Post-MBA Goals: Healthcare

So, you're an MBA candidate working in healthcare.

The healthcare sector is the biggest employer in the US, according to the US Census Bureau. In 2021, 28% of healthcare employers believed that the skills gained through a graduate business degree were important in today’s remote/hybrid-working business environments. In 2024, that number nearly doubled, with 55% of healthcare employers holding this opinion. More generally, employers across regions and industries continue to show confidence in the effectiveness of business school programs in preparing their graduates for success.

Many top business schools offer specialized pathways, curricula, and certificate programs in healthcare management or administration for professionals who want to develop their careers in healthcare. Read on to understand how an MBA can be useful for healthcare professionals, how you should approach your MBA applications as a healthcare applicant, and which top business schools are ideal for healthcare applicants. 

Why an MBA for healthcare?

If you already work in healthcare management or administration, have an undergraduate degree in healthcare and would like to explore different functions, or want to pivot from an administrative or clinical role (such as a general practitioner) to a strategy/management role, an MBA could help you advance your career.

Like our former client Mahesh, who plans to expand his medical start-up throughout India and globally. He’s all set to attend Georgetown McDonough with a $80,000 scholarship, where he hopes to get access to diverse industry professionals, global healthcare markets, and get hands-on experience.

Read Mahesh's story here.

Here are 5 ways an MBA can help healthcare professionals achieve their goals: 

• Finance: In an increasingly changing healthcare industry that demands better quality healthcare and is witnessing higher costs of operations, an MBA can help healthcare professionals build their skills in budgeting, risk management, strategic investment, resource management, and data-driven decision making.

• Economics: An MBA can help healthcare professionals apply economic supply and demand concepts to healthcare, the role of competition in the healthcare market, understand industry accreditation requirements, regulations, compliance issues, and licensure requirements. MBA students will also learn to identify the major global challenges impacting healthcare and apply diverse perspectives to management decisions. 

• Management and Leadership: In addition to skills in project management and process improvement methodologies, healthcare professionals will build the teamwork, communication, negotiation, and EQ skills key to the healthcare industry. 

• Strategy: Healthcare systems need constant innovation to improve patient care and outcomes while reducing costs. An MBA provides training in strategic thinking and problem-solving – skills especially important when navigating the changing landscape of healthcare regulations, technology, and patient expectations.

• Networking: The vast networks of alumni, healthcare industry leaders, and faculty members that MBA candidates get access to at business school can help them advance their career and find interesting opportunities at the intersection of business and healthcare. 

While more than half (61%) of U.S. and health care and pharmaceutical employers believe that professionals with business degrees will be more successful in the workplace, they seem to be more receptive to the value of microcredentials than other industries, based on GMAC’s 2024 Corporate Recruiter’s Survey. That tells us that while they value the communication and leadership skills provided by an MBA, healthcare and pharma employers also value technical credentials like professional certifications. 

Post-MBA roles for Healthcare Graduates

Career paths for MBA graduates in healthcare include: 

Leadership Development Programs: There are many Leadership Development Programs (LDPs) offered by big pharma, biotech, health insurance, health tech and contract research organizations, like Johnson&Johnson, Medtronic, Cigna, Novartis, Amgen, Genentech, Astra Zeneca, and more. Candidates can join programs across commercial and finance, health services and operations leadership, marketing, human resources, and other functions.

Many LDPs enable steady upwards mobility, enabling professionals to exit in Director roles. Like our client Shenzhi, who earned an admit to Oxford Saïd with a £10,000 scholarship, and joined Novartis in their highly selective Global Leadership Development Programme to develop commercial strategies and marketing materials. Her story 👇

Healthcare Management and Administration: Many MBA graduates find roles in hospital or clinic management, overseeing operations, strategy, and patient care. These roles may include becoming a hospital CEO, CFO, or COO, where you will manage finances, lead teams, and ensure smooth operational processes.

Healthcare Consulting: Healthcare consultants advise organizations on assessing the effectiveness of their current processes and systems, resource utilization, developing and implementing strategies to improve patient care, operational efficiency, adhere to regulations, and adopt new technologies. They also identify trends and opportunities in the industry via market research, and provide training to healthcare providers to help them implement new systems and processes. Top consulting firms like McKinsey, BCG, Deloitte, etc. offer healthcare-specific consulting services. 

Pharmaceutical/ Life Sciences Management: For professionals working in pharma or biotechnology, an MBA can help them improve their skills in product development, marketing strategies, finance, market analysis, and global expansion. 

Health Insurance and Policy: MBA graduates can take on roles in health insurance companies, working in operations, underwriting, claims processing, and risk management. Again, many of these roles are LDPs with medical device companies like Medtronic and healthcare insurers like Cigna or United. There are also opportunities to shape public health policies at national and global organizations.

Venture Capital: Many MBA graduates with an interest in healthcare and entrepreneurship gravitate toward venture capital, specifically focusing on funding healthcare startups started by doctors and researchers at larger universities. Here, you can help evaluate the viability of emerging healthcare therapies and innovations, identify growth opportunities, and shape the future of healthcare investment.

Health Tech and Digital Health: There is a booming demand for telemedicine, wearable device, and health data analytics solutions. MBA graduates can help manage product development, marketing, business strategy, and customer engagement at health tech startups or established tech companies, and even manage medical device sales and delivery and health-tech consultants. 

How to approach your MBA application as a healthcare professional

If you are a healthcare applicant, here’s what you can do to make your MBA application stand out:

Showcase a strong mission and goals: Your goals should consider the legacy you want to leave behind, or your professional purpose. As a healthcare professional passionate about contributing to care, demonstrate how you are driven by impact and a genuine desire to improve healthcare outcomes in the communities you serve. 

