Oh Jobs Where art Thou!! – Healthcare That’s Where

By Ian Cropp, Correspondent – Business@GW

With the job and internship search in full swing for first and second year MBAs , the economy isn’t quite where everyone had hoped it would be.  Many of the previously sure-fire MBA jobs have evaporated, and the prospect of some returning have been nothing but mirages. The good news, however, is that for the desert wanderers there may be a pretty good bet for an oasis: Health Care.

Unlike some of the more volatile industries, such as finance and commercial real estate, the health care industry is quite stable with almost guaranteed growth. There are several factors pushing the growth, including  an aging population that will need more care, a broadening definition of health care to include more social or cosmetic procedures and a growing need for more quality management.

“Because of the growth of health services, the number of organizations becomes greater and greater and all of them need management, and because of budget issues, the pressure to perform and be efficient increases as well,” said Dr. Kurt Darr, a Professor of Hospital Administration at The George Washington University’s Department of Health Services Management and Leadership and former assistant dean of the School of Government and Business Administration.

“Historical, the tradition for MBAs has been to go into the for-profit business – that’s the expected pathway,” Darr said. “I think the development of a professional degree in health services information came about because there was a need for management-trained masters or graduate students who were more focused on non-for-profit.”

Most MBAs may be familiar with the large pharmaceutical companies, but there are plenty of other sectors of the health care industry hiring.

“The GDP devoted to health care is 16 percent and likely to go higher,” Darr said.”And we haven’t even talked about insurance companies. Third-party payers, like Blue Cross and Blue Shield are going to employ, assuming they survive. Also, there will be major players for financing the system.”

“There are a large number of investor-owned providers, hospital providers, nursing homes and consulting firms that employee MBAs to carry out their missions,” Darr said. “Clinics that are predominately owned and operated for the benefit of physicians would be more likely to focus on MBAs.”

While some jobs may not be exactly what an MBA expected upon entering graduate school, opportunities are abound at assisted-living and retirement communities, as well as nursing homes.

In the current economy, however, some MBAs don’t have the luxury of seeking only high-paying positions. “The financial rewards aren’t as great, and the non-for-profit (companies) can’t provide stock,” Darr said. “It’s a different environment in terms of compensation.  On the other hand there are for-profit providers across the board, too.”

Darr foresees growth regardless of the outcome of the health care reform bills floating around in Congress. “Any legislation that passes will have an emphasis on cost control, which means competent management,” Darr said. “People who know how to gain most benefit from every dollar spent. That may mean MBAs.”

Growth in the health care industry will likely foster growth in other related fields, too. “Consulting firms will be very important,” Darr said. “Most (health care) organizations don’t have enough personnel or talent to handle special projects so there will be more need for consulting.”

A key to finding a job in the health care industry is being proactive. “There aren’t many (companies) that come on campus to recruit,” Darr said. “There are about 5,000 hospitals, but no real concentration, unlike the big six or seven banks, or the concentration you find in other industries.”

Unlike some of the finance and consumer goods internships, most health care internships are unpaid.  “If you are willing to work at an organization as intern or doing project work, you can get some entry-level experience and do some networking,” Darr said.

For MBAs looking to live in a specific area that may not have typical MBA-related positions, health care jobs often an alluring alternative. “All health care, like politics, is local — they are all where the people are,” Darr said.

Specifically, areas with high population growth or an aging demographic are likely to have many health care job opportunities. While there may be a few different techniques MBAs should use when approaching the job search in the Health Care field, MBAs can still look to their most basic tools.

“The field is small, but large, so much what happens is a matter of personal contacts and networking,” Darr said.

Health care has job opportunities

The recession may have wiped out a number of jobs in the US economy. But there may yet be a cure for those left unemployed by the economic downturn. Recruiters are saying that the healthcare reform could trigger the job market creating jobs for new MBA graduates.

For more read: http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/2009/11/08/bus_554883.shtml