Top 10 Tips on Getting Your First Job

By Relief Jones, III, MD

These TIPS have been compiled by Astute Physician to assist you in obtaining your dream job! The tips are in no particular order. Feel free to review this list frequently during your job search. GOOD LUCK.

TIP #1

You will compare your offers based on salary, CME allowance, vacation time, research time (academia), call schedule, and a long list of other criteria. Potential employers will sometimes ask you to tell them what you want to be paid. The Astute Physician will not fall into this trap. Always let the employer make the initial financial offer. Consider saying, “I’m just a resident (or fellow), and have no idea what I should be asking for, what can you offer me?”

TIP #2

Remember that the initial offer is just the starting point for negotiating. Don’t become discouraged if the initial offer sounds low. Remember that the potential employer will attempt to discover how little you would be willing to work for, so they may purposely present a low figure initially. This number can be negotiated with a little effort on your part.

TIP #3

Don’t forget to do your homework. You will want to get as much information as possible about the potential employer. Former employees and pharmaceutical sales representatives can be a great source of information. Find out if any physicians have left the practice or department within the past 5-10 years. Call them to see if they would be willing to discuss their experience as an employee at the place you’re considering. The sales reps in your current city will typically know the sales reps in the city you are contemplating. Get their names and numbers and give them a call. You’ll be surprised by how much inside information the sales reps have and are willing to share at no cost to you.

TIP #4

Headhunters can be a useful source of leads for practices looking for new employees. Their services will be FREE to you. Just remember that someone is paying the headhunter, and that someone will be the potential employer. This fact can make headhunters a biased source of information, but still a useful source.

TIP #5

Unlike the interviewing process for medical school, residency, and fellowship, you will likely be offered a telephone interview before you will be offered an on-site interview. You’ll plan this “date” by telephone or e-mail. It is critical that you return all phone calls and e-mails promptly. Try to set up a specific time for the interview. If you are interviewing with multiple practices (departments), there’s a good chance you will mix up the information, so don’t forget to take detailed notes. Finally, don’t forget to thank the interviewer for their time before and after the call. You should follow-up such interviews with a thank you e-mail or note. Remember, first impressions are very important!

TIP #6

If you had a good telephone interview, the potential employer will likely invite you for an on-site interview. This will give the potential employer an opportunity to see if their first impression was accurate. On the other hand, it will also give you an opportunity to see if your first impression of the employer was accurate. There are some things to remember with regards to this interviewing process (it is a little different from the other interviews you may have done in the past). First, the potential employer should pay for all costs associated with the on-site interview. Yes, they should fly you to their location, pay for your hotel, and even pay for your meals. Have the potential employer prepare an agenda with a rough layout of the plans for your visit. You should know where the interview(s) will take place, the time(s) of the interview(s), with whom you are meeting, etc. Will you have an opportunity to visit the clinic(s), hospital(s), and operating room(s)? Review your travel plans a couple of nights in advance. Bring copies of your CV and any publications you may have (if you are interviewing with academic departments). There is one thing that physicians sometimes fail to do when interviewing…promote themselves. Don’t be afraid to toot your own horn within reason, no one is going to do this for you. Finally, make a good second impression! This process is similar to the dating game. Place an emphasis on accentuating your positives.

TIP #7

Don’t be afraid to ask tough questions. This dating process may potentially end in marriage. Look for any red flags. Are there family members in the practice? Is the name of the senior member in the name of the practice? How are new patients assigned? Why do they need a new physician in their practice/department? How much competition is there within the practice? Who makes the decisions in the practice? What is the long-term plan for you 5 years down the road? 10 years down the road? How far will you have to travel to reach satellite offices? It’s nice to know the answers to such questions before you sign your life away.

TIP #8

In life, there are things that you need and there are things that you want. During your job search, you will discover that there is no such thing as a perfect job. You must have a clear understanding of what things are most important to you and your family. Put those things on a list in order of importance. The decision that you make today will have an effect on your happiness (and your family’s happiness) tomorrow.

TIP #9

The base salary is sometimes regarded as one of the most important aspects of a job offer. Be certain that you understand how much you can make with regard to bonuses. In most cases, you will be offered a base salary with a productivity bonus (a certain percentage after your collections have reached a specified level). You should make sure that the bonus is obtainable; otherwise, it’s nothing more than an enticement tool to get you to sign on the dotted line. The base salary and bonus may not give you a comprehensive overview of the package being offered to you. Don’t forget to add all of the benefits into the equation when making comparisons between offers (this might include a signing bonus, insurances, relocation costs, CME allowance, etc.).

TIP #10

Your job search will likely lead to talks of a contract. This is where things can become murky. The issues you discussed verbally may appear different on paper (typically, not to your advantage). It’s not what was said that counts, but what is written in your contract. Astute Physician has created a one-of-a-kind Primer to assist you in navigating this complicated legal document. Our Primer will walk you step-by-step through the major components of a physician employment contract and will allow you to negotiate a phenomenal income with all the benefits you deserve. When you have a contract in your hand, log onto our website: http://www.astutephysician.com/ and purchase Astute Physician’s Primer on Employment Contracts. In addition, you can find an attorney to help you review your contract on Astute Physician's Services Board. We have already helped tons of physicians through this process, and we’re confident that we can help you, too!

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Relief Jones, III, M.D. is a board-certified ophthalmologist. He holds degrees from Stanford University and the Duke University School of Medicine. He completed a transitional internship at Tulane University, which was followed by residency in ophthalmology at the University of Texas-San Antonio. He completed a clinical fellowship in Glaucoma at the Massachusetts Eye & Ear Infirmary/Harvard Medical School and a post-doctoral research fellowship in Ocular Immunology & Transplantation at the Schepens Eye Research Institute/Harvard Medical School. He is currently in private practice in San Antonio, Texas, where he also serves as a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center-San Antonio.