What Doctors Need To Know Before Starting An MBA

Dr Leigh Beveridge is a physician-scientist and senior medical director based in Victoria, Australia. He trained and worked in internal medicine and haematology, then moved into global drug development and later completed an MBA at the University of California, Davis, where he now teaches in the online MBA program. That mix of ward work, pharma leadership and business school gives him a rare view of what really changes when a doctor walks into an MBA classroom.

He has worked through busy hospital rosters, led late stage trials in rare blood disorders, and sat on both sides of the MBA table as student and teacher. His advice is grounded in real trade offs, not theory.

Why Doctors Are Looking at MBAs at All

More doctors are thinking about MBAs every year. Many are tired of feeling like passengers in big systems. They want more say in how care is organised, how trials run, or how new therapies are built and used.

Leigh remembers the moment this clicked for him.

“During a ward round, I realised we were arguing about a pathway that was clearly broken, yet nobody in the room owned the design of that pathway,” he said. “I knew the medicine, but not the levers that actually shaped the system.”

For some, that push comes from burnout. Long hours, rising paperwork and tight budgets make many clinicians feel stuck. For others, it is curiosity. They want to understand strategy, finance and operations with the same depth they once brought to physiology.

What Changes When an MBA Is Added

The first big shift is language. An MBA forces you to talk about value, risk, cost and incentives in clear terms. For doctors, that can feel strange at first.

“In my first term, I kept translating every case into clinical language in my head,” Leigh Beveridge said. “It took a few weeks before I could talk about a health company without defaulting to ward stories.”

You also move from one to one decisions to systems thinking. On the ward, you adjust a drug dose for one patient. In a boardroom, you think about thousands of patients, dozens of sites and limited resources.

An MBA also changes your peer group. You sit next to people from finance, tech, manufacturing and marketing. Many of them have never seen a hospital from the inside except as a patient or visitor. That contrast can be a real asset if you are willing to explain your world and listen to theirs.

What Doctors Often Get Wrong About an MBA

Many doctors see an MBA as a ticket out of medicine or a fast track to a C suite role. That is not how it works in practice.

“Some clinicians arrive thinking the degree itself will open doors,” Dr. Beveridge said. “The reality is that your story and your skills need to line up with a clear path, the letters alone are not enough.”

Common mistakes include:

• Treating the MBA as a break from serious work, instead of another demanding training program.
• Staying only in healthcare electives, and missing the chance to learn from other sectors.
• Avoiding numbers, even though basic finance and data thinking are the whole point.
• Ignoring networking, even though future roles often flow from classmates and projects.

Another trap is trying to do it all at once. Full time clinical work plus a full course load plus family is a lot. Many doctors underestimate the mental load of case work, group projects and exams.

How To Decide if an MBA Is Right for You

There is no single right answer. The key is to be specific about your reasons.

Dr. Beveridge suggests starting with a simple question set.

“Write down three problems you actually want to work on in the next ten years,” he said. “If those problems involve teams, budgets, strategy or policy, an MBA may help. If they are mostly about direct clinical skill, other paths might be better.”

Ask yourself:

• Do I want to lead teams, or stay in expert roles?
• Am I willing to learn accounting, economics and operations from scratch?
• Can I create realistic time and financial space for study?
• Do I see at least two or three potential roles after graduation where an MBA is clearly useful.

If you struggle to answer those questions, talk with doctors who already made the move. Ask them what they gave up, not just what they gained.

How To Prepare Before You Apply

Preparation makes the shift smoother and cheaper, in time and money.

Learn the basics early

Before you start applications, build a base in three areas:

• Numbers: practise reading simple financial statements and basic statistics again.
• Writing: work on clear, short writing. Business school rewards sharp, simple language.
• Time: test your schedule with a small online course to see how you handle weekly deadlines.

Leigh found that his prior work in clinical research helped with statistics, but he still had to adapt.

“In research, we argued about p values,” he said. “In finance class, we argued about cash flows. The logic was similar, but the objects were different, so there was still a learning curve.”

Talk to your current employer

If you plan to keep working, speak with your current organisation about support and boundaries. Some hospitals and companies offer partial funding or study leave. Others may allow role changes that make study more realistic.

Be clear about your plans. If you hide the MBA, you risk mistrust and constant conflict over your time.

How To Get the Most Value From the MBA

Once you are in the program, treat it like a serious rotation with clear goals.

Pick a focus, not just a brand

Big school names can be tempting, but fit matters more. Look at:

• Course mix in areas like strategy, analytics and leadership.
• Links with health, biotech or public policy if those fields interest you.
• Flexibility for part time study if you need to keep working.

Choose a loose theme for your studies, such as health innovation, operations or organisational behaviour. Use that theme to guide your choice of electives and projects.

Use your clinical experience well

Your ward experience is not a side note. It is a real asset in class. Use specific stories to lift discussions.

“When my group worked on a case about a failing health service, I pulled out examples from haematology wards,” Leigh said. “It grounded the debate, and it helped my team see what the numbers meant in practice.”

At the same time, listen hard when classmates from other fields speak. Someone who ran logistics for a factory may have better ideas on supply chains than anyone in a hospital setting.

Build relationships on purpose

Future roles often come from classmates, professors or project partners. Treat group work as a networking tool, not just a chore.

Stay in touch with a small, mixed group of peers. Include people from outside health, such as finance or product roles. They can later help you translate ideas into action in other settings.

Life and identity after the MBA

Finishing an MBA does not mean you must leave medicine. Some doctors choose full time industry roles. Others stay in clinical work and add leadership posts or committee work. Some move into policy, education or research management.

The key is to be honest about your new mix of skills and interests. You may find that pure ward work no longer feels like the best fit. You may also find that you now enjoy bridging between clinicians, executives and scientists.

For Australian trained Dr. Leigh Beveridge, the final outcome was a blend. He now works in biotech, leads drug development programs and teaches MBA students. He still draws on his ward experience every week, but in a different frame.

Practical steps for doctors thinking about an MBA

To close, here is a simple action list:

1. Write down three real problems you want to help solve.
2. Talk to two or three doctors who already have an MBA.
3. Take a short online course in finance or statistics and see how it feels.
4. Review your last three months of work and see where business skills might have helped.
5. Discuss options with your family or support network.
6. Check funding, scholarships and employer support.
7. Shortlist programs that match your goals and schedule.
8. Plan a realistic weekly study schedule before you apply.
9. Think through two or three post MBA roles that excite you.
10. Decide if now is the right time, or if you need one more year of clinical or project experience first.

From ward to boardroom is not a leap, it is a series of steps. With clear intent, honest self assessment and smart use of your clinical background, an MBA can be a powerful next move in a doctor’s career.