originally posted on the everyone forum in response to someone else's question...
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An MBA can be a very useful degree IF you know why you are doing it. If I were evaluating a candidate for the MBA degree OR if I were evaluating someone for residency, the main question I would have for them is the one you are asking: What are your career goals and how does [the MBA/the residency] fit in with those goals. If you have a compelling answer, then yes, I would say that an MBA is useful. If not, save your money and get an MBA later if you need it. Don't worry, there will be plenty of opportunities down the line to get it.
Having said this, you are correct in saying that the information that MBA studies impart on you will aid you in running an ED, or running your practice, and these skills will someday be more and more valuable. The counterpoint is that by the time you are ready to do that in your career, will you still remember your MBA training? I know quite a few MD/MBAs including some that are in a combined degree program such as you mentioned. I would say that the vast majority of them do NOT continue to practice medicine, and that is something that you will have to deal with. Believe me, when your friends from the B-School leave for their 6 figure jobs and you are faced with a grueling residency, it's easy to lose sight of why you went into medicine in the first place.
In summary, an MBA is a great degree. An MD is a great degree. An MD/MBA can be an excellent choice if you know why, but if you don't, you will be faced with even more anguish when you graduate and need to answer the question, "What the heck was I thinking!?!"
Good Luck.
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On to your specific question: salary.
From the business viewpoint: The salary for an MBA is almost totally dependent on the quality of the school that you get your MBA from. Top 10 schools routinely average close to 100k for the first year including bonuses, whereas 3rd tier schools can average in the 60k range. The advancement of salary varies depending on the field, investment banking and management consulting can take you to the million/year mark in about 10 years, but operations and marketers might only reach 150k. As you can see, the salary of an MBA can go from excellent to comparable to sub-par from a physician's standpoint. What does the MD add to this? Quite little actually. It opens doors into some companies (pharmaceutical/medical device/ insurance/other health-related companies) or some fields (think investment analysis of health based companies), but in general the salary bonus for the MD is fairly small at the entry level. On the other hand if you have been a practicing MD for a while and well known in your field, then the story is totally different, you can command significant premiums to others at your level. Ironically, very few of these career switchers have MBA's when they make the switch.
From the medical perspective: an MBA might help you run a big group practice or a medical venture (surgicenter, etc), however, for your every day doctor, it will do very little salary wise since each of these will decrease your clinical billings.
Summary?
Don't get an MD/MBA for the salary (come to think of it, don't get ANY degree for the salary) it won't let you make any more money than either degree alone in all likelihood. Get the degree because it allows you to pursue the career you always wanted to have. Also don't forget, if you have an MD, you can almost always go back and get the MBA later when you have more money, and know what you want to do with it.
