Do NOT do a medical sales college. It is a SCAM. Any company will train the right person that is just starting out at an entry level role that comes from B2B. It is mind blowing the amount of people that pay for a bogus certificate.
When I was working for MetLife it consisted of a shit ton of emails and broker happy hours. My commission for these deals were low and the ramp up to good money takes a really long time. I wasn’t willing to wait. Not much travel more of your traditional office job. Hated it
No I think it’s a solid job but don’t expect to jump right into a territory manager role like I did. I get very very lucky. Most likely you’ll have to jump to an associate role.
Because it’s completely two different fields. Medical device you’re in the OR in real time helping a doctor with surgery. B2b insurance you’re sending out emails and processing RFP’s from your office.
They want you to have some medical sales experience before you’re in their potentially risking the health of a patient
Again that is exception to the norm. I was lucky enough to make the jump straight to TM but 9/10 you will most likely transition into an associate role.
I’m just setting realistic expectations, that doesn’t mean it isn’t possible.
When I graduated college I had to make the same decision. Knowing what I know now, MSC is a big money grab. Your med sales job will take you through training programs that far surpass what you would get from MSC without the price tag
I started with Abbott in CRM with zero cardiology experience. The key was meeting the right hiring manager at the right time. Making a good impression on him and hitting it off. You don’t have to have med sales college or B2B experience, does it help? Yes. But it’s not a necessity in my experience. You gotta get out there and meet people. Find open positions and reach out to people who make decisions. Be persistent, that’s what landed me this role.
MSC is a total scam in my opinion. I’ve been in the industry for 7 years and most companies do not respect the program and actually won’t hire BECAUSE you did MSC. Almost seen as a cop out instead of getting in the field and getting real work life experience. Not to mention, MSC “statistics” they post are Bs. Saying average compensation is 150K out of the gate.. no. I made $65k as an ASR for a huge company for two years. It takes years to clear that 6 figure threshold.
And their “99.9% job placement” accounts for any job a graduate gets- even if it’s not true Medical device sales. It’s such a scam.
With that being said- what city are you near? If you are near a large city chances are there is some sort of Medical Device Society group that does social mixers ect that you can go to to network. I also recommend scouring linked in :) I’m in DFW and we have a social group here that holds mixers and those who are looking to break into the industry are always welcome!
I would not recommend medical sales college. I actually broke into one of the top med device companies as my first job right after college with no sales experience. Helped I had an ton of medical experience as an EMT, research etc with a finance degree but you just have to really push why you’re the best fit and wait until you land in front of the right person. One of my coworkers actually went to medical sales college & yet we were in the same role hired around the same time — I just saved more time & money 🙂. Definitely possible to break in with no b2b if you can sell yourself in the right way.
I’ve done it twice now btw so it definitely wasn’t a fluke the first time.
Former personal trainer here of 6 years. No medical sales college but do have a masters in sports science. network and get an opportunity. I have met many people from med sales college that took longer to break into the industry than me. Much longer. Network, take people for coffee and breakfast, and eventually something will crack. (do this while working current job). The b2b as a pre req is basically bullshit. So i would skip that and keep training until a gig opens
I’m so glad I asked given the STRONG answers agreeing with this lol!! I live in Charlotte actually, however my fiance and I are debating moving to frisco for his work so that’s awesome to hear. I’ll definitely try to look into that! I was debating traveling far for conferences so that would be much better if I can find one! Thank you!
The medical sales college thing is a racket. Some hiring managers will literally not hire people who have been to it.
I agree! The irony is though I’ve spoken with WELL more than one current ASR who said that’s how they got picked up.
I would tell you in my experience hiring managers value real sales experience you can show them with tangible numbers.
Do NOT do a medical sales college. It is a SCAM. Any company will train the right person that is just starting out at an entry level role that comes from B2B. It is mind blowing the amount of people that pay for a bogus certificate.
Don’t waste your money on medical sales college. I’m a clinical sales specialist. Go get some b2b experience and make money instead of spending it.
