After more than a decade of post-secondary education, Dr. Faria Khan decided she wanted just one more thing: another degree.
In 2001, she graduated from the University of Alabama at Birmingham with her M.D. Now, 17 years later, she’s added more letters to the end of her name, earning her Master of Business Administration degree at the University of West Georgia.
Khan has known she wanted to practice medicine since she was 11 years old, so when it came time to choose a profession, the decision was obvious.
“Being able to help people and learn a lot about how the human body works is something I’ve always been drawn to,” Khan said. “Earning my MBA was originally not in the cards, but since I started my career as a physician, I’ve had opportunities to be in managerial positions where I was responsible for a lot of organization within the firm or clinic.”
Khan said she realized she enjoyed doing that type of work in those roles, and she seemed to have an aptitude.
“This is really neat because it’s something completely new,” Khan said. “This isn’t a pursuit that I’ve had a drive to achieve since childhood. It’s been nice to formally learn about the business side of medicine so that maybe one day I can have the flexibility to reframe my career.”
Khan currently serves as the only allergist in an Atlanta-based ear, nose and throat physician’s office. Originally from Eufaula, Alabama, she earned her undergraduate degree from Auburn University and completed specialty training at Baylor University in the late 2000s.
Having spent some time practicing in Pensacola, Florida, Khan moved back to Atlanta – where she completed her residency training at Emory University Hospital – and started her current role.
Two years ago, Khan started a new journey when she enrolled in the Richards College of Business WebMBA program, in which she took exclusively online classes through UWG. She said classes in her WebMBA program included interaction with professors not traditionally expected in an online setting.
“The online component can be challenging because it requires a different, higher level of dedication and commitment,” Khan said. “The professors made it a little easier, though, by being so responsive and available if I had questions or concerns. Also, most of the courses I took included video lectures, which was helpful because I actually heard the professors’ voices and listened to their expertise on the course material.”
Khan also praised the program’s affordable classes.
“I found this program to be very reasonably priced, while still being highly rated,” Khan said. “There are so many programs that charge their students triple or quadruple the price of this program. I really feel like I got a great education that was thorough and comprehensive without breaking the bank.”
Khan graduated with her MBA from UWG this May. Now she’s working to figure out how her two degrees can intersect.
“Because of the interesting, captivating classes I’ve taken at UWG, I can think of new ways to merge these two degrees – my M.D. and my MBA,” Khan said. “A dream scenario would be to apply these new skills to identify an innovative way to help people by moving into an executive position. This provides a fresh perspective for infusing an enduring career.”
Whether she moves into a more managerial role or remains a practicing allergist, Khan is excited to have an innovative path of options.
“This country is built on many types of businesses, and this type of knowledge is applicable in a wide variety of fields and professions,” Khan said. “When I started the MBA program, it was kind of a shock to have many new concepts and ideas introduced, but when I realized how everything I learned was applicable in the real world, it drove me to learn more.”
