Dr. Amanda Matthews left Medical College of Georgia with more than just four years of hard work, some awards and finally a diploma. She also had a daughter to show for it.

Dr. Matthews was among 783 who graduated Friday from MCG, including 170 new doctors. Like many of her classmates and other medical students nationwide, how she chooses to practice will take into account her desire to spend time with her family and daughter, Addie. It is clear from surveys of physician attitudes that the younger physicians are different than those who came before them, said Darrell G. Kirch, the president and CEO of the Association of American Medical Colleges, who was the keynote speaker at MCG's graduation.

"It is very clear that both genders, male and female, of younger physicians express ideas about working part time or having a hiatus in their career where they devote themselves to family," he said.

The mistake some older physicians make is in thinking the younger set don't possess the same work ethic when that is not the case, Dr. Kirch said.

In fact, the decision to have a child meant Dr. Matthews had to carry her pregnancy through the rigorous clinics of her third year of medical school.

"I had my harder rotations toward the end of my third year," she said. "I was very pregnant. I was seven months pregnant on surgery. It was really difficult. I was so exhausted by the time I would get home in the evening."

Her already swollen ankles would balloon during long rounds at the hospital, she said, and toward the end she could fit only tennis shoes onto her feet. Luckily for her, Addie was born June 26 last year, which fell between her third and fourth years and meant she didn't have to miss any time. That had been the initial fear when she found out she was pregnant.

"I did really well my first two years of school and I thought, Can I do both? Can I be a good student and become a good physician and be a good mommy, too?' " she said.

She did well enough that she won the Georgia Woman of the Year Scholarship for her academic and volunteer work.

When she got the call about the award, she was at home taking care of Addie.

"I was sitting here in my pajamas, I had probably not showered all day," Dr. Matthews said with a laugh. "I didn't feel like any Georgia Woman of the Year."

It is an ongoing balancing act for her, trying to care for Addie and continue studying, though her husband, Blake, helps out a lot, she said. She always tried to wait until Addie is put to bed before pulling out the books.

"As much as I want to study, if she is in the room and she's doing something cute or wants my attention, it's hard to say no to that," Dr. Matthews said.

It is partly for that reason Dr. Matthews chose ophthalmology as a specialty over general surgery, which she also liked.

"You get to work with all age groups. The other nice thing is you get to do office work; you get to do some surgery. So it affords you both," she said. "The third thing is I can have office hours but then I can still spend time with my family. I can still be a good mother."

And that in the end is what is important to her. And to Addie.