Meet Michael Matly

Michael Matly
Dual Degree: Mayo Medical School M.D. and Harvard University M.B.A.

Michael Matly is definitely "the glass-is-half-full" kind of guy. He sees opportunity, growth and a chance to contribute everywhere he looks.

So when the Kokomo, Ind. native learned about Mayo Medical School's dual-degree program - with the chance to complete both a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree at Harvard and an M.D. at Mayo - Michael leapt at it. He is a member of the Harvard M.B.A. class of 2007, and Mayo's M.D. class of 2009. At Mayo, he has focused on research into neurosurgical oncology, building on his undergraduate interests at Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., in neurobiology and behavior.

Carving Out a New Niche

Michael never wasted time wondering if the demanding program would take too much from his life. Instead, he reveled in the possibility it offered.

Says Michael: "I have no doubt that the dual path has helped me carve out a niche for myself. It's given me a deeper sense of myself, and the confidence that being an M.B.A. with an M.D. degree is giving me a whole new tool set of skills - it's taking me just where I want to be. I couldn't ask for more."

For his M.B.A., Michael is concentrating on finance, management and entrepreneurship. At Harvard, he also serves as the co-president of the Middle East and North African Club that is involved with a number of initiatives in the region including recruiting, career development, and networking opportunities.

Collaborations in Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Michael's parents were born in Lebanon. As a Lebanese-American, Michael appreciates the linkage of Mayo and Harvard because both are visionary U.S. leaders in Middle East health care collaborations. Both have centers in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, dedicated to improving global health care. The 8,000-square-foot Mayo Clinic Middle East Regional Office is located in the Dubai Healthcare City complex. Opened in February 2005, it focuses on patient care through diagnosis and noninvasive treatment of heart problems. Michael's research with Harvard centers on how health care plays an important role in the development of emerging economies. "In Dubai, for example, they are using health care to pull the economy forward," Michael explains.

Far Reaching Advantages

Michael began his medical studies in 2003. He then interrupted MMS to take two years off, from 2005-2007, to complete his M.B.A. After receiving the M.B.A., he will return to Rochester to finish his M.D. and graduate in the spring of 2009.

Michael receives research credit at both MMS and Harvard for the Dubai project. Says Michael: "I'm working with top faculty at both Mayo and Harvard in an important area of global health care - so it's really exciting.

In fall 2006, Michael traveled to Dubai for the second time. He interviewed chief health care leaders in the Arab world to discuss international health care and global development, areas in which he and Harvard colleagues are preparing publications.

After graduation from Harvard and MMS, Michael plans to return to Dubai to start an innovative company that will help make health care more accessible to people. "The way my Mayo and Harvard educations have come together have really made so many more things possible," says Michael.