MD with residency training thinking about top 10 MBA program.
Hello WSO, I was hoping that someone could help me out. I am a medical doctor who is currently in residency training. I am from Texas, have an undergraduate GPA of 3.84 overall and a 4.0 in my major (biology) from my local state school, went to medical school in Texas, and then got in to a residency program in California. I was hoping someone on this forum could tell me in their opinion how top MBA programs view doctors applying to their program. Is an MD and advantage or a disadvantage? I don't have a gmat score, but I plan on taking the exam soon and am aiming for a 700+.
Many people I have talked to are very discouraging, and their focus is income sacrificed to obtain an MBA. I don't think of it in that way. Many also tell me to apply to the part time MBA programs or the executive MBA programs, but I would rather just do that traditional 2 year program. I am pretty excited about applying when I finish residency which is still 3 years away. I just wanted to hear some of WSO's thoughts.
What are your long term goals? In what ways do you think an MBA will help you achieve them?
I have a close friend who did exactly this. He went to GSB and then did consulting at MBB for three years. Couldn't be happier for his experience as a MD and feels the same way about his time in consulting. He has his pick of jobs in medical devices and has been made several offers at VC firms. At the end of the day you will have a ton of debt, but as long as you are willing to go for a compensation focused career when you graduate (at least for a few years) it is manageable.
"Many people I have talked to are very discouraging, and their focus is income sacrificed to obtain an MBA. I don't think of it in that way."
What way do you think of it? You do know that with $200k in debt, you are accruing ~$1,000 a month just in interest right?
You are probably beating down 30s door with a few 100k in debt. My guess is that you are afraid of the real world because you are good at school and it is fun to party, and your plan is to stay there as long as possible.
To some people, having to make large debt payments in exchange for a much better life or profession is well worth it.
Money is not everything, especially if you land a gig where you're already making well over 6 figures a year and living a satisfying life. What's an extra 1K a month for a few years if you're entire life is better off?
Back to the original post: I would think that an MD would only enhance your profile as an MBA student. But 3 years is still a long way away, and you may have already changed your mind by that point. Visit the issue again when you come closer to finishing your current program.
I don't really know what the fuck I'm talking about, but I don't see why you wouldn't be competitive if you had a compelling story (such as why MBA) coupled with good work/EC experience. Given your probable debt load from med school, a better question is whether you should even bother pursuing an MBA.
They'll love you if you have a good story of why you want to do business vs medicine, but down the road, do you want 200k more in debt? If you just MUST work in biotech or healthcare PE/VC/ER and the partying is worth the delayed earnings, then maybe.
I think if you're interested in business, you should start networking now for a consulting job at McK/BCG/Bain. You'll get in as an associate and pay down some of that debt while getting some contacts and learning the business side of the healthcare industry.
LOL it's not that easy to break into MBB. OP already said he went to a local state college; do you think MBB really cares he is an MD? There's probably thousands of people with similar profiles.
Ivy League kids with no specialized knowledge trying to break into consulting straight out of college/MBA are a dime a dozen, while MDs interested in business are not. And the hottest sector in consulting is healthcare right now and it will continue to grow rapidly due to demographic and regulatory factors (one of my friends just left BCG because he was "sick of working on just healthcare projects"). And by the way many state schools have top notch med school programs above and beyond programs at ivies.
Hello, thank you all for the great responses. I see that there is some differences in opinion regarding my MD and if it will make me more attractive to the MBA programs. I really enjoy being a doctor, and by the time I apply I hope to have very little loan debt. Tuition in Texas was only $18,000 per year, so my loan debt is not that bad. As a doctor I am making differences in peoples lives and it feels amazing. I do not think that being a doctor is what will define my life. I want to experience other things in life, and I feel that a MBA will be the change in direction that I need.
This is a really great website, and I plan on reading up more on the process of applying. I tried looking for topics related to medical doctor applying to top MBA programs, but I was not successful. It is great to hear some of the stories that you guys have regarding people in my shoes. I also appreciate the people that are brutally honest because you give me good perspective.
Most of the MD/MBAs I know either do it concurrently and then do residency, or just skip residency and go corporate track after MBA. Doing 3 years of residency then doing IB or consulting make little sense.
Why will an MBA help you?
What career do you see yourself doing with an MBA?
Do you really need an MBA to be a consultant?
Also, what residency training are you seeking?
-an MS3
I know some ppl who has gone thru the MD/MBA track.
Some of them just skipped residency and went directly into consulting (that profile would be a hit for MBB just to consult for their healthcare clients). Others went to residency and do their things on the side (VC, etc.)
Getting accepted into a Top MBA is much easier than to a Top Medical School, as far as some OPs here might not like it. Medicine is a serious business, you are playing with other people's lives. I just googled, and HMS has an acceptance rate of 4.5% (impressive) while the MBA program is over 10%. I also know ppl that made their MD at state medical schools and when to M7, so that says you something. With a MD you will be such a competitive/unique candidate, as others mentioned not many MD are interested in business.
yeesh. basketball players want to be rappers and rappers want to be basketball players. Honestly, 99% of physicians should just stick to medicine. we already have a shortage of primary care doctors, and frankly, on top of that, there are a lot of mediocre MDs practicing out there. If you're a good MD from a top med school looking at this site--please...stick to medicine. you'll have a higher utility to humanity this way. invent something, find a cure, make medicine more accessible to poor people, come up with a new surgical technique. when you need capital for your company and shit like that, then talk to the financiers. otherwise, leave finance to the finance folk.
If OP wants to do finance, then by all means do it. He has no obligation to anybody to benefit society by working in medicine. However, OP you seem to really enjoy the "helping people" aspect of medicine and I hope you dont think that will be there in finance. Finance is a career based on doing one thing, making more money. Medicine can provide you with a high income as well as the intangible aspect of the job you seem to enjoy. You should be competitive for a Top 10 MBA, but you should take a hard look into whats its going to be like on the other side before you take on 100k more of debt
Fair enough. But frankly, I hope more physicians do feel like they have an obligation to society by working in medicine.
Hello, Thank you all for the great responses. In response to the poster that stated that doctors should stick to medicine and invent a cure, or make medications that are cheap, I think you are confusing a PhD scientist working in a lab with a medical doctor. I like medicine, but just because I became a doctor does not mean that I want to practice medicine for the rest of my life. That's why the MBA is so attractive to me, because it is so different from what I am doing now. You only live once and I don't want to have regrets.
One question that I would like to ask you guys is regarding earning potential. I do understand that the sky is the limit in finance, but I do not have too much exposure into the world of finance. I can tell you that an internal medicine doctor can earn $200-$300K a year after finishing a 3 year residency but it is hard to get past that due to that fact that they get paid per each patient seen, and their productivity is limited by the fact that they are one person. Anesthesiologist will make $250-$350K out of residency and they can go up somewhat, after a while. What I can't tell anyone is what the real numbers are for finance jobs.
I hear about VC jobs, investment, trading, an so on. What I dont know, if these are the rare job, or if its the norm in finance. Would one get a huge drop in salary going from an MD to one of these finance jobs? What are some actual salaries that some of you guys have heard of? One thing that is interesting for me, is that a MD will have his income guaranteed, but in finance it seems like it is all over the place.
When I wrote my original response, I did so with the impression that your primary motivation for finance was entirely money related. While there's nothing wrong with that, I believe a move into finance strictly for better income would ultimately be a mistake. If it's not the primary motivation, then by all means...
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