Income information

[clockitnow]

I have been so focused on the "heart" reasons about why I wanted to get an MD/PhD that I hadn't really stopped to consider the "head" reasons.

Does an MD/PhD who goes into academic medicine usually recieve a higher salary than his MD only or PhD only counterparts? Where is there concrete information about this? What does a professor at a medical school usually make? What does an MD/PhD in industry usually make?

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[Gfunk6]

Does an MD/PhD who goes into academic medicine usually recieve a higher salary than his MD only or PhD only counterparts?

An MD/PhD who goes into academic medicine will generally receive less money than his private-practicing MD counterpart. If he stays in a clinical department however, then he will make more than a straight PhD.

There are, of course, other benefits to being in academic medicine such as cutting-edge technology, working with the brightest in the field, and the satisfaction of pushing the frontiers of your field.

 

[BDavis]

I have been so focused on the "heart" reasons about why I wanted to get an MD/PhD that I hadn't really stopped to consider the "head" reasons.

Does an MD/PhD who goes into academic medicine usually recieve a higher salary than his MD only or PhD only counterparts? Where is there concrete information about this? What does a professor at a medical school usually make? What does an MD/PhD in industry usually make?

I think I recently saw an AAAS salary survey where they asked different professionals how much they made. I seem to remember that private M.D.>academic M.D.>academic M.D./Ph.D>academic Ph.D. I don't remember exact numbers. I remember one of my medicine attendings discussing salary with me. She said she started out at ~80-90K at a VA as an assistant professor and ended up somewhere around 120K. The salary also stratified salary based on assistant vs. associate vs. full professor. Try googling for "AAAS salary survey".

 

[Fermata]

What's the difference between an "academic MD" and an "academic MD/PhD" then?

 

[clockitnow]

What's the difference between an "academic MD" and an "academic MD/PhD" then?

I assume that it means an someone with a medical degree with an academic position vs. someone with an MD/PhD with an academic position.

 

[BDavis]

I assume that it means an someone with a medical degree with an academic position vs. someone with an MD/PhD with an academic position.

I think that was how the study segregated the survey responses.

 

[Fermata]

If they both hold the same positions then what would account for the disparity in income?

 

[ninebillion]

If they both hold the same positions then what would account for the disparity in income?

Maybe a greater number of the academic MDs are doing traditional clinical research. Seeing patients equates to more money.

 

[Fermata]

Maybe a greater number of the academic MDs are doing traditional clinical research. Seeing patients equates to more money.

Makes sense.

 

[ears]

Don't get an MD/PhD to make more money. It probably won't work.

Basically, in academic medicine, the more clinical you are, the more you make, whereas the more research/academically-oriented you are, the less you make. And in any case, working at an academic center is usually less lucrative than private practice. (In some fields, like radiology, this disparity can be pretty extreme.)

You do research and/or academics because it's who you are and what you love. You get an MD/PhD because it helps you establish a more research-oriented medical career.

Good luck.