What can you do with an MD if...

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I don't know the details, but I know there are private sector options for MD grads. Pharmaceutical companies and the like come to mind. You might check with your school, I would assume they can suggest some possibilities. You can't be the first person to consider this.
 
Dr.TobiasFünke;6841302 said:
What can you do with an MD degree if you realized you no longer want to be a doctor and don't want your investment thus far to go to waste? Research is also out of the question.
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IMO, MD with no residency is like sex with no orgasm. I would say bite the residency bullet and get board eligible in something. That way, if you do decide to consult, you might actually know what the hell you are doing.
 
sirus_virus said:
IMO, MD with no residency is like sex with no orgasm. I would say bite the residency bullet and get board eligible in something. That way, if you do decide to consult, you might actually know what the hell you are doing.
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You're comparing residency to an orgasm? I think I can hear the racking of shotguns in the residency forum.
 
sirus_virus said:
IMO, MD with no residency is like sex with no orgasm. I would say bite the residency bullet and get board eligible in something. That way, if you do decide to consult, you might actually know what the hell you are doing.
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Agree with this sentiment. You need at least enough residency to get licensed in order to (1) keep the door open if you change your mind, and (2) get some credibility for consulting, pharm or any other job because, quite frankly, a degree without work experience is just a piece of paper. The business world is all about experience, not paper. This is why eg the better MBA programs require folks to have a few years of work experience before applying. It's perhaps a culture thing wherein the dude who worked his way up from the mailroom might know more about how things really work than the guy with the fancy diploma. So no, don't make the jump right out of school and expect folks to bend over backwards to hire you. Become a practicing doctor and the story may change. But most folks tend to take the path of least resistance at that point.
 
I am really starting to think this "consulting" thing is largely a myth. There was a similar thread a few months ago and alot of people raised the very good point that a newly minted MD has very few (if any) marketable skills.

Also I had a friend who graduated the year before me who planned on getting a cush job "in industry." This guy had alot of business experience prior to med school so you would have thought he was a step ahead. After a year of looking he still had no job prospects in any region of the country. n=1.
 
AmoryBlaine said:
I am really starting to think this "consulting" thing is largely a myth. There was a similar thread a few months ago and alot of people raised the very good point that a newly minted MD has very few (if any) marketable skills.

Also I had a friend who graduated the year before me who planned on getting a cush job "in industry." This guy had alot of business experience prior to med school so you would have thought he was a step ahead. After a year of looking he still had no job prospects in any region of the country. n=1.
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Well, having worked on business deals with "healthcare consultants" as well as involving the pharmaceutical industry, I definitely met MDs working in each industry. However these were not right out of med school types, these were folks who made the move after some amount of a prior career in medicine. Meaning they had the credibility of a practicing professional, and transferable skills. I'm fairly positive this is the pattern that generates the most interest in industry. Not the paper (degree) tiger.
 
I have some friends who were practicing physicians and got fed up with it. But they got good enough at coding that they decided to work at insurance companies and they now approve (mostly deny) claims for surgeries or pharmaceuticals. But they had experience that got them in the door. But as I found out of undergrad when you got a degree it just doesn't mean a lot and you're going to have scut work low totem pole stuff that usually has nothing to do with your degree.
 
Dr.TobiasFünke;6841302 said:
What can you do with an MD degree if you realized you no longer want to be a doctor and don't want your investment thus far to go to waste? Research is also out of the question.
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What do you want to do that is legal and others will employ you to do? Do that (or as close to that as possible). It would be helpful if you gave some clue about your interests ... what you like and what you don't like ... There must have been something that attracted you to medicine. Is that gone? Did something turn you off and can you work around it? Rediscover that passion and see where it leads. It may lead to teaching. It may lead to running some kind of heath-related business or service. Although medicine has a lot to offer for most medical students, most of the best jobs are not in a traditional medical practice; when it's a fit, it's wonderful, but it's not for everyone. There is also a chance that you had some kind of bad experience, discouragement, or maybe you have depression or another barrier that can be worked around or worked through.
 
