Almost Half of All New Doctors Get 100 Job Offers

Seventy-eight percent of new physicians received at least 50 job solicitations during their training, and 47 percent received 100 or more, according to a survey by Merritt Hawkins & Associates, a physician search firm and division of AMN Healthcare Services Inc.

Merritt Hawkins had asked more than 300 physicians in their final year of training how many times they had been contacted by recruiters seeking to interest them in jobs by telephone, email or regular mail.

“Even in a stagnant economy, new doctors are being recruited like blue-chip athletes,” said James Merritt, founder of Merritt Hawkins. “There are simply not enough physicians coming out of training to fill all the available openings.”

Still, despite the favorable job market, some new doctors are unhappy about their choice of profession. The survey found that 28 percent said they would select another field if they had to do their education over again.

The survey also had bad news for rural areas. Only 4 percent of new doctors said they would prefer to practice in communities of 25,000 people or less.

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