“It goes by very quickly—it’s also fun,” he says. “Physicians are great students usually, and by the time they get into it, [they] realize, ‘You know, this is really kind of a hoot.’”
Tom Collins is a freelance writer living in South Florida.
The Options
Advanced management degrees are designed to take between one and three years to complete. Tuition is often in the vicinity of $30,000 to $60,000 but varies tremendously. For example, a Harvard MBA will cost $56,175 in tuition. Here are the general details on the programs doctors are most likely to consider, although coursework will vary somewhat from program to program:
• Master of Business Administration, MBA
Coursework: Statistics, accounting, marketing, economics, operations management, international economy, leadership, and organizational behavior.
When to consider: If you have a desire to get a start-up company off the ground or just want general business knowledge.
• Master of Public Health, MPH
Coursework: Biostatistics, environmental health, epidemiology, management science (such as management of healthcare organizations or budgeting), public health-related biology, social and behavioral science.
When to consider: If you’re interested in a career in public health or epidemiology, with more interest in policy and analysis than
management.
• Master of Health Administration, MHA
Coursework: Health services systems, professional development, accounting, health policy, law, political science, organizational theory, health information technology, biostatistics quantitative methods, epidemiology, environmental health sciences, corporate strategy, and negotiation.
When to consider: If you’re interested in a traditional administrative role, such as CMO or CEO.
• MMM, Master of Medical Management
Coursework: Negotiation and conflict resolution, organization management, health economics, health finance, statistics, healthcare marketing, health policy, infrastructure management, executive leadership, healthcare law, operations management, and quality management.
When to consider: If you’re interested in administrative roles specifically addressing quality management and quality improvement.
(Note: This degree is considered to be very similar to the MHM, or Master of Healthcare Management.)
8 Pieces of Advice for Hospitalists Thinking of an Advanced Management Degree
A hospitalist weighing whether to get an advanced management degree has a lot to think about. But don’t go through your thought process without taking these things into consideration, physician career counselors say.
1 Seek out a mentor. “Find somebody who’s doing a job you think you want to do and really talk to that person,” Apple says.
2 Consider your age. Are you too young (straight out of residency)? Too old (retiring next year)? There might not be a perfect time to get an advanced degree, but there are times when it makes sense not to get one. Doctors just starting out might want to get their feet wet in the field before making the plunge. And doctors who don’t want to work for many more years might want to think twice about making the investment. “It’s a lot of time; it’s a lot of money. And how many more years are they going to want to put into their work?” Apple says. She’d be more likely to encourage a younger doctor, maybe five or six years after residency, to get the degree, assuming other factors line up, she says. Still, once a doctor has decided to get that degree, “earlier is better,” Dr. Guthrie says.
3 Consult resources like the ACPE and American College of Healthcare Executives. These organizations offer advice on the ins and outs of getting advanced degrees, help with job searches, and aid in assessing your own skills.
4 Don’t dismiss an online degree. Online degrees are becoming more common, and a program that imparts the knowledge you need is likely to be the best program for you, even if you got that knowledge online. Bollinger says that it’s more important how the applicant uses the knowledge to persuade those who are hiring that he or she is capable of doing the job. “You are going to be exposed to material that you would not [normally] be exposed to,” she says.
5 Ask your employer about tuition help.
There might be no money available to help you pay your tuition, but that assistance does exist, and you don’t know if you don’t ask. Sometimes, if there’s no flexibility on pay, there might be flexibility on tuition assistance.
6 If you’re getting a degree, get the right one.
If you know for sure you want to work on public health initiatives or in quality improvement, then an MPH or MMM probably would be better than an MBA. “Official letters put you ahead,” Apple says. “But if we’re talking about career satisfaction, youdon’t buy a Toyota if you want a Ford.”
7 Go onto a job bank and see how you’d measure up as a candidate for the job you want.
“Really see what people are looking for and take a really hard look at their responsibilities and the requirements, and stack that up right next to your resume,” Apple says. “Where are those competencies and where are those gaps?” Then tailor your education accordingly.
8 Explore in-house training programs.
Some courses offered by organizations even count toward an advanced management degree. “The hope would be that it would get you excited,” Apple says,” and you would realize there’s this whole other world you never even knew about because you were steeped in microbio.”
—Tom Collins