A Career-Switcher’s Perspective on HSM and Health Care Opportunities at Fuqua

 

Radhika Singhal, Candidate for MBA, class of 2022


I knew I wanted to apply to, and hopefully go to, Fuqua when I attended a multi-school event in New York City in 2019. I didn’t know much about Health Sector Management at the time, but I talked to the Admissions representative at the event, and she connected me to Jess Levitt, the Assistant Director of HSM. I knew I could see myself attending Fuqua and being in HSM when Jess told me, “HSM draws people from various backgrounds and industries.” As a “career-switcher”, I knew in that moment that HSM would be right for me.

I studied Health Economics in undergrad and worked in financial services in a couple of different general management roles. I knew I wanted to eventually be in the health care industry and I knew I wanted to get an MBA, so my school search was about finding that right combination of a holistic MBA experience and meaningful health care exposure, and I found that at Fuqua.

Below I have highlighted the key aspects of the health care experience at Fuqua that have shaped my experience thus far:

• HSM Curriculum: I really value the flexibility of the HSM curriculum and the opportunity to go as deep (or not) into the health care electives as students want. Students can choose to take as few as one or as many as seven health care electives beyond the 3 required courses – HSM “Bootcamp” (officially known as Health Institutions, Systems and Policy), FY HSM Seminar, and Health Care Markets. This truly lets students make their HSM and Fuqua experience as health care-intensive as they want it to be.

Radhika is part of the HSM Certificate Program at Fuqua


• HSM Fellows: I remember mentioning in my Fuqua interview that I wanted to be an HSM Fellow. When I started at Fuqua last summer, I applied and was thrilled to be accepted. This two-year role has been an incredible opportunity to work with five other incredibly smart classmates and the HSM administration to continue to strengthen the HSM experience for First and Second Year students.


• Mentored Study: During Spring 1 and Spring 2 of my First Year, I worked with another Fuqua student on a mentored study with a startup that spun out of Duke. We developed a freemium model and a communications and marketing strategy for their new instructional tool that would help train health care professionals to create and implement quality improvement projects within their organizations. This semester-long experience helped me learn more about challenges with quality improvement in different health care settings, develop relationships with and gain industry knowledge directly from the co-founders, and collaborate with and learn from a classmate with a different professional experience from mine.


• Health Care Club: During my First Year, I was involved with the Health Care Club through the International Affairs First Year Cabinet. I worked with two other First Year students and one Second Year student to help support international students in HSM. We introduced the first buddy program for international students in health care to provide more targeted mentorship between First and Second Years. This year, I am the Second Year student leading the Community Engagement Cabinet along with two First Year students on my team. We are focused on engaging everyone in the health care community at Fuqua through various initiatives: for example, we aim to create mentorship opportunities and events for MMS and MQM students.


• Recruiting: I recruited for pharma and biotech companies in my First Year. I built a strong relationship with the Career Management Center’s Sector Director for Health care and refined my story and recruiting efforts as a “career-switcher”. I leveraged several HCC resources to refine my resume, cover letters, interviewing skills etc. and leaned on several Second Years to prepare for recruiting and interviewing. This past summer, I interned at Regeneron in their Market Access Strategy team focused on their blockbuster eye drug EYLEA. I absolutely loved my summer experience at the firm: I learned an incredible amount, worked with fantastic people, and truly enjoyed getting to know the company and its culture. I will be returning as a BuiLD Associate in their Business Leadership Development (BuiLD) program which is a 27-month rotational program across 3 different areas within the organization. I am very excited to return to New York after graduation and launch my career in the biotech industry.

In summary, the various academic, extra-curricular, and experiential learning opportunities have truly enriched my experience at Fuqua, and I am grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the HSM community

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