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Richard McCullough, President, FSU
Darren Brooks, MBA Program Director, FSU
MBA Programs
Expanding Options
MBA programs across Florida are adding disciplines and retooling programs to provide more opportunities for students in a changing business world.
FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY | HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT
McCullough’s Push
The most dominant trend among Florida’s more than 40 public and private MBA programs is the robust expansion of diverse specialty graduate courses.
Not too long ago, MBA programs had narrower offerings of mainline business courses that included such traditional pillars as finance, business analytics and marketing.
But times have changed, and Florida State University’s MBA program is offering students a broader array of new specialty courses.
FSU’s most recent addition is a Healthcare Management MBA that began in the fall of 2022.
Darren Brooks, FSU’s MBA program director, says that program was added at the specific request of FSU President Richard McCullough, who took the helm of the school in 2021.
“One of the things that we’re looking to do is to expand our options in terms of coursework, not only in the MBA program but across all of the programs in the college,” Brooks says. “The Healthcare Management specialty has been a major push and is a great example of President McCullough’s commitment and our MBA team’s commitment to offer our students this specialization,” he says.
The three-course elective track includes classes in health care law and ethics, staffing and health care financing — and the program is becoming one of the most popular specialties among MBA students, says Brooks.
Mariela Ramirez Rodriguez, a student in the program, plans on pursuing a job in health care finance. “My experience in the MBA program has been transformative. The program has reshaped the way I approach the workforce and collaborative environments,” she says.
Tinna Huynh also is enrolled in FSU’s MBA program and takes courses remotely while working for HCA Florida Capital Hospital as a bariatric dietitian.
She obtained her bachelor’s degree in dietetics from FSU and a master’s degree in nutrition and dietetics from the State University of New York.
She’s pursuing an MBA, she says, to broaden her career options. “Professional careers that interest me would be management-type roles, including practice manager or practice administrator roles in health care settings that relate to my prior experience and education, such as transplant centers, surgical centers, dermatologists’ clinics or plastic surgery clinics.”
Huynh’s best advice for undergraduates thinking of entering an MBA program would be to think long-term.
“Ask yourself: What are your long-term goals in your career when pursuing an MBA? Will an MBA benefit you now or five to 10 years later? What profession do you want to enter in the business field? Will an undergraduate degree in business be enough for the profession you want to enter, or will your field require an advanced degree?”
FSU Student Profile
All MBA Formats
Male: 53%
Female: 47%
On-campus MBA
Male: 55%
Female: 45%
Online MBA
Male: 52%
Female: 48%
Source: Darren Brooks, director of the Master of Business Administration Programs, FSU
