Sarah Soo-Hoo, '21
Describe yourself in 3 words.
Fun, driven, curious
You are an MD-MBA student. What inspired you to do the dual degree?
It's quite simple: the healthcare system falls short of meeting the demands of twenty-first century medicine. Archaic rules often made to protect patients do more harm than good. Misaligned incentives between payors, providers, and patients fracture alliances. Health professionals are dealing with increasing barriers to delivering quality care. I always envisioned myself in a role where I could assess and address these fundamental issues. However, in order to actually accomplish this, I knew I'd need to fully appreciate the complexities of healthcare that transcend clinical medicine, ranging from competitive markets to drug pricing. And voila...here I am at CBS!
Are there any challenges and/or advantages to being a dual degree student?
Pros:
1) Some of the most impressive people in the world are my classmates (both at the medical school and at the business school)
2) I learn about topics I deeply care about
3) Free food
Cons:
1) Scheduling and coordinating classes can be challenging
2) There's no shortage of seminars or networking events, and it's impossible to attend everything I want to
3) Student debt
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Interestingly enough, I wanted to become a general surgeon when I started business school. However, CBS exposed me to the various intricacies of healthcare—from pharma to investing—and presented me with numerous opportunities to meaningfully apply my clinical knowledge within a business setting.
All this to say, in 10 years from now, I envision myself in a role where I can fully leverage both my medical and business degrees. After graduation, I hope to pivot into biotechnology investing, as this is a unique opportunity to identify and work with promising private and public companies that are developing novel therapies.
Why study healthcare at Columbia Business School?
I can't think of a better place to be. New York is home not only to world-renown medical centers and research institutions, but also to investment banks, VC/PE firms, and start-ups, which all play critical roles in healthcare. CBS and HCIA grant students exclusive access to every part of healthcare—whether it be through company treks, conferences, or internships. Lastly, meeting healthcare-focused alumni and classmates has been an amazing experience and I'm grateful to be a part of this community.
Is there a Professor or class you feel was most impactful during your time at the Business School?
Managerial Negotiations with Professor Ames. It was one of the most eye-opening and practical classes I've ever taken in my entire life (and as you know, I've taken a lot of classes before).
What event or speaker has most impressed you while at CBS?
Every year, Professor Cliff Cramer hosts a Supercharger panel, which features alumni with deep expertise to speak about their career paths. Last year, we had speakers from industry leaders in PE (Cerberus Capital Management), tech (Google Health), consulting (McKinsey), and pharma (J&J), and it was awesome to hear their candid thoughts on the transformation of each industry and how they got there.
What's the best part about being President of HCIA?
The most fun part about being President has been working with the HCIA Board, which is comprised of enthusiastic and similarly motivated students who are passionate about growing the CBS healthcare community, whether it be through networking events, panels featuring diverse speakers, or growing the club's relationships with alumni and companies. It's been an absolute privilege to get to know the HCIA Board and work alongside them; they're some of my closest friends.
Are you a member of other student organizations at Columbia?
I was also a member of the Peer Advisors, Columbia Student Investment Management Association, Health & Wellness Club, Columbia Women in Business, Golf Club, Gourmet Club, and Art Society. But HCIA is definitely the best one!
Tell us about your in-semester internship.
I'm beyond grateful to be interning at Venrock with the public healthcare team. My role entails conducting fundamental analysis on late-stage private and publicly held development-stage therapeutics companies. Nimish Shah (CBS ’06) and Andrew Gottesdiener (CBS ‘18) have been incredible mentors and working alongside them has been a humbling and amazing learning experience.
How did you balance a full-time MBA, running HCIA, co-founding CSSC and an in-semester internship?
Many, many sleepless nights haha...But honestly, I love everything I do, so it never feels like work to me. On a more technical level, being able to effectively triage and adapt to rapidly changing scenarios has been helpful (both of which are byproducts of my medical and business training).
You’re a lifelong New Yorker. What is the best thing about living and studying in NYC?
The diversity. NYC is the ultimate melting pot of culture, food, and people!