Differences in Medical Careers/ Specialties

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The economic principle I’m exploring is: people gain when they trade voluntarily.

My research question to help me study the economic principle is: How can students who are planning to go to medical school ensure they will be benefiting/gaining (+ getting a job)? (Consider long schooling, expenses, and the overall benefits and drawbacks)

The article titled “Choosing Your Medical Specialty” demonstrates this economic principle because it shows that a large part of whether someone benefits from going to medical school is hinged on the specialty that you choose, as your choice depends on several factors including intellectual curiosity, lifestyle/ work environment, and expected salary. 

 First, in order to benefit from going to medical school, a person needs to be truly interested in the field that he/she is pursuing. It sounds simple, but the specialty or path that a student chooses to take dramatically determines their life when they begin their career. As stated in the article, “students usually decide on their specialty in their 3rd or 4th year.” There are a wide variety of medical professions, all with varying lifestyles, environments, and other factors. The author of the article states that “intellectual curiosity” is one of the main factors that determines what path a student will choose to take. In order to benefit, they need to choose the profession that they are most interested in, as well as have the appropriate skill set.

 Second, the lifestyle and work environment are determined heavily by the type of doctor you become. For example, some doctors have very regular hours, while others may have very erratic and unpredictable schedules. Some professions also are very high stress, like surgical careers, while others have less stress. All of these factors (including lifestyle, length of training, environment, and competitiveness) can drastically determine what the future will look like. For example, if someone knows that he/she doesn’t want unpredictable hours, he/she might not choose to go into a surgical specialty. Medical school students have a lot of choice when it comes to what their future will look like, and in order to benefit, they need to choose the profession that fits them best when it comes to future outlook and lifestyle.

Third, the expected salary is also a consideration when it comes to choosing a specialty. Based on how much debt a student has to pay off and what they want their lifestyle to be like in the future, how much money they are expected to make is somewhat of a factor that can help them to choose a specialty. Doctors’ earnings generally range from $156,000 to $315,000, the highest earners being orthopedic surgeons and radiologists. The article concedes to “keep the expected salary in mind, but this should be a small consideration.” If it is a determining factor in what kind of doctor you want to be, perhaps it isn’t the best choice, if you are not truly interested in the career itself.