MPH Health Management / Administration Fellowships

[Mario_MD]

Hello,

I am a MD and will start my MPH in Health Management at Harvard next month, expecting to graduate in May 2018.

I am considering doing a 1-2 year health administration / management fellowship from a top-tier hospital (Mass General, John Hopkins, Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic etc.) vs. diving straight into the job market. I am sure that these fellowships are competitive but I am hopeful about my chances. Regardless, I would only consider doing such a fellowship at a top-tier hospital or not at all.

I aspire to reach senior level hospital management positions and feel that a structured fellowship wherein I rotate through various hospital departments would be a great, holistic experience. But would such an experience be superfluous after a MPH in Health Management? Not to mention the opportunity cost of such a fellowship.

I will appreciate advice on the short and long-term benefits of such a fellowship. Will it allow me to enter the job market at a more senior level than I would get right out my MPH? Can I expect a higher salary after the fellowship? Other thoughts, suggestions etc.

Thank you for your time!

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[deleted462159]

To answer your first question, is it superfluous after an MPH in Health Management? Absolutely not. It's invaluable experience and will definitely allow you to enter the job market at a more senior level than someone without one. Most often, the health system will want to retain you as well. After all, as an admin fellow, you're exposed to the organization at a much higher level than someone even 10-15 years into their career does. Depends on the fellowship, but most of the ones I've seen involve you in Board meetings, executive meetings, high-level strategy & capital planning projects, etc. You may even run a department or lead a major project. A mentor and hospital CEO mentioned to me: "We invest so much in our admin fellows. If you're a great fellow, we'll definitely want to keep you. If you're a poor fellow, we'll still try to keep you as a manager in some department."

To your point about it being a "top-tier hospital," I don't think that's necessary. Even a moderately good hospital will do. In my opinion, it's about the opportunity. A colleague of mine during her fellowship at Palomar Health in San Diego led the acquisition and integration of a 7-doctor medical group. Post-fellowship she joined the health system as an Associate Director. Colleagues post-fellowship have stepped into manager positions at their hospitals for 3-4 few years. Some then move up within the organization, though most go into industry, consulting, tech startups, etc. after that.

The drawback, of course, is that fellowships typically aren't paid top dollar. This is especially true given that you also hold an MD. So even if you enter the market at a more senior level than someone with just an MPH, that doesn't mean those jobs will pay more than if you, say, practice as a physician. Long-term it will set you up for very lucrative executive positions. But short-term, even most Director-level jobs typically don't pay as much as a physician could make seeing patients. Tough call - it's your personal decision of where you envision yourself. Best of luck!

 

[Mario_MD]

Thanks for your reply. So to continue with your last comment about renumeration. I understand that I wont make a lot during the fellowship but what about afterwards? Will the fellowship get me higher pay than I would get without it? Especially if it enables to enter the job market at a more senior level?

Another question I have is that I plan to move back to my home country Pakistan at some point. Do you think that the experience of working in a tertiary care setting here in the US is something will be applicable to the setting of a developing country? Mind you, we do have some state of the art hospitals and more are coming up. Plus, I would like to think that it would be ideal if I could transfer novel management concepts from the US to Pakistan.

 

[deleted462159]

A fellowship usually helps candidates land a better (and higher-paying) position than without it. The complication is you are also an MD, so as an MD you are typically paid much more than hospital administrative staff. Most admin staff are nurses or non-clinical. For example, if without the fellowship, someone gets a Manager role for $100k. Maybe with the fellowship, they land an Assistant Director role for $120k. (I'm making these numbers up.) That's a good amount more, but compared to a practicing physician's pay (even primary care), it's still less. I guess what I'm trying to say is, there's no guarantee that post-fellowship you will immediately get a job paying higher than a typical MD's salary. And if you're a very highly compensated surgeon, I can almost guarantee that a fellowship will not get you a better-paying job. Will an admin fellowship make you more "management potential" in your field? Absolutely. But there are plenty of other factors (and organizational politics) that go into it as well.

I know nothing about healthcare in Pakistan, so I can't comment intelligibly on that second question.

 

[Mario_MD]

That I will never make an attending salary is something I have come to terms with. And while I know that there are no guarantees, I want to get a sense of whether spending two years in a low-paying health administrator fellowship vs. the general job market, will pay off after the fellowship. Or am I just better off entering the job market right away and work my way up. I would like to think that a fellowship should give me a jump. I would also like to believe that having an MD, should count for something.

 

[ROI2017]

How important is GPA when applying for fellowships?

 

[bloopers]

How important is GPA when applying for fellowships?

Important, since all fellowships will ask for a transcript. That being said, GPA is just ONE aspect they look at.

@ OP, there is no "opportunity cost" when it comes to fellowships. Fellowships kick-starts an individual's career and expedites them into management positions. Most MHA students are in their mid-20's when they finish their degree, some with relevant work experience but many without any. Being able to obtain a fellowship at around 25 years old and transition into a management position after 1-2 years is a pretty sweet deal. Not to mention the amount of visibility when it comes to networking/working with the executive leadership team and how invaluable that is. I can only speak for myself since I just recently recieved a fellowship offer and accepted it. Do not accept/apply to a fellowship purely based on the organization's "name". After going through the process, I've found that it's really all about cultural fit when it comes down to the final on site interviews.

For me and many others, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, but if you're already an MD and have other admin. experience, I can see how it may not be for you. It's really up to your discretion.