Demonstrate leadership: In your application, ensure that you give examples of times you imbibed and implemented key leadership qualities like communication, problem-solving, analytical, strategic, and interpersonal skills. In addition to any management experience, show that you can work smoothly with different stakeholders and build trust with them. Using the SCAR format, provide specific examples of your achievements, failures, challenges, and other stories that have helped you build these crucial leadership and teamwork skills. 

Extracurriculars: Highlight your healthcare-related extracurricular activities, which could include frontline patient care, local or international volunteering, research, or community involvement. Connect these to the research you have done for your target school, highlighting resources like healthcare clubs, immersion experiences, or international treks to start a conversation about areas you can contribute to during (and after) your MBA. 

Network early: Get your foot in the door by familiarizing yourself with industry leaders and professionals at your target companies before the start of your MBA program. Consider any additional courses or certifications to enhance specific skills, like data analytics, before you join the MBA class. 

Top 10 Best MBA Programs for Healthcare in 2025

In no particular order, here are our top-10 best MBA programs for Healthcare applicants in 2025. Many of these schools offer dual or joint degrees at the intersection of business and healthcare, like the MBA/MPP, MBA/MD, MBA/MS in biotechnology or related fields, and more.

1. The University of Pennsylvania – Wharton School of Business

The Wharton MBA, through its Healthcare Management Department, offers a Healthcare Management Major including a field application project and diverse elective choices ranging from Legal Aspects of Healthcare to Comparative Health Systems. Wharton also has multiple health and biotech student clubs, and offers students the opportunity to engage in global health volunteering.

2. Harvard Business School

Harvard Business School (HBS)'s Healthcare Initiative offers a healthcare track available for its MBA students. Courses include healthcare strategy, policy, finance, and more. Addiitionally, students can participate in a healthcare mentoring program, networking events, career days, and research with the large faculty body specializing in healthcare research.

3. Northwestern University – Kellogg 

Kellogg MBA students can choose the Healthcare at Kellogg (HCAK) pathway, where they will complete one foundational course before choosing from specialized electives like “Critical Issues in the Pharmaceutical, Biotech, and Medical Device Industries,” Capstone projects, and experiential learning courses such as “NUVention Medical Innovation” and “Medical Technologies in Developing Countries.”  They can also participate in Kellogg’s Healthcare Club, including events with healthcare and biotech professors and industry executives. Kellogg also hosts the annual Kellogg Business of Healthcare Conference (KBHC), where participants can discuss and debate key healthcare topics.

4. Duke University – Fuqua School of Business

The Fuqua School of Business provides a Health Sector Management (HSM) Certificate Program for students who want to transition into health management or gain a deeper understanding of the healthcare industry. The program offers courses on diverse topics like "Biopharmaceutical and Medical Device Strategy," "Commercialization of Disruptive Innovations," and "Health Care Law and Policy." Students can participate in extracurricular activities like the Duke Health Sector Advisory Council and the HSM Bootcamp, where they can network with industry professionals and learn about career opportunities.

5. MIT – Sloan School of Management

MIT Sloan offers a Healthcare Certificate, with courses like “Economics of the Health Industry” and “Collaborative Data Science in Medicine”. Its experiential learning focus also includes a  specialized Healthcare Lab and the HSI Initiative to help students drive real-world innovation in healthcare. 

6. The University of North Carolina – Kenan-Flagler Business School

UNC Kenan-Flagler offers a wide range of healthcare courses, such as “Global Healthcare,” “Healthcare Analytics,” and “Healthcare Brand Plan.” UNC also provides experiential learning opportunities, like the STAR (Student Teams Achieving Results) Healthcare program, where students can collaborate with major healthcare companies, including GSK, Sharecare, Blue Cross NC, Optum, and Viiv Healthcare, on real projects. Additionally, UNC encourages student involvement with the Center for the Business of Health (CBOH), which spans across UNC's various schools to address key healthcare issues through research, teaching, and specialized programs.

7. Columbia Business School

Columbia offers the Healthcare and Pharmaceutical Management Program with courses in public policy and healthcare, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology strategy, and digital health. They also have a Healthcare Mentorship Program for recruitment support and a “Healthcare Leadership Series,” for students and alumni to engage in productive discussion about contemporary industry challenges. Columbia’s healthcare graduates receive higher post-MBA salaries than most healthcare graduates from other top schools.

8. Carnegie Mellon University – Tepper School of Business

Tepper offers a joint MBA-Master’s of Science in Healthcare Policy and Management to enable students to learn both courses on product development and innovation, and healthcare capital management. It also provides multiple avenues for students to gain practical experience and connect with healthcare professionals, like the Healthcare Club, the Career Treks program, and visits to healthcare facilities.

9. The University of Michigan – Ross School of Business

At Michigan Ross, students can opt for the Healthcare and Life Sciences concentration and participate in Multidisciplinary Action Projects to consult on real-world health care projects with hospitals and pharma companies.

10. Dartmouth University – Tuck School of Business

Dartmouth Tuck's Healthcare Initiative allows students to take specific courses, extracurriculars, and projects to tailor their MBA experience to their healthcare goals. The Tuck Global Consultancy also provides opportunities to engage with healthcare organizations and practical learning, like internships. Each year, approximately 6% of Tuck graduates enter health care roles. 

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Are you a healthcare professional applying for MBAs or dual/joint degree programs? Get in touch for a free 20 minute consultation.