Sunday, October 21, 2007

MBA after MBBS

I am Dr Sameer Kulkarni,alumnus of B J Medical College, one among top 10 medical colleges in India.I have given GMAT & am going to do MBA next year preferably from Case Western Reserve University,Weatherhead School of Management(one among top 80 BSchools) which is associated with Cleveland Clinic,Ohio(one among top 3 hospitals in US) provided I get a visa. There are few students who have started thinking about MBA as a career option after completion of MBBS. This can be attributed to the growing reputation of IIMs among medical students and the fat paychecks that MBA graduates receive as salary while working.So I would like to share the things I learnt till now about MBA.There are different entrance exams for different Institutes. In India IIMs, in particular IIM ahmedabad,IIM Bangalore and IIM kolkatta , are the best. IIM Ahmedabad is the topmost management institute in India.To get into IIMs one has to clear CAT , then group discussion and personal interviews. CAT paper has three sections- English, Maths(Quantitative Aptitude) and data interpretation. One has to get a minimum marks in each section and minimum overall marks to get qualified. That means one has to show competence in all the three sections. If you score more in one section and less in other and your overall score is very high then also you will not be short listed for GD/PI.Total expenses (Fees and living expenses) at IIMs are near about 5 lacs. Average salary per year after completion of MBA is near about 8 to 9 lacs. You can get upto 22 to 25 lacs in India and upto 70 lacs at abroad if your performance is exceptional.
To do MBA in Maharashtra you will have to give CET. The best school in Maharashtra is Jamanalal Bajaj BSchool. Total expenses and salaries are equivalent to those in IIMs. FMS Delhi is another very good BSchool which can be compared with IIMs. Symbiosis Bschool is a competitive one but can’t be compared with IIMs as per many of management graduates.

All these above mentioned schools have very tough selection process and it ensures that you do your MBA along with the students who are cream of the society.These schools put less emphasis on work experience as compared to schools abroad.So even if you have 0 years of work experience you can get into them provided you score competitively in their entrance examinations.


Now something about doing MBA abroad. For this, you can roughly divide the schools in three regions-Europe,USA,Australia
In Europe in most of the schools, MBA is of 1 year. Total expenses are in the range of 45 to 55 lacs for MBA course including everything. As told by many people,1 year MBA is not advised for students with medical background. Chances of scholarship are competitive if not bright.

In Australia, MBA is of 2 years. But scholarship chances are very less.

In USA,2 years MBA is there. There are two types of BSchools-Public (GOVT) and private.
Total expenses at public schools range from 15 lacs to 25 lacs.
Total expenses at private schools range from 35 lacs to 45 lacs.
Chances of getting scholarship in USA are relatively high.
Average salaries in all the above schools is 1 lac dollars($80,000+bonuses) i. e. 45 lacs per annum.

You will have to give GMAT for MBA at these schools.GMAT exam is of 800 marks.GMAT score above 650 is considered as a very competitive score.In case of medical students GMAT score of 600 is considered a competitive one.

GMAT Exam has two sections –
English---in it Reading comprehension, sentence correction and critical reasoning
Maths----in it problem solving and data sufficiency.
There is one additional section of analytical writing but it doesn’t play very important role in selection process of MBA.
If we compare CAT with GMAT, English is tougher in GMAT as compared to CAT. Maths is easier in GMAT as compared to CAT.

Comparison of MBA in India and MBA abroad----
In India the top most Bschool IIM ahmedabad ranks more then 100 worldwide.So it is not the one among top 100 BSchools in world.There is very less diversity(students from different countries with different culture and different perspectives.).Students with less workex can also get admit so sharing of work ex is less. Infrastructure is not as developed as in abroad Bschools. Due to less salaries , faculty related problems are difficult to deal with. Global recognition is relatively less.

For MBA abroad,selection process is very tough-u have to give GMAT,Toefl,University transcripts are needed,three recommendations are needed,you have write application essays(4 to 5 per School)If u apply to 6 schools then 30 essays It takes one month to write essays.Then based on ur academics of graduation,GMAT score,toefl score,essays,work ex-quality and quantity(minimum 3 years work ex is recommended),competition with other applicants(we have to compete with IIT students)---School shortlists you---Then there is personal interview--they ask u all sorts of questions which are not easy to answer and need lot of preparation.Even if u succeed in all above criteria and fail in interview ,you are out of competition.
Then comes visa application-Yet i have not applied for that.Will share the experience when I will go through it.If u don't get visa,then all ur efforts are of no use.