I come from b2b insurance sales. I worked at Metlife. Now I’m in medical device sales. I can answer any questions people have
What are some of the challenges you saw in b2b insurance sales vs med device and what’s the travel requirements for each job
When I was working for MetLife it consisted of a shit ton of emails and broker happy hours. My commission for these deals were low and the ramp up to good money takes a really long time. I wasn’t willing to wait. Not much travel more of your traditional office job. Hated it
Is insurance viewed as “bad experience” because it has such a low barrier of entry
No I think it’s a solid job but don’t expect to jump right into a territory manager role like I did. I get very very lucky. Most likely you’ll have to jump to an associate role.
If you have 3 years b2b of insurance sales why should you not expect to jump in as a TM. Isn’t 3 years b2b a standard requirement for TM
Because it’s completely two different fields. Medical device you’re in the OR in real time helping a doctor with surgery. B2b insurance you’re sending out emails and processing RFP’s from your office. They want you to have some medical sales experience before you’re in their potentially risking the health of a patient
Yeah but there are people that spend 3 years at enterprise and come in as a TM
Again that is exception to the norm. I was lucky enough to make the jump straight to TM but 9/10 you will most likely transition into an associate role. I’m just setting realistic expectations, that doesn’t mean it isn’t possible.
Don’t go to medical sales college.
When I graduated college I had to make the same decision. Knowing what I know now, MSC is a big money grab. Your med sales job will take you through training programs that far surpass what you would get from MSC without the price tag
I started with Abbott in CRM with zero cardiology experience. The key was meeting the right hiring manager at the right time. Making a good impression on him and hitting it off. You don’t have to have med sales college or B2B experience, does it help? Yes. But it’s not a necessity in my experience. You gotta get out there and meet people. Find open positions and reach out to people who make decisions. Be persistent, that’s what landed me this role.
MSC is a total scam in my opinion. I’ve been in the industry for 7 years and most companies do not respect the program and actually won’t hire BECAUSE you did MSC. Almost seen as a cop out instead of getting in the field and getting real work life experience. Not to mention, MSC “statistics” they post are Bs. Saying average compensation is 150K out of the gate.. no. I made $65k as an ASR for a huge company for two years. It takes years to clear that 6 figure threshold. And their “99.9% job placement” accounts for any job a graduate gets- even if it’s not true Medical device sales. It’s such a scam. With that being said- what city are you near? If you are near a large city chances are there is some sort of Medical Device Society group that does social mixers ect that you can go to to network. I also recommend scouring linked in :) I’m in DFW and we have a social group here that holds mixers and those who are looking to break into the industry are always welcome!
I am in the same boat , going to travel to a networking conference for major med device companies later this year . I recommend you do the same
Hm! Interesting. I’ve looked these up but haven’t found too many I could get in. Where is the one you’re referencing located?
Chicago
I would not recommend medical sales college. I actually broke into one of the top med device companies as my first job right after college with no sales experience. Helped I had an ton of medical experience as an EMT, research etc with a finance degree but you just have to really push why you’re the best fit and wait until you land in front of the right person. One of my coworkers actually went to medical sales college & yet we were in the same role hired around the same time — I just saved more time & money 🙂. Definitely possible to break in with no b2b if you can sell yourself in the right way. I’ve done it twice now btw so it definitely wasn’t a fluke the first time.
DONT IT IS a RIP OFF
You should start applying to enterprise, Cintas, unifirst, and other b2b companies
That’s what I was wondering. I was offered a job yesterday for a secondary cancer insurance b2b role. Would this be respected the same?
You really want to find a role where you’re out on the road trying to prospect new clients
You really want to work for a company that is known for having a great training program!
Former personal trainer here of 6 years. No medical sales college but do have a masters in sports science. network and get an opportunity. I have met many people from med sales college that took longer to break into the industry than me. Much longer. Network, take people for coffee and breakfast, and eventually something will crack. (do this while working current job). The b2b as a pre req is basically bullshit. So i would skip that and keep training until a gig opens
I’m so glad I asked given the STRONG answers agreeing with this lol!! I live in Charlotte actually, however my fiance and I are debating moving to frisco for his work so that’s awesome to hear. I’ll definitely try to look into that! I was debating traveling far for conferences so that would be much better if I can find one! Thank you!
Med sales college is a joke. Have worked for 2 major orthos, can say it’s looked at comically amongst the industry