Industry Overview

Healthcare is one of the most crucial, complex, and rapidly growing industries in the country and the world. MBA opportunities in the healthcare industry span across different sectors, with each sector offering positions in multiple functions.

Sectors

Payer
The Payer sector includes companies that finance the cost of healthcare, such as insurance companies, health plan sponsors (such as employers or unions), and government agencies. 
Example Firms: Humana, WellPoint, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)

Provider
The Provider sector includes companies that provide healthcare services to patients, such as hospitals, physician groups, and long term care facilities.  
Example Firms: Kaiser Permanente, City of Hope, HealthCare Partners

Life Sciences/Pharma
The Life Sciences sector includes companies that develop and produce pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and medical devices. 
Example Firms: Amgen, Genentech, Johnson and Johnson, Abbott

Digital Health
The Digital health sector includes companies that develop digital solutions to the healthcare industry. 
Example Firms: Heali AI, GIBLIB, CHLA Innovation Studio

Functions

Marketing
Marketing roles include brand and product management, direct-to-consumer marketing, channel management, market research and analytics, and sales management. 
Example Roles: Medical Device Product Management, Direct-to-Consumer Marketing for Health Insurance Plans, Pharmaceutical Sales

Finance
Every healthcare-related organization needs a strong financial backbone. Roles range from corporate finance or accounting to real estate sales and acquisitions. 
Example Roles: Corporate Finance, Real Estate

Operations
The operations functional area helps keep the patient in mind in all healthcare sectors, whether that be through ensuring smooth oversight of the clinic or seeing that the patient receive the drug or device they need. Roles include managing the parts of the supply chain process and overseeing operational improvements utilizing lean methodologies. 
Example Roles: Supply Chain, Process Development, Hospital Operations

Consulting
Most large consulting firms offer their services to companies across all sectors and functions in the healthcare industry. There are also consulting firms that specialize in the healthcare industry. In addition, firms across all sectors have roles in internal consulting or strategy. 
Example Roles: Strategy Consulting, Operations Consulting, Technology Consulting

Management
Healthcare companies have many roles in general management across all sectors. 
Example Roles: Human Resources, Leadership Development Programs, Project Management