Hide the MBA?

[RainerMaria]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Hello,

I am an incoming med student finishing a health care MBA right as I launch into the MD. I'm very interested in clinical work + part time higher level admin, ranging from chief resident to VP of health care safety and quality, etc. I know that many regard the MBA as a very useful degree in the clinic.

On the other hand, I've heard that docs see MD/MBAs as likely to go into consulting once push comes to shove (not an option for me since I hate office jobs and it's a nonprofit MBA!). I'm sincerely into health care safety and quality but being a clinician is #1. Should I keep my MBA under the belt during clinical rotations and residency interviews?

Thanks,

RM

 

[jonb12997]

my personal feelings?? it won't matter in most clinical rotations: "What artery is this?" "what muscle am I cutting through?"... But in residency interviews? I don't see why that would hurt you, and I definitely see how that would be a good added thing on your resume.

 

[asmallchild]

I actually have a classmate who had an MBA and had to scramble. Speculation that the MBA was possibly involved? Fortunately found a spot in the scramble though. 🙂

 

[BlondeDocteur]

It won't matter one whit in rotations, as you have no letters identifying you except "scutmonkey" tatooed on your forehead.

In residency apps, if you feel like certain prejudices exist based on preconceived notions of who MD/MBAs are and what they hope to do in life-- well, contradict them. Be sincere. Polonius (to thine own self be true), etc.

 

[MediumDef]

You can keep it under wraps all you want during school, I don't think it really matters either way although it might seem weird to people if you are always obfuscating your past. As for residency interviews though I can't see how you can possibly not mention it aside from completely leaving it off your app/CV which would be wrong on about 4 different levels. Feel free to misrepresent your future intentions though and talk about nothing but clinical medicine and your disdain for anything approaching the "business of medicine"

 

[RainerMaria]

Right. While I would never lie about / omit the degree, I'm not sure whether to emphasize it as a practical, clinical degree (e.g., looking at process flows in hospitals, trying to spot areas where errors can be prevented, infections prevented). Or just don't talk about it and it will sit on the resume with all my other random non-traditional pursuits. But the MBA seems to go well with Infectious Disease / Internal Medicine, methinks. 😀

 

[DrJosephKim]

I don't think there's a reason to advertise it. I also don't think you need to "hide" the fact that you have an MBA.

 

[ilikepsych09]

I'm finishing a 5 year MD/MBA program, and the MBA came up on virtually every residency interview. There are very few MD/MBAs applying for residency (at least, there were in psychiatry), and it's something that will automatically stand out on your application. I plan on doing something later that combines medicine and business (what, I don't know yet), and I made sure to talk about a couple options I've been thinking about when I was asked.

How interviewers reacted to the MBA ended up being a nice criterion on which to gauge a program. A handful of interviewers were somewhat hostile to it, accused me of wanting to work for a pharmaceutical firm later, didn't see the utility of the degree, didn't understand why people in our field of medicine needed administrative representation, etc. Those programs ended up toward the bottom of my list.

Other interviewers saw the utility without me needing to explain, wished they had gotten an MBA themselves, mentioned several people they knew with MD/MBAs who were in leadership positions, and offered research opportunities in the schools' adjoining business and public health schools. Those programs floated to the top of my rank list.

Ultimately, you can either brush off the MBA by saying that at first you attained the degree because you were interested in business but now your focus is completely medicine, or you can address the MBA and explain how clinical training plus a knowledge of business will help you attain your career goals. If you want to meld medicine and business, however, I'd be up front about that when asked, because the programs where you perceive the MBA to be viewed as a blemish will likely not be a good fit for you.

 

[surg]

Hiding is never a good idea, but advertising it isn't necessary either. If it comes up naturally, fine. It will come up as people ask you what you did before school, etc., and it will come up when you get into an argument with someone else about why their idea of how to fix health care doesn't make any business sense. Use the knowledge you worked hard to attain to your greatest advantage. If your real goal is to do admin and clinical, then you should find a residency that helps you prepare for that.

 

[RaistlinMajere]

Hide the MBA? Ridiculous. I would shout it from the rooftops and tell everyone that you have an MBA. Business is just another tool that ultimately should be used to help patients. I'm finishing an MD/MBA and this was seen as a major plus on my application. All doctors need to learn business skills to survive long term. Having an MBA means that you received extra training and should have honed these skills.

 

[RainerMaria]

While throughout the program I have seen clearly how the degree will help me as a physician, I have heard that a non-trivial number of Residency Directors harbor ill will towards docs with MBAs. But I guess it's better to describe how important it will be for a clinician in the PS and interview, rather than glossing over it.

 

[geauxg8rs]

I have an MD/MBA. I think it got me some fellowship interviews I would never have gotten. Two of the directors interviewing me said " I am working toward getting my MBA (one already had his)" They all asked how it helped during residency (not a whole heckuva lot). It clearly has helped on the job interview front when I applied with different groups for a private practice gig.

 

[MrBling]

While I don't have an MBA, I went to undergrad and majored in finance/econ and then worked in management consulting for several years prior to entering med school. Having gone through the match this year, my business background and training came up in more than half of my interviews and it seemed that the background was more of a + than a -,and at some more academic programs ("where we train leaders"), some of them seemed even more impressed.

I wouldn't hide it, but when you are applying for residencies I would want to be able to talk intelligently about health care economics and how your background can contribute to your program/field. As has already been stated, it doesnt matter one iota during 3rd and 4th year.

 

[endreon]

😎