What about being an analyst therapist? An anal-rapist?
 
Medical Science Liaison (sp)... one that came to our school and talked gets 140K a year, works from home, was given a BMW, and gets an annual bonus. . .
 
radi0headfan, thanks for referring to my article.

The opportunities are endless if you're interested in non-clinical opportunities. So many people don't realize all the different things you can possibly do. In some cases, you may earn less, but you may enjoy your work much more. There are also always opportunities to grow, expand, and pursue new ventures.
 
mdjkim said:
radi0headfan, thanks for referring to my article.

The opportunities are endless if you're interested in non-clinical opportunities. So many people don't realize all the different things you can possibly do. In some cases, you may earn less, but you may enjoy your work much more. There are also always opportunities to grow, expand, and pursue new ventures.
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Don't you still have to make enough to pay off your student debt? That kinda limits some people's options when you have $200k looming above your head.
 
my neighbor went to med school just to satisfy his parents (this story is told according to my dad).

he went, got his degree, and flew back home.

he stapled his degree on the front door of his parents' house, with a note saying "this is for you."

he had no problem working on wall street as an analyst for a fortune 500 pharm tech company, who was more than happy to sign someone with such a unique insight into the health care industry with high credentials.
 
Blah blah blah.. An MD in and of itself will get you the ability to practice medicine or research. Anything else you bring to the table will dictate what it is you can do with an MD (computer science, engineering, management, business experience, etc).
 
NJDIF said:
he had no problem working on wall street as an analyst for a fortune 500 pharm tech company, who was more than happy to sign someone with such a unique insight into the health care industry with high credentials.
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This is the part that's going to be the hard sell for most. Either your friend had some background in business, or was an awfully good spin artist, or took the same kind of entry position folks get out of college (which he could have had 4 years ago).

BTW, An analyst is not an upper level job. It's the foot in the door job folks get, while getting enough business work experience to go back for an MBA. (From my prior career I know plenty of analysts -- these were the poor SOBs that ended up doing the scut.)

And are there even fortune 500 pharm tech companies located on wall street? Usually the folks who work on wall street are in financial services, and the in house corporate folks work elsewhere -- midtown perhaps.
 
Law2Doc said:
BTW, An analyst is not an upper level job. It's the foot in the door job folks get
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Going to have to second this notion. Analyst is entry level, consultant is better and manager/director/vp is the relative equivalent to entry MD in practice.
 
get an MPH and go to public policy. yell at the other *****s who dont have an MD and have no idea what theyre talking about.

when they realize ur too smart for them, theyll start telling you to make more money and practice medicine. ten years later, you realize ****, i hate idiots, and not being paid for dealing with them. then you go get your residency and realize that you shouldve given the nice 300k salary and shot #2 at medicine an earlier chance.

just skip all that and deal.
 
Law2Doc said:
This is the part that's going to be the hard sell for most. Either your friend had some background in business, or was an awfully good spin artist, or took the same kind of entry position folks get out of college (which he could have had 4 years ago).

BTW, An analyst is not an upper level job. It's the foot in the door job folks get, while getting enough business work experience to go back for an MBA. (From my prior career I know plenty of analysts -- these were the poor SOBs that ended up doing the scut.)

And are there even fortune 500 pharm tech companies located on wall street? Usually the folks who work on wall street are in financial services, and the in house corporate folks work elsewhere -- midtown perhaps.
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Yes, this seems like a brand new fight or can of worms... With the possibility of saying down the line "boy I wish I did that residency" hell, high water, typhoon, "bowing down" or Sunami!! 👍
 
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Dr.TobiasFünke;6841302 said:
What can you do with an MD degree if you realized you no longer want to be a doctor and don't want your investment thus far to go to waste? Research is also out of the question.
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Go into pathology.
 
you could try to become a sports agent......

im not exactly sure what the required credentials for this are, but an MD might do......
 
michaelrack said:
I know an MD who developed licensure problems and left residency. He worked at a bookstore and later got a part-time job teaching anatomy at a junior college.
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Not that I plan using the circuitous route..But people often want to know what ever happens to someone who goes through med school without ever doing residency...Since many plan on good fortune but in realtime life anything IS possible

One example Andreas Grunfeldt if I spell it right... He went to med school in Europe..He had the opportunity to do research at any prestigous academic medical center here in the U.S. after med school.. He choose Emory Med School where he is given credit for the invention of cardiac cathertizaiton.. He did not do residency but later tragically died in a plane crash.:luck:
 
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My former mentor is an MD. He doesn't practice medicine. He does bench research and teaches immunology.
 
