High School
Take as many health, biology, chemistry, and mathematics classes as possible in high school. Since consultants must frequently write reports and convey their findings orally to clients, take English and speech classes. Other useful courses include computer science, psychology, business, and social studies.
Postsecondary Education
A bachelor’s degree is the minimum requirement to become a consultant, although some employers—especially major firms—prefer to hire consultants with a master’s degree in health care management, health policy, or business, or at least a bachelor’s degree plus several years of appropriate work experience.
The University of Colorado-Boulder, University of Notre Dame, and the College of William & Mary are among the few colleges that offer degrees and concentrations in consulting.
Certification
Georgetown University, University of Southern California, the University of Texas at Dallas, and other colleges and universities offer consulting certificate programs. Contact these schools to learn more.
Other Education or Training
Many professional associations provide continuing-education (CE) opportunities to management consultants. For example, the National Society of Certified Healthcare Business Consultants offers seminars at its annual meeting. Past sessions included Medical Consulting from the Ground Up, Accountable Care Organizations and New Opportunities in Healthcare Marketing, and How to Identify and Adapt to Change.
The Institute of Management Consultants USA offers a Mastering Management Consulting fundamentals course for those just starting a new consulting practice or re-focusing an existing one. Educational opportunities are also available in face-to-face seminars and online webinars, and through other media.
The American College of Healthcare Executives and many other national and state-level consulting associations provide CE opportunities. Contact these organizations for more information.
- Accountants
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