Feb. 16, 2021

To MBA or not to MBA as an MD

"The first thing my husband said when I told him about MBA school was, 'the NBA has a school?'  It didn’t help that we first had our conversation about MBA school during the NBA playoffs but really – NBA school?  I quickly overcame this...

"The first thing my husband said when I told him about MBA school was, 'the NBA has a school?'  It didn’t help that we first had our conversation about MBA school during the NBA playoffs but really – NBA school?  I quickly overcame this moronic start to the conversation by saying 'M' as in Michael Jordan – MBA school.  He got it from there and every day since. And every day since has led me to this point of reflecting over the past two years.  How did I get an MBA?  Why did I get an MBA?  Was it worth it?

Rewinding the clock to April 2018 brings back many fond memories and some memories I would sooner like to forget.  I was 37 years old with a 1-year-old baby and a few months into my full-time job as a transplant nephrologist at a thriving transplant department.  The job demands were significant, but the rewards matched the demand.  I learned exponentially about transplant nephrology, which I find incredibly gratifying today; however, the learning curve, demand, and stress had me concerned about my long term ability to do this job while maintaining a healthy physical and mental disposition.  Out of all of this uncertainty came one certainty: I wanted to possess the ability to pivot to a new job if necessary."

Manpreet Samra is a nephrologist.

She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "To MBA or not to MBA as an MD: a physician’s journey." (https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2020/11/to-mba-or-not-to-mba-as-an-md-a-physicians-journey.html)