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You could own a hospital?
 
Dr.TobiasFünke;6841302 said:
What can you do with an MD degree if you realized you no longer want to be a doctor and don't want your investment thus far to go to waste? Research is also out of the question.
Click to expand...

Flip the degree over and write your resume on the back ...
 
Dr.TobiasFünke;6841302 said:
What can you do with an MD degree if you realized you no longer want to be a doctor and don't want your investment thus far to go to waste? Research is also out of the question.
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LOL. You could dress up like a gay pirate and then decide to become an actor
 
beepbloop said:
You can enroll in Carl Weathers' acting classes, or possibly even join the Blue Man Group.
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Oh this is just too funny. If you don't know what this quote is referring to you can watch the all 3 seasons of arrested development for free at hulu dot com. <hijack over>

On a serious note, I would definitely finish residency in something before you bail. It will definitely leave you with more options when you finally decide what you want to do.
 
References to AD (see also: Greatest Show of All Time) = Best. Threadjacking. Ever. 😀👍

Douche Chill!!!!!
 
I know an guy whose parents pressured him into going to medical school. After graduation he didn't end up doing residency. He became a talent agent and is more financially successful than probably most of the people he graduated with.
 
I know one person in our school didn't move on to residency. She ended up going to art school to become a medical illustrator. People say it's because she married another doctor.

There's also the example of Michael Crichton, who got his M.D. but became a writer instead.
 
I know of a guy who got his MD, decided to forgo residency, and then decided to travel through time in an English phone booth battling evil.

Wait, that was Doctor Who...
 
Doctor J said:
I know of a guy who got his MD, decided to forgo residency, and then decided to travel through time in an English phone booth battling evil.

Wait, that was Doctor Who...
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I know there is a heck of a lot of pressure here!!! ....

But no offense and objectively speaking your avatar is melancholy and/ or pessimistic..
Geez, its not a funeral home or a graveyard...
[I found out later on in life and in medicine if something looks incorrect..I speak up or perhaps there is something wrong me (for not speaking up)!]
 
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OP, marry one of your classmates, stay home and become a house husband, and learn how to cook. The keeper of the home is an important, but unfortunately, undervalued role in our society. If you married a doctor, you could understand and sympathize with her daily stuggles. Of course, if you want nothing to do with doctors, then marrying one could pose a problem.
 
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searun said:
OP, marry one of your classmates, stay home and become a house husband, and learn how to cook. The keeper of the home is an important, but unfortunately, undervalued role in our society. If you married a doctor, you could understand and sympathize with her daily stuggles. Of course, if you want nothing to do with doctors, then marrying one could pose a problem.
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I would have loved to be a stay at home dad, but when I was single I couldn't find anyone in the dating pool that was willing to let be be one. 👎 I would have been the best dang PTA president my kid's school had ever seen.
 
Dr.TobiasFünke;6841302 said:
What can you do with an MD degree if you realized you no longer want to be a doctor and don't want your investment thus far to go to waste? Research is also out of the question.
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I am really curious what brought on this realization. Judging by the comments put up in the pre-allo forum around the same time, I'd guess that it's the result of something sudden rather than a gradual rethinking of your life.

In any case, best of luck. It can happen to any medical student, and I hope everything works out eventually.
 
UTPharm said:
Medical Science Liaison (sp)... one that came to our school and talked gets 140K a year, works from home, was given a BMW, and gets an annual bonus. . .
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Oh really? Hmm. So that's interesting.

Spell out EXACTLY what he does to me please :laugh:
 
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