How difficult is it to pursue an academic ophthalmology position. I am pretty sure I want to pursue an academic position after residency/fellowship, but it seems pretty difficult to become get an academic position. I am not a big fan of research, but mostly enjoy the clinical aspects of academia (teaching students, residents, fellows). I hear a pathology and neuro-ophthalmology fellowships are the easiest way of getting your foot in the door. I understand that the pay is drastically reduced for academic positions (don't care about pay)Would appreciate any pro's/con's debate as well. Thanks
academic ophthalmology
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I think getting your foot in the door shouldn't be too hard given that most ophthalmology residency programs are in university or university-affiliated medical centers. Having said that, displaying interest only in teaching residents/fellows may not suffice, as many programs may require some degree of research/scholarly activity.
Good luck 😉
Good luck 😉
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I'll tell you, first off, that if you like the teaching aspect, you have other options than outright academia. I'm in private practice, but I have an affiliation with the local university and, as such, lecture to the residents and fellows. I also assist in training of the retina fellows. They spend a half day once per week in my clinic. I'll soon be staffing the VA resident retina clinic a couple times per month. I've been involved in some clinically-based research. I feel that gives me the best of both worlds.
For a long time, I was headed toward academia. If you do decide to pursue it, there are typically different tracks available. They are different blends of clinical, teaching, and research. Depends on the department. I'll say that most faculty I know do at least clinically-based research.
There are a number of downsides, but some upsides. You have to answer to the Chairman, who then answers to the Dean. You'll never be your own boss, and depending on the personalities involved, it can be okay or terrible. You're right about the pay difference (mainly due to the Dean's tax), but there are other perks. You have residents (and sometimes fellows) to cover call. You can also attend a lot of meetings on the university dime. There's prestige, if you care about that sort of stuff, in being an academic.
I don't think finding an academic job is as hard as you are perceiving. May not be Wilmer, but there are plenty of opportunities.
For a long time, I was headed toward academia. If you do decide to pursue it, there are typically different tracks available. They are different blends of clinical, teaching, and research. Depends on the department. I'll say that most faculty I know do at least clinically-based research.
There are a number of downsides, but some upsides. You have to answer to the Chairman, who then answers to the Dean. You'll never be your own boss, and depending on the personalities involved, it can be okay or terrible. You're right about the pay difference (mainly due to the Dean's tax), but there are other perks. You have residents (and sometimes fellows) to cover call. You can also attend a lot of meetings on the university dime. There's prestige, if you care about that sort of stuff, in being an academic.
I don't think finding an academic job is as hard as you are perceiving. May not be Wilmer, but there are plenty of opportunities.
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I don't think getting an academic job is hard, unless you have your heart set on working at Wilmer, Wills, Bascom, etc, etc. There are plenty of academic programs needing folks. The key is any fellowship. It is hard IMO to get an academic spot as a comprehensive ophtho. They all need\want fellowship trained folks.
If a big powerhouse is where you want to work, you will need a good pedigree behind you.
If a big powerhouse is where you want to work, you will need a good pedigree behind you.
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Is there a benefit to doing multiple fellowships (in terms of landing an academic position) instead of doing just one? I'm curious whether you would normally focus on only one subspecialty (say, retina) when you're working as an academic ophthalmologist or if you would conduct research in many different aspects of ophthalmology. I look at physician's resumes and see that many of them have training in all of these different subspecialties and wonder if it really helps them in the competitive world of academia or if they merely did it out of interest.
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I think you are stressing too much about academics. To answer your question though, yes people do 2 fellowships sometimes but it is NOT common. Also there are some pre-made combo fellowships, cornea\uveitis and plastics\neuro come to mind. The most common 2 fellowships to do together seem to be retina\uveitis, peds\neuro, and plastics\neuro. I would only do 2 fellowships if you really wanted to do both obviously and it would probably help you stand out to a program.
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I'd agree with MR1. Not many do multiple fellowships. The ones that do typically do so because of interest in broadening scope. For instance, not many only do fellowships in uveitis or oncology or pathology. Those are usually paired with another fellowship. Some do additional fellowships to boost their credentials (e.g., use a pathology fellowship at a prominent institution as a means to get them into a retina fellowship somewhere else). I wouldn't purposely plan on doing multiple fellowships, because it's usually unnecessary.
Pros:
-great health insurance
-good pension
-first call taken by residents/fellows
-complex patients (can be rewarding)
-prestige
-marketing support
-usually more sophisticated ancillary equipment
-do not need to rub as many elbows for referrals (in-network referrals)
-exposure to teaching and research
Cons:
-complex patients (can wear you out)
-uninsured patients
-lower pay
-lack of decision-making/control over scheduling, EMR, personnel (ie, you can't fire
them), etc.
-politics (intra-departmental and inter too - any large practice will have this)
-no ownership and thus lower job security
-submit to rules/regulation of University (regardless of logic)
-super sub-specialized (if you have a broad field of clinical interest, you may
not be able to pursue them due to politics)
-less control over vacation time
I agree with others who have suggested that you can teach without being in an academic center - especially with community based programs.
-great health insurance
-good pension
-first call taken by residents/fellows
-complex patients (can be rewarding)
-prestige
-marketing support
-usually more sophisticated ancillary equipment
-do not need to rub as many elbows for referrals (in-network referrals)
-exposure to teaching and research
Cons:
-complex patients (can wear you out)
-uninsured patients
-lower pay
-lack of decision-making/control over scheduling, EMR, personnel (ie, you can't fire
them), etc.
-politics (intra-departmental and inter too - any large practice will have this)
-no ownership and thus lower job security
-submit to rules/regulation of University (regardless of logic)
-super sub-specialized (if you have a broad field of clinical interest, you may
not be able to pursue them due to politics)
-less control over vacation time
I agree with others who have suggested that you can teach without being in an academic center - especially with community based programs.
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^ Nice, succinct summary.
guttata summarized it nicely.
A lot also depends on where you wish to work/practice geographically. If you are limited to a particular location or two, there simply might not be any academic openings available.
The key to finding a good academic position is being willing to relocate to where the best opening or 'fit' for you is.
Bottom line is what happens to be available when you are applying, but if location is not much of an issue, securing an academic position is usually not terribly difficult.
Also keep in mind there are a couple tracks in academics (depending on the institution), usually a medical line (which is like the old 'tenure' track) and a clinical line ... both offer the ability to teach and attend conference, but the medical line usually has research requirements and more of an 'up or out' structure (meaning you have to start at assist prof and within x years apply for assoc prof, if you miss the cut you don't have a job anymore).
A lot also depends on where you wish to work/practice geographically. If you are limited to a particular location or two, there simply might not be any academic openings available.
The key to finding a good academic position is being willing to relocate to where the best opening or 'fit' for you is.
Bottom line is what happens to be available when you are applying, but if location is not much of an issue, securing an academic position is usually not terribly difficult.
Also keep in mind there are a couple tracks in academics (depending on the institution), usually a medical line (which is like the old 'tenure' track) and a clinical line ... both offer the ability to teach and attend conference, but the medical line usually has research requirements and more of an 'up or out' structure (meaning you have to start at assist prof and within x years apply for assoc prof, if you miss the cut you don't have a job anymore).
