APMA News - January/February 2024 - A3

Navigating Your
Professional Journey with
the APMA Career Center
Embarking on a career in podiatric medicine is an exciting journey filled
with dedication, learning, and a passion for healing. However, navigating
the job market can be challenging. To shed some light on this crucial phase
in your career, we've gathered advice from two young physician members,
Brandon Brooks, DPM, MPH, and Colin Mizuo, DPM.
an orthopedic practice where I currently
split my time during the week.
What advice do you have for residents
regarding when they should start
looking for a fellowship/job?
Dr. Brooks: I would start as soon as you
can. It's never too early to make connections
and build relationships with people.
Brandon Brooks, DPM, MPH
What has been your experience
searching for a job in podiatry?
Dr. Brooks: Finding a job is easy, but
finding a good job is hard. I am a federal
employee; I enjoy working at the VA. It
took me three tries to join the VA-I had
to keep applying. Keep persevering even
if you have to take a job that you aren't
happy with at first.
Dr. Mizuo: My job search in podiatry
has been relatively easy given my unique
situation. After I finished my military
obligation, I traveled back to the Washington,
DC, area where I already had
established a strong network amongst
my peers during my residency. Job
searching is always an arduous task,
but the process can be simplified if you
know what type of setting you want to
Colin Mizuo, DPM
be in (private practice versus hospital
versus VA, etc.) and what geographic
location you want to practice in. Once
I established that foundation, I reached
out to everyone I knew in the DC area
to see if they knew of anyone or any
entity hiring. Many jobs in podiatry are
not posted but rather spread by word of
mouth to alleviate the " appropriate fit "
on the employer side. I was open to a
hospital setting and private practice but
admittedly, I knew very little about how
to appropriately negotiate a contract.
Fortunately, I established relationships
with individuals who either started
their own practice or were seasoned in
practice management who I was able to
reach out to for mentorship regarding
contract negotiation. Ultimately, I chose
a private practice that I was familiar with
from residency, which led to a referral to
Dr. Mizuo: Fellowships are becoming
more and more competitive, even with
the large influx of fellowships that are
opening. I think you need to establish
within your first year of residency
whether or not you want to do a fellowship.
Visiting fellowships needs to start
early to midway into your second year,
and most fellowships try to lock in their
candidates early in the third year. As for
jobs, if a resident plans to go straight
into practice after residency, that search
needs to start early in the third year, arguably
late second year. Jobs come and go
very fast, and the availability is dictated
on several factors from the employer
side. It never hurts to express interest as
early as possible, especially if you plan to
practice in a saturated area.
What do you wish you had
considered when looking for a job?
Dr. Brooks: I almost moved my family
to a terrible location for $30K more
in salary. I am embarrassed to admit
this. When I was a fellow, I had several
job offers. Most were not great, in my
opinion. When deciding between two
of them, one was in a desirable location
Continued on Page 4
YOUR APMA / PAGE 3
APMA News - January/February 2024

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