Current students

The all new four-year M.D./M.B.A. will differentiate you as a physician leader.

In today's complex health care environment, physicians who have both a medical degree and a master of business administration degree are highly sought out for leadership positions at hospitals, health care systems, and health and medical-related businesses. 

With the STEP 1 exam moved to a pass/fail format, you will need other ways to prove your value and differentiate yourself among other residency match applicants.  Adding an M.B.A might be one opportunity to achieve this applicant differentiation.  Once you are post residency, sources also report that M.D./M.B.A.s report higher earnings and greater job satisfaction.

M.D./M.B.A. Information Session

Students completing the M.D./M.B.A. program will:

• Have the knowledge, experiences and tools needed to confidently use the language of business and effectively engage at the intersection of medicine and business.
• Learn how decisions are made, understand the impact of decisions, and learn how to effectively advocate for new ideas and approaches; they will learn how to ask the right questions and to question the answers.
• Learn how to work effectively as a member of a team, influence others, and lead.
• Learn how information technology and data science is changing the way business operates.
• Provide the knowledge base and the critical thinking, problem solving, strategic planning and leadership skills needed to navigate and shape a rapidly changing healthcare environment.
• Learn to think differently, develop a network of like-minded colleagues and mentors, and grow in the role of physician leader to drive the changes needed to improve the quality of and access to care within an increasingly cost-constrained environment.
• Learn basic financial skills to be able to manage budgets and personal finances.

With the foundation provided by this program, additional career pathways will open, including residency and fellowship opportunities, administrative positions in a range of clinical settings, and opportunities with established or emerging medical service, device, technology, or pharmaceutical companies.

Completion of your joint degree will open up career pathways that include roles in: 

• Hospital administration
• Health care policy research and policy development
• Pharmaceutical, medical device, health tech and insurance companies
• Entrepreneurial endeavors ranging from the creation of a private practice to the establishment of a non-profit focused on addressing health disparities, to a potential role of founder or medical advisor to health care startups. 
• Unlike many programs, the Warrior M.D./M.B.A. is completed in four years. You will not need to step away from medical school for a year or delay the start of your residency.

Workload

The program is open to any interested students able to commit to this focus and manage the workload.

• This is a cohort program which requires students take the pre-requisite Business of Medicine elective courses during M1, prior to admission to the M.B.A. program in year 2.
• Students must apply to be considered for enrollment in the Business of Medicine elective by August 26, 2022; this elective class begins during the first week of October.
• To ensure success in the program, students are not permitted to take any additional electives during the second year.
• Students will apply to the M.B.A. program in January 2023; application is then reviewed by School of Medicine leaders to ensure that the student can handle the concurrent curriculum.
• After a review of the students' first year performance, including performance in the Business of Medicine elective courses, students will be admitted to the M.B.A. and begin course work the first week of April. Some students may not be taken into program if there are concerns.
• M.B.A. courses are scheduled for Thursday evenings and many Saturdays throughout the second year. In addition to these class sessions, students should expect to spend an additional 5 hours per week reading and completing assignments. Courses will combine in-person meetings, and asynchronous, self-paced modules.
• The courses needed to complete the program will be scheduled during M4.

Admission requirements

This program asks for your commitment early in fall of your first year in medical school.  Once you decide you want to gain this dual degree and apply, you are asked to refrain from additional electives that would inhibit your successful completion of medical school and the M.B.A.  The M.B.A. program is closely coordinated with your medical school requirements in mind.

•  Applicants to this program must be admitted to both the School of Medicine four-year Doctor of Medicine Degree Program and the Mike Ilitch School of Business M.B.A. Program.
• Students are first granted admission to the M.D. program, take the elective Business of Medicine in their first year, and then apply to the M.B.A. program during their first year of study while enrolled in the Business of Medicine elective.  Application for the Business of Medicine Elective in 2022/2023 must be completed by Aug. 26, 2022.
• Students must meet the admission and graduation requirements of both programs and will enroll concurrently in the two programs during most of the period in which they are completing their degrees.

Curriculum requirements

• M.D. students complete all but one of the M.B.A. core courses before their one-year clerkship.
• M.B.A. courses are situated within the M.D. curriculum to take advantage of the School of Medicine curriculum.
• Students complete a minimum of 36 credits for the M.B.A. program, with nine credits transferred from the M.D. program; nine credit hours are double counted and used to fulfill the degree requirements for both the M.D. and M.B.A. program. Medical students in the program save time and money by completing the joint degree program under this four-year timeframe.

Graduation requirements

• Complete the required courses for both programs and in accordance with the Graduate School policies and regulations.
• Students completing requirements for only one degree will be awarded only that degree.

Tuition

Tuition is $34,000 and paid in 12 installments starting in year two. The pre-requisite elective Business of Medicine is not a part of this tuition and paid as a part of the medical school tuition accounted for in year one.