Salary

[hailey6565]

Can anyone inform me on salary for practicing podiatrist I keep getting mixed information about this..

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[Neuroma24]

I'd go over to the active residents and podiatrists thread to get their perspectives but...

In general it varies a lot which is probably why you are getting mixed information. Depending on the practice you are with you may have a base salary then some percentage of what you bill meaning the more you work the more you earn. Other places like the VA it is just a salary. I'm just starting out school but I do know that reading the contracts of your employment offers is HUGELY important. Did you have specific concerns about a salary you read?

 

[hailey6565]

Yes I’ve seen a few ranging from 70K-150K. I’m trying to understand if someone has their own practice or in group why is it so low compared to MD/DO salaries? I understand it depends on variety of things but I’m trying to make sure this is the right choice before I take $200K out on loans. For example if someone who wants to go into trauma/ reconstructive surgery what range is that salary? No I’m not only going into podiatry for money, i like the fact that it’s a diverse field and you can specialize right away!

 

[sad1980s]

It varies wildly and depends on if you're planning on staying in an area with a pod school (I wouldn't stay in NYC or Miami for example). The pod I'm an acquaintance of said you'd be crazy to take anything under 150k starting out, yet a lot of the stuff on this forum makes it seem like most people are going to get one of those low 100k associate jobs.

It's really hard to give a concrete answer especially when people like us have seven full years before we finish residency. Who knows what is going to change in that time frame. Imo the best thing you can do is talk to pods in your area (when you shadow) and ask how they've dealt with paying their loans and if they're comfortable talking about salary/income.

 

[hailey6565]

It varies wildly and depends on if you're planning on staying in an area with a pod school (I wouldn't stay in NYC or Miami for example). The pod I'm an acquaintance of said you'd be crazy to take anything under 150k starting out, yet a lot of the stuff on this forum makes it seem like most people are going to get one of those low 100k associate jobs.

It's really hard to give a concrete answer especially when people like us have seven full years before we finish residency. Who knows what is going to change in that time frame. Imo the best thing you can do is talk to pods in your area (when you shadow) and ask how they've dealt with paying their loans and if they're comfortable talking about salary/income.

I agree thanks for your input!

 

[DexterMorganSK]

Search for data from the MGMA; not everyone will make the listed salary there but it's 'expected' when looking for employment.

 

[DexterMorganSK]

MGMA 2019; shown here are the median $$ from different regions of the US, starting from Eastern, Midwest, Southern, Western (L-R)

 

[Sartorius P.O.D.]

MGMA 2019; shown here are the median $$ from different regions of the US, starting from Eastern, Midwest, Southern, Western (L-R)

View attachment 308120

Salary data (guaranteed money) for podiatry is a lot lower than most other specialities because a lot of our contracts are heavily incentive based. I know a lot of guys who bonus several time their base every year. So average salary would probably be about 100-120K, but average net income would probably be more in line with these numbers.

The biggest difference between us and almost every other specialty is that there is way more variability in what we make and most of us are not going to make good money starting out. It is not like you are an internist and can just pick a city you want to live in and start working there the week after you finish residency. If you want to make money straight out of the gait, you may need to go to a place you never never planned on living, because that is where the job that is paying the year you finish training is located. I know I had to.

 

[heybrother]

The number one reason you will be paid poorly in the future is because you will work for another podiatrist.

Throw all the salary surveys out the window. If you work for a hospital, a multi-specialty, an ortho group, a VA - you'll be paid adequately to great and you won't need to worry or fret. You'll be paid like a doctor. You may or may not bust your butt for those dollars

Work for a podiatrist in your future and it doesn't matter what some survey says. It only matters what the contract you sign says. It doesn't matter what the "average" was on some survey.

 

[deleted1034695]

Hi! So, all the adcoms have said the average out of pod school is 200,000. My neighbor who's a podiatrist said to be hesitant when looking at averages, because back in the day there was no standard 3 year residency. idk if that helps but thats my understanding which could be completely wrong.

 

[Startingover123]

Hi! So, all the adcoms have said the average out of pod school is 200,000. My neighbor who's a podiatrist said to be hesitant when looking at averages, because back in the day there was no standard 3 year residency. idk if that helps but thats my understanding which could be completely wrong.

If you work for a podiatrist it’s more like 120 k out of school.

 

[J29622]

I've heard of numbers like 100,000-120,000 base salary plus a bonus based on production level. Overall gross income somewhere around 120,000-180,000 starting out in private practice jobs. This number will likely increase as you gain more experience and work longer.

In hospital systems starting salaries are often somewhere closer to 200,000 - this is at least the case in a few of the places I externed at where the attendings point blank told me what they offer new graduates.

The MGMA numbers posted above are considered the gold standard for hospital jobs, so those are probably a lot more accurate than some of these surveys out there for hospital jobs.

 

[El-Rami]

Salary data (guaranteed money) for podiatry is a lot lower than most other specialities because a lot of our contracts are heavily incentive based. I know a lot of guys who bonus several time their base every year. So average salary would probably be about 100-120K, but average net income would probably be more in line with these numbers.

The biggest difference between us and almost every other specialty is that there is way more variability in what we make and most of us are not going to make good money starting out. It is not like you are an internist and can just pick a city you want to live in and start working there the week after you finish residency. If you want to make money straight out of the gait, you may need to go to a place you never never planned on living, because that is where the job that is paying the year you finish training is located. I know I had to.

Was that an intended pun?

Just curious, but what has been your observation as far as pods making partner at an out-patient surgical center and benefitting from profit-sharing among surgeons? How much discrimination, if any, do pods get in this regard considering that many F&A-subspecialized orthos have historically held a negative attitude towards their colleague surgeons who were DPMs?

Also, if you don't mind me asking, but what kind of place did you find your first post-residency job at? Was it in the suburbs, rural or metropolitan? Was it in a hospital, podiatrist clinic, F&A surgical center, etc? What kind of job do you have now, and how satisfied are you?

 

[hailey6565]

Was that an intended pun?

Just curious, but what has been your observation as far as pods making partner at an out-patient surgical center and benefitting from profit-sharing among surgeons? How much discrimination, if any, do pods get in this regard considering that many F&A-subspecialized orthos have historically held a negative attitude towards their colleague surgeons who were DPMs?

Also, if you don't mind me asking, but what kind of place did you find your first post-residency job at? Was it in the suburbs, rural or metropolitan? Was it in a hospital, podiatrist clinic, F&A surgical center, etc? What kind of job do you have now, and how satisfied are you?

Great question!!! This is something I’m very interested in as well