<p>What kind of specializations/residencies are there? I know I can probably find this on google, but I want to hear about the corresponding lifestyles too. I heard that students often choose based on their intellectual interest but that it's better to choose based on lifestyle.</p>
<p>I know there's pathology, radiology, etc. A side question, is there a "genetic counseling" kind of doctor or similar?</p>
<p>Googling is always a good first step: it can yield answers without clogging up the board and it is exercise in the basic research skills you will need. In this case and in many cases, you obtain answers without encouraging speculation.</p>
<p>That being said, here links I found on Google:<br>
[Careers</a> in Medicine Specialty Pages](<a href=“http://www.aamc.org/students/cim/specialties.htm]Careers”>http://www.aamc.org/students/cim/specialties.htm)
[AMA</a> - Choosing a Specialty](<a href=“http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/education-careers/becoming-physician/choosing-specialty.shtml]AMA”>http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/education-careers/becoming-physician/choosing-specialty.shtml)</p>
<p>See also [Medical</a> Specialty Aptitude Test](<a href=“http://www.med-ed.virginia.edu/specialties/]Medical”>http://www.med-ed.virginia.edu/specialties/).</p>
<p>From a second-look weekend at a medical school:</p>
<p>“Right now, statistics say that about half of you have a very clear idea of what kind of doctor you want to be. Statistics also say that of that half, about one in nine of you will be roughly correct. Don’t worry about it yet; that’ll come during third year.”</p>
<p>And that was on the eve of beginning medical school.</p>
<p>I don’t think it’s necessary to do any serious thinking or research on this matter until you’re a med student, just like it’s too early for some high schoolers to worry about how to prepare for the MCAT.</p>
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<p>False. That’s one way to guarantee yourself a lifetime of misery. I’ve never understood students who think this way. You bust your hump and voluntarily sacrifice the best years of your life (20s-30s) to grind it through pre-med. Then medical school. Then residency. And you turn around to select a field that you aren’t passionate about because it purportedly offers better hours? Ridiculously stupid.</p>
<p>Yeah, agreed with smallchild. If anything, it should be the exact opposite. Pick on intellectual curiosity not lifestyle.</p>
<p>There is a ‘medical genetics’ residency field. It requires 2 years of a post-grad medical education, before starting the 2 year medical genetics program. Most people will go through a pediatrics residency since most genetic concerns take place during childhood, but I do know a couple of people who are doing OB/GYN before starting their genetics program.</p>
<p>Rofl…I’d be happy if I got into 1 U.S. Medical School…as you can see speciality doesn’t matter to me, as long as I have that M.D.</p>
<p>I read this article in the New York Times today. It makes a case for not specializing at all.</p>
<p>June 7, 2009
If All Doctors Had More Time to Listen
By JULIE WEED
WHEN Dr. Jos</p>
<p>What specialty makes the most money?
A recent medical school seminar near my home reported that spine orthopedics(orthepedic specialty + fellowship specialization (2-3 years more)) makes $501k average!!!</p>
<p>Is this true!!! That is a ridiculous amount of cash. With a minor in finance at a good university, you can be looking at a 600k-700k income a year.</p>
<p>How many spines needs to be fixed a week? lol.
Lifestyle must be manageable because i simply cannot imagine some 50 people needing their spine detached, attached, or whatever a week. lol</p>
<p>what about physiology</p>
<p>What are you talking about? $501K doesn’t magically become more money – and certainly not 40% more – with good management. In fact probably more than half of that sum will go to taxes.</p>
<p>And besides all that, the average starting age is probably like 38. They’ve been making $45K as a resident/fellow for a good ten years before that.</p>
<p>Finally, all the surgical lifestyles – yes, plastics included – tend to work VERY long hours.</p>
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<p>Bad. Bad idea. I hate to be so negative but this is a good thing to extinguish early.</p>
<p>Money is only going down in medicine. With all this talk about universal healthcare or even minor health care reform, there is no scenario where doctors stand to make MORE money over what they currently make. Not when the public perceives us to be walking cash baskets (erroneously or not)</p>
<p>So even if you take a highly lucrative specialty like orthopedics (with a subsequent fellowship in spine), that would be 4 years of busting your hump as a premed to get into a good medical school.</p>
<p>4 years of really busting your hump as a medical student to get into a good orthopedics residency (I surmise this will be the toughest step)</p>
<p>5 years of a surgical residency (which is downright brutal at my hospital)</p>
<p>and then fellowship training (I believe it’s 2-3 years but not sure)</p>
<p>That’s 15-16 years away. With reimbursement likely to fall within that time period. If you’ve got a genuine interest, great, go for it. If it’s just about the money, you are setting yourself up for massive heartbreak.</p>
<p>Ortho spine lifestyle is manageable but again, without genuine interest, it’ll be hard to stay afloat during the grueling ortho residency. I’ll also echo the previous poster’s sentiment about the 500K total being pretax money. And judging from the way this administration is spending, you’ll probably be handing back half of it in taxes.</p>
<p>^ Plus their malpractice insurance is really high. </p>
<p>If you really want to just make money. Dermpath is the way to go. However, matching in derm and then completing to get into a dermpath fellowship is rather difficult.</p>
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<p>Very true. Although it’s worth noting that dermpath is now firmly in the crosshairs just as cataract surgery and MOHS surgery once were. There’s a proposed 30-40% cut in reimbursement in that field. Anything that is high paying will eventually be targeted (see: dropping ophtho reimbursement, dropping MOHS reimbursement, dropping radiology reimbursement.) That’s just the way medicine goes.</p>
<p>As an aside back to ortho spine, I would recommend anyone interested in that field to not only shadow in the OR (the surgeries are fairly long especially if fusions are being performed anteriorly and posteriorly) but to also attend the clinics. I hate to be insensitive but those are some of the whiniest patients I’ve had the (dis)pleasure of encountering. Trying to alleviate their concerns and putting up with the length of the surgeries was enough to deter me from the field, high salary or not.</p>
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<p>You can also go this route through a path residency, which is considerably easier to get into than derm. Still will be stiff competition for the fellowship, though.</p>
<p>I work for two orthopedic spine surgeons and it amazes me how extremely chipper they are considering the monstrous amount of patients they see weekly. They always crack jokes! Probably because they went into the profession not just for the money, although very appealing. I mean, you better like your job after spending 16 yrs preparing for it.</p>
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<p>Exactly. Not to mention another 30-40 years practicing it</p>