Should I Pursue an MD/PhD?

Karlo Perica
Johns Hopkins MD/PhD Program

A Physician-Scientist Is

A Doctor
Sees Patients
Diagnose and
treat disease
Works in a clinic
and/or a hospital

A Researcher
Manages a lab
Designs experiments
Writes grants
Presents Data
Mentors students

A Physician Scientist
More Than the Sum
of the Parts

Clinical Research
What treatments are
effective?
Statistics, epidemiology,
clinical medicine, etc.

Basic Science Research

How does life work?
Cell biology, biochemistry,
biophysics, developmental
biology, etc.

Translational Research
How can we take what we know
about disease and the human body
and turn it into an effective
treatment?

A Week in the Life

Sun

Mon

Tues

Wednes

Teach

Thurs

Fri

Teach

Attend on
Service
(Once/
Month)

Lab
Meeting
Clinic

80/20

Sat

Clinic

How to get there

Combined MD/PhD Program

A bit faster than separate
degrees
Formal training in medicine
AND science
Only Get an MD
No formal research
training

Get Degrees Separately

Not the best option if you
know RIGHT NOW you
want to do both, BUT

Steep learning curve

But start your career
MUCH earlier

PhysicianScientist
An MD can run a laboratory, but a PhD cant treat patients.

18

22

College

4 years

30
MD-PhD

2
Med

4-6 years
Research

2
Med

34
Residency

Fellowship

3-5 years
Medicine

2-3 years
Med/Res

AND/OR

RESEARCH
CLINICAL MEDICINE

36

AND/OR

PostDoc

PostDoc

2-3 years
Research

2-3 years
Research

What Does MSTP Mean?

From: Brass et al., Are MD-PhD Programs

Meeting Their Goals? Academic Medicine,
Vol. 85, No. 4, April 2010.

One Last Important Idea

Academic Medicine
Emphasis on research and teaching
Lower pay
Less freedom
Private practice
Little to no research or teaching
Higher pay
More freedom
Small business owner
Uncertain future
Salaried Physician
Little to no research or teaching
Medium pay, but more financial
stability
Less freedom than private practice

Is MD-PhD Right For Me?

I want to be a doctor.
I want to be a researcher.
I believe its possible to do BOTH well, at the
same time, and that the whole is greater than
the sum of the parts.
I believe that a combined MD-PhD program is
the best way to get there.