For more details , you can email me at sameercns@gmail.com
I would be more than glad to share the knowledge that I have about MBA.
coaching classes r of no use.but they help u form group,which was extremely extremely helpfull in our case.plus u get access to library and photocopy the books which r other wise very costly.giving GMAT and getting into B school are different things.
For BJites, 6 months prep for gmat is sufficient.
for application essays- 2 months r needed
for recommendations , transcripts 15 days
for interview - 1 month preparation
toefl 3 days
basically lot of brainstorming is needed about career and life.
where do u see urself after 5 years, 15 ,30 etc
3 accomplishments
3 failures
embarrrasing moments
etc can get lot of questions from internet.u also can get answers from net but can't write as schools have software tracking mechanism for internet.so have to write ur own answers.so it takes ur time and brain.
there r 3 deadlines
nov 15- first deadline-chances of getting scholarship and admission r high.
jan 15 2nd deadline,
march 15 3rd deadline.
use businessweek.com
careerjournal.com
usnews.com for rankings and shortlisting of schools and more info for GMAT..
books for GMAT
Books to read
official guide with cd
Kaplan with cd
Princeton with cd
Kaplan 800 with cd
Wren and martin-grammar
Arco- analytical writing
R S Agaarwal QA
Abhijeet Guha QA
Arun Sharma QA
M tira(optional) QA
11th 12 th books for probability and pemutation and combination
Geometry 8,9,10,11,12 th standard books-just revision.
TOI editorials for reading comprehension
GRE barron for world list-may also use oxford dictionary
www.scoretop.com 1500 RC,SC.DS,CR questions of each.
www.gmatclib.com
www.pagalguy.com
H1 B
Issue of h1b is also there.50% don't get h1b.-lottery method.
many companies reluctant to hire international students,because after investing on candidate if he doesn't get visa then it becomes diff for them.international students can work for 1 year on f1visa- optional practical training.so company trains u in this year after hiring u.then u don't get visa in 50% cases.so company thinks why not hire US student instead. so prefer not to hav any loan on u at end of mba.it will b diff to repay loan by earning in rupees.


Please post your questions if any in comments so that everyone gets benefited through answer and mutual knowledge sharing.

23 comments:

meeoww said...

iam grateful of u tht u wrote about the scope and payscale of doing mba after mbbs. sir iam a student who has done 12th from india and trying to figure out if it would be gud if i do mbbs degree ? will i get job in govt hospital in india or abroad? will the job be permanent? doing msc or mba after mbbs ,will it be costly affair as my parents cant afford too much of money?i got admission in bsc nursing ,but i cant work in dirt and i want to do research job so should i do nursing or leave it for mbbs? what are scope of nursing other than working in the wards? kindly answer me . it will be a great help from your side . thanking you . it will be grateful if you could mail me in beauty_007@rediffmail.com . please sir help me in this .iam desperate. thank you once again.

Dr. Hiren Nakawala said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

grateful to u sir, cuz few people think of mba as a career option after mbbs. i am interested in knowin more about the nature of jobs after doin mba.... pls help me know more...

drkiranharidas said...

hi.me dr kiran here.can u share me ur cell number.

Unknown said...

hi dr.sameer kulkarni.,i m rashmeek,doing mbbs 3rd year,the article u posted is realy helpful,well no comments i can say that,but i needed to know wat all should be done if i want to go in MBA after doing mbbs,and i want to know the career options,if u could spare sme time then plz email me(rksure2521@gmail.com) every negetive n positive point of joining in mba after doing mbbs????thank u doc,tc

Dr Sameer said...

If you are interested in managing people, getting things done through people, through process, if you enjoy event management more than treating patient, then you can think of doing MBA. Pros are - you get a team of people who work under you / with you and you can make visible changes just by using strategy. Cons - there is very less direct patient contact so that feeling of doctor - patient relationship diminishes. Will write in detail later.

Tushar said...

Dr. Sameer...is it true that as a person one needs to be outspoken to excel in MBA..the group discussions n personal interviews...how would a shy and reserved candidate like me fare there?

Tushar said...

Dr. Sameer. I m a final year mbbs student..after 4.5 yrs I know I m a person with good aptitude n average clinical know-how...an MS/MD or MBA..where wud someone like me excel...when job satisfaction n financial conditions have equal weightage for me ..pls guide.

Dr Sameer said...

Dear Tushar,

For group discussions n personal interviews, what matters is your passion and purpose. In management you have to work with people. In group discussion they see how you contribute and add value to the team. How you are as a team member and / or as a leader? You need not be outspoken but you need to get your point / contribution across.

