McKinsey (BA) or medical school?
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One destroys lives and the other saves them. Guess which one is which!
Ooof
Do you have an interest in being a doctor? From a purely financial perspective, the BA probably comes out ahead in the long run if you stick it out in consulting and consider the opportunity cost of med school, but it really just comes down to what you want to do. Being a BA at McKinsey and going to med school are very different career paths.
Thanks guys, I provided further context in a freestanding comment at the bottom of this post. TLDR I’m unsure about residency at this time, looking to make my way back into HC VC or PE. Ideally practice 25-50% while working at a fund
I don’t think ppl realize how long and difficult the med school admissions process is. Retaking MCAT, getting rec letters from professors, sustained volunteering / research, and the year-long application process are going to be very hard to do once you’re at McK. Meanwhile, plenty of MDs end up going to McK / consulting after school.
Assuming you already have admission to a school, and would be ok with working strictly in healthcare at McK, I’d argue med school makes more sense in terms of keeping the most doors open.
This is a bad place to ask. You're asking consultants whether you should be a consultant or something else. Do what you think will make you happier.
Ex - BA here. Don’t let the perceived selectivity of BA recruiting hold you back from going to Med school.
Being a BA is an incredible inexperience but it is also overrated. If you don’t like consulting you will feel like you’re wasting your time and life away. Sure, there are plenty of opportunities to exit to PE/FANG but it will be hard to find fulfillment in those exits unless you’re driven by the money or a love for the work.
Also, outside of consulting people only vaguely know what McKinsey is. You will earn more respect for being a doctor (if that’s important for you/your Asian parents).
You can always come in as an Associate after your MD if you decide you would still like to be consultant. I’ve never seen anyone go the other direction.
Take medical school. Adds way more value to the world and McKinsey hires MD’s if you decide to not pursue medicine after school.
What if he/she becomes angelababy's persobal plastic surgeon?
By what standard? What are your goals? Are these even comparable categories?
BA. you can go to bed school after if you hate it. But having Mck experience and credentials will serve you for life. And open up additional opportunities in the future even if you become a practicing physician
Sorry, but having an MD will serve you for life.
Also, nobody ever asks "is there a consultant on board?" during an in flight emergency. Obviously that should be the deciding factor
Well do you want to be a consultant or doctor..
BA you can always do med school in 2 years if you want to but you can never be a BA and get those connections after med school nor would you want to
Mentor
But he can go to med school and start consulting at the MBA level though?
McKinsey BA zero hesitation. If you can get into med school now you can get in after your two years at McK. You can also save for two years and have a little bit of money to help cover expenses during school.
If you hate med school after a year you can always quit and use your consulting connections to go back to the firm or apply to other business roles as that stamp of approval doesn’t fade.
I think because you asked this question the answer is McKinsey.
American medical training is screwed up and it requires a special level of dedication to get through; you have to have blinders on.
If however you are committed to it - in my view medicine is a more attractive option in the long term. Career stability, likely reasonable WLB (this is a depends), good work style not being in front of computer all day etc...
As a doctor one can also live wherever, so one can make big bucks in more affordable areas of the country.
However the many years in between - my wife is a doctor and I was there through it - is tough. Tough driving a beat up Toyota when friends buying the latest 3 series, tough delaying becoming a parent, tough paying off all that debt....
Go to medical school and look at consulting in the future. The opportunity cost isn't as high for you because you have a lot of scholarship money. Sure you aren't making money but the debt won't be a big barrier and your options afterwards won't be as big of a concern because you'll set yourself up to have healthy earnings for a lifetime whether or not you practice.
25 is young OP. People who worked or tried something else can have resolve that their peers don't have because they're working towards a specific cause. Plus if you know you want to work in industry or engage with it there are many opportunities you can engage with now. In four years you'll have gone through a trying but rewarding experience and have colleagues that you'll remember for life similar to how you'll suffer and bond in consulting. You'll be pushed out of your comfort zone in either case with the idea of being trained for leadership by both. Don't let the glamour of travel and expense budgets and CEO interactions detract you from the goals you have inside.
You probably know which direction you want to go hopefully you got the validation you wanted here
You read me like an open book 😃
Was accepted to medical school and turned it down. Also second gen Asian American. The right answer is different for everyone. Some of my thoughts here
1) If you’re going to do med school, start earlier. It’s much worse being a 4th year med student at 30 than 26.
2) It’s a long road - I couldn’t justify the trade off of cash and time (I’m responsible for paying for my younger sibling’s college tuition)
3) Medical school didn’t leverage my strengths - I would be mediocre in medical school vs. consulting / investing was some place I am above average
I went straight to BCG - I’m 24 now. I have not found not having the MD to be a hindrance but I am open to doing things that are not health care related
Med school. You will make more money in the long run if you don’t make partner
NOT medical school. Ran that model. Sounds good. Doesn’t work!
Med school
Go to McK first & defer your med. school acceptance (if possible)!
Why not both?
I think others have said this, but become a BA for a year or two and then head to med school. I had a friend who did BCG and then went to med school. Tried to gain as many experiences with Medicaid/ med tech clients as possible to have that lens going into school. The downside would be potentially ending up on cases that aren’t in your interest area, and obviously the opportunity cost, etc.
Thanks for the feedback everyone, means a lot. Some context - I worked in consulting for a yr and half out of undergrad. I frankly didn’t enjoy it (didn’t see impact, didn’t enjoy making ppts all day). I had taken the MCAT before I graduated and scored well so decided to apply while I looked for new opportunities (also the MCAT has a 3yr expiration date, so it was my last chance to apply w/o having to retake that brutish exam). I managed to land an opp at a HC seed fund, but felt like the experiences I had at my previous firm didn’t prepare me well. I kicked off recruiting w/ McK pre-Covid (by this time had interviewed at 3 Med programs, but hadn’t received an acceptance). Things stalled bc of Covid, and during that time was accepted off the waitlist at one of the schools I interviewed with. While I’m now at the end of McK recruiting, Med school starts in the next 2 weeks (so it’s crunch time). In terms of long term I want to return to HC VC (potentially PE). I’m unsure about pursuing residency at this time (but of course could fall in love w/ clinical medicine). Anyways, just trying to make the best decision given the cards I have in my hand rn. Hope the context helps
I made the switch because I decided I didn’t want to do surgery anymore. I’m going back to residency to be internal medicine. BCG is such a thing I wanted to try in between.