 1-2 year leave during residency to complete an MBA degree? I've heard of people completing MPH degrees during residency and was wondering if it is the same for MBA.

2) If someone does an MBA after residency, is it still possible to get fellowships or positions in academic medicine post-MBA?

 

[tartesos]

I'm currently in medical school and interested in eventually working in academic medicine and using an MBA to gain skills for hospital administration. My school offers an MD/MBA program but I also want to explore options of doing the MBA after medical school in a way that interferes least with the typical path to an academic position. I'd appreciate it if anyone can help answer these questions:

1) Is it possible to take a 1-2 year leave during residency to complete an MBA degree? I've heard of people completing MPH degrees during residency and was wondering if it is the same for MBA.

2) If someone does an MBA after residency, is it still possible to get fellowships or positions in academic medicine post-MBA?

Leaving residency to complete an MBA is not ideal... In a lot places you can do fellowship and mph at the same time without taking time off, same could be done for an MBA.
Any other training during residency is not ideal because residency is stressful enough.

As for 2, the farther away from residency the more difficult it is to obtain a fellowship, but it is not impossible and a lot of people have done it.

I've toyed with the idea of an MBA myself and I will do it in the next 5 years or so. I chose to do it after fellowship, no rush!

Good luck and don't take no for an answer!

 

[singlemompa]

thanks for advice @TheDoctorParadox
well ,the reason of thinking of MBA is : i don't see myself in practicing clinical medicine ..so i thought that there are more choices in health field with MD/MBA .. i thought that it's a chance to get out of clinical field and go to business world ...
not the other way .. i mean not getting MBA to improve my medical career ..
and i though , after MBA , if i didn't find a job that i really like ..i will go back to residency ..as a backup plan even though i don't like it very much ..
Any suggestions ?

Coming from a manager in pharmaceutical manufacturing, the MBA degree is merely a differentiating factor (or enhancement of salary), not a ticket needed to gain entry into those types of positions, as is the case with undergrad and licensure/degrees. My personal opinion is solidify your MD to the point where you can use it when you break off into your business ventures. While you're doing that, be sure to treat yourself as the MD entrepreneur you are... keep a close eye on Financials, people management, negotiations, lean six sigma tools (very highly valued in Healthcare, also holds weight in ALL business. ..and you can certify without an mba degree.)

-just my 2cents

 

[phialpharaider]

I would like to ask an ancillary question to this topic for those MD's who have attained an MBA. I am an American but took a year off in undergrad to study abroad. I'm currently finishing up medical school. I've always wanted to return to that university and obtain an MBA. I had planned on doing so after residency. It's a one year program. My question, is it a bad idea to take a year off to do a full-time MBA program after residency? I don't want my clinical skills to diminish but timeline-wise, I want to do that program before my life takes off with marriage/kids/etc. I know there is great MBA programs in the US but I just want to go back to my old university and study for a degree there. Can anyone offer me some seasoned advice? My main concern is coming back and being rusty at medicine and wishing I hadn't taken the time off.
Thanks in advance!