MBA/joint degree

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exeunt

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i'm interested in pursuing either a mph or mba between my 3rd & 4th year, and i also thought it would be a good opportunity to do derm research for a year at whatever institution i end up going to. my question is--how do residency programs view this? is it a positive, negative, or neutral?

i'm leaning towards an mba because i'm interested in management/administration in terms of improving health care accessibility/costs/etc., but my concern is that residencies will automatically link my interest in derm to cosmetics if i pursue an mba. also, many of the top-ranked joint mba programs are 2 years instead of 1..would it be too much time off if i attended a 2 year program?

thanks in advance for your help!😳
 
exeunt said:
my concern is that residencies will automatically link my interest in derm to cosmetics if i pursue an mba. also, many of the top-ranked joint mba programs are 2 years instead of 1..would it be too much time off if i attended a 2 year program?
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I think you're right in this. It doesn't look good for a future career in academic medicine...programs will be wondering if you're concerned with people's healthcare accessibility to Botox.

You can always do an MBA during residency - weekend program or night school. You'll have that much time during derm residency, yes (unless you moonlight).

My suggestion? If your stats are good, apply to derm asap. If average/below average, take time off for derm research, not MBA.
 
It's really going to depend how you pursue the MBA but I let me back up a second...sounds like you are deciding between an MBA or an MPH. Those are pretty different. What is your goal with either? You talked about the MBA but why the MPH? Just wanted more info from you....thanks.

Sensitive skin is right in that you can pursue the MBA during residency and some places will even pay that tuition for you if you have a good sell as to why an MBA is valuable (yes, rare, but I've heard it with my two ears directly from the chairman).
 
exeunt said:
i'm interested in pursuing either a mph or mba between my 3rd & 4th year, and i also thought it would be a good opportunity to do derm research for a year at whatever institution i end up going to. my question is--how do residency programs view this? is it a positive, negative, or neutral?

i'm leaning towards an mba because i'm interested in management/administration in terms of improving health care accessibility/costs/etc., but my concern is that residencies will automatically link my interest in derm to cosmetics if i pursue an mba. also, many of the top-ranked joint mba programs are 2 years instead of 1..would it be too much time off if i attended a 2 year program?

thanks in advance for your help!😳
Click to expand...

I don't think an MBA will hurt you. As long as you do something w/ it/are able to relate how it fits into your long term goals, I think an MBA is an asset. We took in a dual MD/MBA person into our program this year. Just don't be a douche and talk about how you are the Medical Director at 8 different medispas out in Los Angeles and that you're interested in doing lasers, etc. at your interview (as one person did).

I was in business @ McKinsey (which is sorta like doing an MBA), and it was an asset...you need to focus on the skills you learn/develop, like leadership, etc.
 
dermathalon said:
It's really going to depend how you pursue the MBA but I let me back up a second...sounds like you are deciding between an MBA or an MPH. Those are pretty different. What is your goal with either? You talked about the MBA but why the MPH? Just wanted more info from you....thanks.

Sensitive skin is right in that you can pursue the MBA during residency and some places will even pay that tuition for you if you have a good sell as to why an MBA is valuable (yes, rare, but I've heard it with my two ears directly from the chairman).
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i'm interested in either a mba or mph in health policy/management. applying is still some time from now, so i haven't looked up the specific advantages/disadvantages between the two and decided yet. from what i've heard, i'm leaning towards the mba though. i've been told a mph in health policy/management still doesn't do much towards developing leadership skills.

i'm genuinely not pursuing it in order to improve accessibility to botox😀 not sure how a mba would help much with that anyway! i just figured it was a way to learn skills relevant to what i'd like to do as well as be able to add some more research experience on the side.. hoping its not a negative😕
 
Agree with pupster above. I think it's got potential to be veiwed as a positive or a negative depending on how you are going to use it. The MPH is a great degree if you want to go into public health policies or clinical research but it's a different angle from the MBA and I don't think it will give you the management/finance focus that you might get in the MBA. Also the network that you develop through and MBA will be different from the network that you develop in an MPH although I'm sure you will develop your own network in time depending on where you would like to take your career.

If you are going to take a year off and you can get a degree in the process, I think that's a plus unless you have a specific research interest where a non-degree research fellowship like the Howard Hughes, Doris Duke, a focused research experience through your medical school, etc. may make more sense since you don't have to cover another tuition from your side. There are also T32 programs at some medical schools that would give you a Masters degree in clinical research but this is likely not going to give you the finance or the specific business network exposure that comes with an MBA.
 
I'm currently on leave from University Washington School of Medicine (MS2) and I'm also considering pursuing a MBA degree (dual) but UW don't offer MD/MBA. What do you suggest I do in order to obtain my MBA degree? Thanks!
 
thanks for all your advice guys!😳 just wondering, would a 1 vs. 2 year program make a difference? would a 2 year program be seen as too long of a leave of absence?
 
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