Growing up, Claire Leonard got a glimpse of what health care could look like beyond hospital walls. Her aunt, a former nurse, had risen to a leadership role at UNC Health, managing systems and people instead of patients.
“It showed me there are ways to make a difference without being on the clinical side,” says Leonard, now a senior at George Mason’s College of Public Health.
Leonard describes her Bachelor of Science in Health Administration major as “kind of a business degree, but with a health focus,” with coursework spanning finance, strategic planning, and leadership, alongside a deep dive into U.S. health care systems. Through her studies—and electives in statistical tools R and SAS—she’s discovered a knack for working with health data. “I realized I’m good on the data side, and working with coding tools,” she says. “It made me see that’s the direction I want to go next.”
Raised in Raleigh, North Carolina, Leonard chose George Mason for the strength of its health programs as well as its proximity to Washington, D.C. “I wanted to spread my wings and exist outside of where I grew up,” she says.
After graduating in December, she plans to pursue a master’s in health informatics. “It’s about making sure technology like electronic health records systems work smoothly—and using their information to actually improve patient care,” she says.
Currently Leonard serves as a research assistant on two research projects focused on aging populations, helping College of Public Health faculty draft literature reviews and discussion sections. “Working on new research has only deepened my interest in pursuing graduate education and learning as much as I can to add value to health care systems and add perspective to areas of health care where change is needed,” she says.
Leonard also works for the Office of Student Creative Activities and Research (OSCAR), filming and editing videos that celebrate student research across campus. The experience helped her land an internship last summer with Riverside Health System’s philanthropic foundation, where she worked on social media strategy. Leonard also currently works part-time at a chiropractic office handling insurance and patient records.
“The jobs I’ve had, and the people I’ve met through them, have helped shape my experience,” Leonard says. “Each one has helped me understand another layer of how health care works.”
Learn more about George Mason’s BS in Health Administration program.
Learn more about George Mason’s MS in Health Informatics program.