MS in Healthcare Admin

[HopefulPhysician]

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Hey guys 🙂

I am debating about enrolling into a MS in Healthcare Admin program. Of course DO is still my goal. The purpose of this would be to acquire tools/knowledge/training that would help to serve my role as a physician. In the future I hope not to just be a regular pediatrician but a pediatrician that is a "mover and shaker" in the health community. I believe that by obtaining this degree I will be granted a credential and a voice that will aid me in my career goals.

Opinions please!

 

[kelminak]

It won't make an impact on your admission to DO schools. It holistically sounds like a waste of time. Only do it if you have extra cash you want to blow.

 

[radian313]

Use that money to retake any C's you may have. Aside from another resume line, it wount add much to your admission profile. Is it good to have? sure, later down the road though

 

[JoeUSA]

Hey guys 🙂

I am debating about enrolling into a MS in Healthcare Admin program. Of course DO is still my goal. The purpose of this would be to acquire tools/knowledge/training that would help to serve my role as a physician. In the future I hope not to just be a regular pediatrician but a pediatrician that is a "mover and shaker" in the health community. I believe that by obtaining this degree I will be granted a credential and a voice that will aid me in my career goals.

Opinions please!

That is an interesting approach. It could work if the transcript demonstrates excellent grades. Excellent grades would demonstrate your ability to successfully learn. However, medical schools might be more interested in graduate degrees in the biomedical sciences because they (at least partially) duplicate the curriculum in the first year of medical school. If a student has excellent grades in the graduate biomedical sciences program the medical school that is applied to is likely to conclude that there is a good chance that the student will complete the program.

If a student wanted the MS in healthcare administration I would recommend a MHA program that is accredited by CAHME or an MPH program that is accredited by CEPH.

I also went to graduate school for healthcare administration. The degree definitely helps after graduation. It helps if a physician wants to become a leader. (The combination of a medical degree and a graduate degree is desirable to employers.) The curriculum in the graduate program is very different from medical school and changes the way you think. Medical school focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of disease in individuals, graduate healthcare administration programs focus on healthcare programs and public health programs focus of populations. They are interrelated and very interesting.

Pursue your interests and your dreams. You do not know where the MS program will lead you. However, you will be transformed by the time you complete it. Do not let any negative comments hold you back. Keep moving forward.

 

[Mosonik]

OP,

Your thinking is on the right track. I think medicine needs more people who enter their medical training with unique experiences and interests and backgrounds as far as their goals in impacting the healthcare system (if one can even call it a system). Your medical degree for better or worse doesn't develop this part of you. I agree with the above, pursue your interests and let the rest play itself out. As a side, most medical admissions are actually really drawn to applicants with distinctive narrative if it seems consistent with your actions. This may be a smart move, both towards admissions to your future program and becoming who you want to be. All the best!

 

[HopefulPhysician]

@LizzyM what do you think about pursuing a MS in Healthcare Admin? Are there any serious negatives to it? I am not doing it to repair my GPA. I am doing it so I can hopefully gain the skill set and knowledge to one day become a leader in medicine.

 

[LizzyM]

@LizzyM what do you think about pursuing a MS in Healthcare Admin? Are there any serious negatives to it? I am not doing it to repair my GPA. I am doing it so I can hopefully gain the skill set and knowledge to one day become a leader in medicine.

It may lead to a marketable skill set so if medicine doesn't ever work out, you have a fall-back career. That would be one point in favor of doing it.

Most Healthcare Administrators are NOT movers & shakers. For that you want a degree in HEALTH POLICY. Administrators are concerned with some or all of the following: institutional policies, human resources/staffing, budgets, marketing, investment strategies, development (many hospitals make up for a short-fall from revenue through investment income and philanthropic donations), real estate and physical plant.

Most physicians I know who have earned this degree did so after medical school although I do know one non-trad who did it before, but after having worked full-time in mental health settings during and after college.

 

[DrBowtie]

If you are interested in this degree for the reasons you stated I would get this degree after your medical degree. Bringing the perspective of having medical training to the administration is far more beneficial than the other way around.

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

Useless degree and potentially hindering. DO schools are obsessed with training family med docs and not with training people interested in being hospital administrators, and by the time you finish your residency, your degree knowledge will either be long forgotten or the information will be outdated. If you want to get a better chance to be a DO, keep building your GPA with undergrad courses. If you just want an additional degree, at least get graduate biomedical sciences related one.

 

[vendtex]

If you are interested in this degree for the reasons you stated I would get this degree after your medical degree. Bringing the perspective of having medical training to the administration is far more beneficial than the other way around.

Agreed and it'd likely be necessary to have some years of experience post residency to be qualified for an administration position. I haven't found administrative doctors to be movers and shakers but others may have different experiences.


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