Is a career in medicine really worth it? - Page 4

golubb_u · 07-19-2005, 11:31 AM

"... and possibly unable to grind it through the long road to become a doctor."

It's a long road to many other fields......at least the path to becoming a doctor is a clear one. Imagine the path to becoming a CEO, a Senator, a PhD grad from an Ivy...each of them are longer and less clear than becoming a doctor.

The medical field is based on numbers, first and foremost. A 3.6 GPA plus decent MCAT scores will land me into a med school......very do-able compared to the paths to other fields.

Hey, it's a job, just like any other job.....no need to make it seem more noble than it is in reality. Doctors don't sacrifice anything....they gain a lot more than the average person. It's the mechanics, and the burger king employees that are doing the "sacrificing"....who else would want their jobs?

golubb_u · 07-19-2005, 11:45 AM

A surgen will take home 200k guaranteed. (probably more)

A non-surgeon will take home 140k guaranteed (probably more)

An MBA can either take home 100k for the rest of his life (uncertain), 500k for a few years as a ceo (very, very uncertain), or he can make almost nothing while he's job hopping (quite certain). MBA is a very fickle field......if you can't command/lead at least 100 people, you're not CEO material (very few MbAs are).....thus, you may make 80k-120k doing odd jobs as an MBA, sometimes working overnight to prepare instant presentations, or standing up in several conferences all day long to give talks.

audiophile · 07-19-2005, 12:14 PM

Quote:

Hey, it's a job, just like any other job.....no need to make it seem more noble than it is in reality. Doctors don't sacrifice anything....they gain a lot more than the average person. It's the mechanics, and the burger king employees that are doing the "sacrificing"....who else would want their jobs?

Please don't become a doctor.

africanprincess87 · 07-19-2005, 12:26 PM

audiophile: How dare you try to dictate what somebody's job should be. I Am going to be a doctor because I love to learn about biology and would love to help people enhance their lives. Doctor's do sacrifice something... their own lives. How dare you say that they don't. People who work at Burger King did not spend money to stay in school for 9+ years in order to help others.

africanprincess87 · 07-19-2005, 01:06 PM

i FEEL DISCRIMINATED AGAINST FOR SAYING MY VIEWS

audiophile · 07-19-2005, 01:09 PM

africanprincess,

You misunderstood my post. It was directed at Golubb's response. YOU should become a doctor and I wish you the best. Based on golubb's motivations and outlook, I would not want to put my life & health in his/her hands. I would like to think my physician thinks of it as more of a calling than "just a job".

impactangel · 07-19-2005, 01:59 PM

I agree with audiophile. I would also like to think that my physician's primary goal is to make me feel better.

It is not so reassuring when my physician looks at me and sees dollar signs.

sempitern555inmunich · 07-19-2005, 02:03 PM

ha ha ha .... as an aspiring plastic surgueon and or cardiologist, I suspect I will have to make the choice between deciding which career to pursue

bigndude · 07-19-2005, 03:24 PM

Do you want to show us some links that say that they are guaranteed this salary. Most surgeons pull in low to mid 100s and non-surgeons depends on the specialty but they pull in a wide range. A general practioner pulls in about the same as a surgeon. Highly specialized surgeons with years upon years of practice, that are well established pull in the ranges you said.

golubb_u · 07-19-2005, 04:14 PM

"I agree with audiophile. I would also like to think that my physician's primary goal is to make me feel better."

Why OF COURSE IT IS....they'd just love to make you feel better. Why don't you walk up to a doctor and ask him to write you a prescription for free..... he'll laugh at you. Try to see a doctor without a cash copayment and they'll kick you out of the office....

audiophile · 07-19-2005, 04:42 PM

golubb,

If you are going to start off with that level of cynicism, it would be better for society if you chose a different career path. How about i-banking? Many here are interested in that and they make lots of money.

DiGamma23 · 07-19-2005, 06:48 PM

yea but I read on another post that investment banking has the same horrible hours as some people say doctors do.
But anyway I can't believe that aspiring doctors aren't allowed to be motivated by the salary, while IB's and lawyers are, as evident in audiophile's post. Strange.

audiophile · 07-19-2005, 07:02 PM

Quote:

But anyway I can't believe that aspiring doctors aren't allowed to be motivated by the salary, while IB's and lawyers are, as evident in audiophile's post. Strange.

Of course, salary should be a factor and MDs deserve to be well paid, but it shouldn't be the MAIN motivation. It takes a lot longer to become a practicing MD than it does to go into business or law and more sacrifices need to be made along the way.

CDN_dancer · 07-19-2005, 08:06 PM

I guess it depends on how you look at it. Doctors have a very stable job. There's always going to be a need for doctors, so they will never be jobless (though they might have to switch specialties). MBAs are more unstable. Whether or not you have a job depends on how good you are at what you do, and to some extent, how good other people are. However, MBAs have the potential to be multi-millionaires; doctors for the most part, don't. Both should give you a comfortable living though.

impactangel · 07-19-2005, 09:19 PM

DiGamma brings up a good point. It's considered a good thing to be ambitious and aim for a high salary with professions like law and especially business.

It is kind of weird that it is considered immoral to do the same in medicine!

I think it's certainly fine to have that kind of motivation (financial) to enter the medical field. It's just nice to a) keep that to yourself and then b) have another reason for being there. (Not all doctors strike it super super rich and then at that point, it would be nice to have another motivating factor to push a student through med school, through the long hours of residency, and through the everyday routine of being a doctor)