Recent Grads Job Hunting in Boston/NYC

[clement]

What kinds of starting salaries are out there in Boston/NYC these days? Are they mostly inpatient jobs? I assume pure consult positions out of residency are mostly at academic centers and favor fellowship-trained individuals.

PS: I tried signing up for those physician recruiting job listings site but a lot of them didn't mention salaries up-front.

Thanks!

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[Fastball32]

Those are highly sought after areas. I'm assuming by NYC you are referring to the island of Manhattan. A majority of the positions that are listed are community programs, you can expect a salary of around $125 per hour.
There are definitely better jobs there, but I think it helps if you have connections there, since those cities are pretty saturated. Private practice jobs are available just outside (Bronx, Brooklyn in NY and 20 minutes outside of Boston).
I've been telling most of my younger classmates that doing a Fellowship in Child, Addictions, or Geriatrics opens many more doors.

As a disclaimer, I'm graduating this year and have been looking at classifieds the past six months.

 

[AnnTaylor]

Don't know if I calculated right, but $125/hr at 8hrs/day for 5 days/wk over 12 months, is that $240k/yr before taxes right out of residency? I thought it was more like $150s before taxes etc for a recent grad hired by a Manhattan hospital? Though I imagine salaries are better in the Bronx etc.

 

[dl2dp2]

I've heard lower-tier/non academic inpatient jobs in the 185k range with bonus, plus some time to set up a private practice, depending on where you went to residency and how good your connections are. This kind job is usually busy though and can include considerable weekend call. Boston is a bit more competitive than NYC, interestingly, because the pool of rich people is smaller (i.e. fewer faculty can do true full time PP) and the number residency programs are comparable.

State jobs are also plenty. For instance http://www.omh.ny.gov/omhweb/employment/Postings/P10047_721.htm
Of course, not everyone can handle working at Kirby, but you can call them and ask around. Keep in mind this is a base salary not including overtime pay, and if you do a few calls/private practice you can easily bump into the 200k+ range. I would expect most public psych jobs to be in the ~150k range, and there are ALWAYS openings. Perks galore: usually very laid back working for the gvt. Overtime pay. PENSION (while it lasts)!

$125 per hour is the rates for an ER job, which while low has oodles of advantages (i.e. no overhead). Private practice starts at $250+ an hour, but you need to have some know-how (i.e. this doesn't include overhead)/connections (where do you get your referral base?), and is harder to break into if you went to a mid-lower tier residency. High end PP is also where specialized training such as a fellowship would be very handy. Pure inpatient consult unfortunately is mostly a money loser, but specialized consultation-based private outpatient psychosomatic practice can be very lucrative.
Other considerations: it's much easier to set up a private practice in NJ/Brooklyn/Westchester than Manhattan, and you can live in Manhattan if you enjoy that kind of life style. Similar situation for rich suburbs of Boston, and again a little more competitive. I think SF/LA are probably better markets than Boston for private, but this is purely my speculation.

I would say if you went to a good program and have a decent resume you should start by having your dept chair calling dept chairs at the hospitals you like, and I wouldn't necessarily expect total salaries to be lower, but state/academic salary for a 40-hour week job probably start around 130-150k. (i.e. ~30-50k less than similar jobs in small markets). If you are not gung-ho about prestige I would also look into lower-tier departments in the suburbs. I know quite a number of attendings in both cities and they all live very nicely despite the ridiculous real estate, and they are not all married to bankers, so I wouldn't worry too much about salary.

 

[AnnTaylor]

Yeah interestingly apparently psych salary out of residency in Jersey is reputed to be excellent...I did hear 250s are not unheard of, but that's prob maxing at 80+ hrs

 

[digitlnoize]

Don't know if I calculated right, but $125/hr at 8hrs/day for 5 days/wk over 12 months, is that $240k/yr before taxes right out of residency? I thought it was more like $150s before taxes etc for a recent grad hired by a Manhattan hospital? Though I imagine salaries are better in the Bronx etc.

There's 52 weeks in a year, so it's actually $125*8*5*52=$260k

 

[notdeadyet]

There's 52 weeks in a year, so it's actually $125*8*5*52=$260k

When you hear salaries quoted in dollars per hour, it's more commonly paid out as an independent contractor, meaning no benefits. You need to allow for retirement, health insurance, etc. plus that two or three weeks of vacation plus holidays and sick time come out of your pocket.

Could be wrong, but most adverts I've seen for psych jobs that are full time with benefits talk about annual or monthly salary. Hourly usually is contract.

 

[splik]

and who works 52 weeks a year? I want at least 6 weeks off!

 

[digitlnoize]

I was assuming you wouldn't work all 52 weeks, but that there was some paid vacation time (4-6 weeks seems pretty standard, from the few adds I've seen).

 

[splik]

correct me if im wrong but if its per hour youre not getting a salary, so you wouldn't get paid for vacation. where you are salaried (i.e. fixed amount per year + bonus/golden handcuffs) it would include vacation.

 

[Fastball32]

Yes, the couple of community programs I interviewed at in NYC ranged from $110-125.
They were pretty flexible, and you can set your own hours.
If you work full-time, some benefits were included (malpractice).

Private Practice jobs you can expect $200-300 an hour, but you have to pay for all of your own overhead (license, pagers, etc) and they can take a cut off what you earn to cover other things (office space, credentialing, etc), which usually ranges from 25-35%.

Academic jobs starting out usually range from $145-170k/year (which work out to about $75 an hour), but maybe less stress and possibly more prestige in the long run.

$125 an hour x 40 hrs/week x 48 weeks = $240k.
It sounds like a lot, but I've heard Residents who moonlight can make anywhere from $75-125/hr.