Regarding MD/MS or MBA, ask yourself why do you want to do MS/MD? why do you want to do MBA? Talk with your family. Envisage the future and see what will make you and your family more happy.

Unknown said...

hi dr.sameer, i am studying 12th bipc and further i want to pursue mba in healthcare management.so should i pursue mbbs or b.tech biotechnology?which will better help me in the future for mba.thank you

Unknown said...

ty very much

Unknown said...

Hello dir i m vaishnavi thanks for sharing your experiance its really too good glad to know about MBA i really want to get in plzzz if you get my post rply me on my google account drvaishnavideshmukh@gmail.com

Unknown said...

Plzzzz do rlpyyy me sir waiting for that...

Chickoo said...

Very informative article.i thnk covers all aspects of doing MBA aftr MBBS.
I will be completung my MD in anothr month. Always wantd to leave medicine.
I thnk MBA is the only option i can thnk of.
I am not much concerned about which pays bettr MBA or MBBS. I am not concerned about money as long it is adequte and there is plenty of job satisfaction. No point in earning money without job satisfation.
Just want to break from the shackles of cramming for so long in medicine.
Any comments/ suggestions????

nikk said...

hello sir,,,thnx for your wonderful blog..sir is MD hospital administration is equal to MBA in hospital management ? i have got good rank in manipal uniuversity medical pg entrance exam n m getting all clinicals seats n definitely MD hospital administration...so sir want to know abt it more asap as d counselling date is approaching..

Unknown said...

great article sir.very helpful.
I was wondering about the job prospects abroad incase i do MBA from India?if i get into a good college is there much scope to work in the US with an indian degree?please let me know!would be of great help!
thank you

Unknown said...

Dr.Sameer...I couldn't thank you enough for this in-depth insight on the whole post Mbbs-MBA fiasco. I am barely scraping through my MBBS and in extended time too, but I am an extrovert and a people person (Qualities a Doctor must possess too apparently) So, the only question that keeps haunting me is after MBA...Is there growth within the Managerial/Management jobs procured!?

Unknown said...

thank you sir many of my doubts were cleared great of u

Dr Geetendra Singh Dhanawat said...

I m doing eMBA from SP jain school of global management. I have 10 yes experience in medical field and also did MPH and Master of medicine from CMC Vellore. But not satisfied with medical career and want to an entrepreuner. Or may want to be a part of corporate world. I need your opinion about career switch. Regards

Anirudh Singh said...

sir,
I am a 2nd year MBBS student studying at ucms ,Delhi.
I am finding it really hard to understand , about when to start preparing for GMAT as it looks very difficult from the information you provided because MBBS itself is a very difficult course and the GMAT entrances is not at all related to medicinal knowledge..
feeling confused.. :(

Unknown said...

I am a 3rd final mbbs student and stuck in a complete dilemma on what to persue after mbbs. Your article proved to be of great value. What I feel currently is I dnt want to practice medicine. And so I am thinking of mba. I am highly interested in going abroad for further studies but when to give GMAT is what I need to know initially. U mentioned about experience.well when n how do I get that after mbbs is a matter of concern. I will be grateful if u can guide me any further. Juhi.chandrani07@gmail.com is my mail id.

Dr Sameer said...

Anirudh / Juhi,

Generally at least 3 years work experience is required to get admit in top Bschools. You can give GMAT while gaining the work experience or during internship. GMAT score remains valid for 5 years.

Regarding experience, you can join some clinical research organization, pharma company, govt medical job, IT company pharmacovigilance, NGO, hospital job etc.

Dr Sameer said...

Sir,
I am a 4th year medical student.Recently I just read one of your article in your blog about the MBA as carrier option after MBBS. I wanted to know more about the scope and the type of work that we will be involved in after finishing a MBA with medical background. I also wanted to know about the kind of job opportunities that are possible.Please help me with this one Sir as I'm thinking of switching carrier as I'm not so good at medicine and i love mathematics a lot more. - Naresh

Dear Naresh,

In management there are different functions like Finance, Human Resources, Marketing,Sales, Strategy, Operations, Supply Chain management etc. In each function there are different type of profiles. In first year of MBA, basics of all these functions are covered. Based on your liking and area of interest, you can choose one function (more than one abroad) as your specialization / concentration in second year. All big companies have these functions as individual departments. You can join that department post MBA. There are companies specializing in one particular function or sub function e g in Finance - Investment management, Investment Banking, Private Equity, Mutual Funds etc