SPEA Excellence
Jessica Coulter
Graduate Student, Master of Health Administration (MHA)
Jessica Coulter is the first to admit her career path wasn't well defined when she entered SPEA's Master of Health Administration (MHA) program in 2006. While several signs were pointing her in a particular direction, wise words from Coulter's boss at St. Francis Hospital finally convinced her to combine her MHA studies with a nursing degree. The words of wisdom? "Go with your heart."
Coulter's decision to take two years off from the MHA program to pursue a second bachelor's degree wasn't made lightly. She says the idea came gradually, sparked by her work in the Business Transformation Department (Six Sigma) at St. Francis — a job she heard about through contacts at SPEA — and a new patient safety course Coulter completed during her first year at IUPUI. And while she acknowledges her choice isn't conventional among her peers, Coulter credits the MHA program itself with helping her find her way.
Jessica Coulter, Graduate Student, Master of Health Administration (MHA)
"The great thing about the MHA program is the freedom it gives you to really figure out what you want to do with your life," says Coulter, a native of Frankfort, Indiana, who earned a bachelor's degree in health administration from SPEA at IU Bloomington. "You're given five years to complete the program, so there's time to do some soul searching."
Coulter says finding her area of interest was made much easier by the SPEA faculty - many of whom regularly invite guest speakers from the health care community to class to share information and practical experience about their work.
"There are lots of opportunities to network through the program," Coulter says. "For several weeks at the beginning of the year, I was meeting with a couple of people in health care every week just to find out what their jobs were. Just by talking with people in different positions, I was able to figure out what I wanted to do."
In addition to contacts she made through SPEA's faculty, Coulter also took advantage of the MHA mentor program. Once a month, she meets with her program mentor, the vice president of St. Vincent Physician Network. Because the health care community in Indianapolis is so tight, Coulter says these opportunities to network are invaluable.
"It seems like everyone is so connected in the health care industry — one person knows another person who knows someone else," observes Coulter. "In addition, a lot of hospital CEOs and administrators are past SPEA MHA graduates, so there is a really good network throughout the state."
Becoming a nurse in the near term — and eventually working as a nursing administrator on the front lines in the areas of patient safety and quality — is where Coulter plans to make her mark in health care. Although competition for admission to IU's accelerated nursing program is tough, she's hopeful she'll be one of the 30 applicants selected. If not, Coulter is optimistic she'll still be able to "follow her heart."
"I'm really excited," Coulter says. "I hope it all works out."