Balancing Work and an Online MBA: My Daily Schedule with Boston Children’s Hospital & Northeastern Online

When I was first researching the Northeastern Online Master's in Business Administration, I wasn’t just looking at the program's prestige. As a Faculty Coordinator at Boston Children’s Hospital, my days are built around supporting world-class medical staff. As a result, I needed a program that could fit into an already busy schedule. I spent hours searching for examples of a "day in the life of a graduate student" and "grad student schedule" to see if I could balance an MBA with a 5 PM finish and the intensity of the Longwood Medical Area. 

Now that I’m midway through the program at the D’Amore-McKim School of Business, I’ve realized it isn’t about finding extra hours; it’s about the synergy between my job and my studies. For healthcare professionals wondering about the time commitment, here is a realistic 12-hour breakdown of a typical Tuesday in an online MBA program.

My Online MBA Schedule as a Healthcare Professional

6:30 AM Morning Prep: Organizing My Day for Work and Study

My Tuesday starts at my kitchen table with a large coffee, Canvas, and my calendar. Because the Northeastern Online MBA curriculum is asynchronous, I like to do an overview of my day before the hospital pings start. I don’t dive into assignments yet; instead, I review the week’s modules on Canvas. Canvas is Northeastern’s primary learning platform where we access all our course materials, submit assignments, and engage with the faculty. Right now, I’m enrolled in a Supply Chain Management class. Before heading to work, I block out time to accomplish everything, check my work calendar for faculty meetings, and sync my personal to-do list.

8:00 AM The Fenway Commute

At 8:00 AM, I head out for the walk to work. My office is in the Time Out Building, and that walk through Fenway is one of my favorite parts of the morning. It’s a chance to shift from Student Mode to Professional Mode. By the time I badge in, I’m focused, caffeinated, and ready to dive into work.

12:30 PM Solving Healthcare Challenges in Real-Time Using MBA Strategy

Lunch break at Boston Children’s Hospital is my time to pivot back to class. In particular, I’ve planned this 60-minute window as my primary touch point with my Global Network, our diverse cohort of students, spread across different industries and time zones. Today, I’m on a Zoom call with my study group to build a Cause and Effect Diagram for our Operations module.

We are analyzing the causes of patient wait times; everything from paperwork bottlenecks to equipment availability. At last, this is where the synergy between grad school and my full-time job becomes an advantage. Because I am working at BCH, I can offer real-time insights into how these issues intersect in a clinical setting. I’m not just reading about operational theory; I’m planning how to solve problems I see in the hallways every day.

1:00 PM – 5:00 PM Back to the Grind

Once the Zoom ends, I’m back to my primary role. As I manage my day-to-day tasks, it's good to remember that one of the best parts of the Northeastern graduate experience is that I don't have to hit pause on my career. I'm not losing any professional momentum; in fact, it's the opposite. My job makes the MBA concepts more tangible, and the MBA makes me a more strategic coordinator.

5:00 PM – 7:00 PM The Boston Reset: Prioritizing Mental Energy

The transition from employee to student requires a non-negotiable mental reset. If it’s not too cold (a big "if" during a Boston winter), I like to walk the long way home from work to reset and clear my mind.

Once I'm home, I’m in the kitchen. Cooking dinner and catching up on a show is my off-clock time. Whether it’s a quick pasta dish or a favorite Netflix series, this gap allows me to decompress from the hospital’s intensity, so I have the mental energy for the final academic push of the night.

7:00 PM High Stakes Learning in the Supply Chain "C-Suite"

After the commute home and my reset, it’s time for the day’s main event: the Global Supply Chain Management Simulation Game.

In this simulation, I assume the role of a Supply Chain Manager for a mobile phone company. I have to forecast demand, select suppliers, and set production schedules for a four-year cycle. The goal is a profit of $220M and board approval.

While it’s intense and high-stakes, it is also a fun and interactive way to feel connected to my peers and the curriculum in an asynchronous program. More than anything, switching from the hallways of Boston Children's to the digital boardrooms of a global supplier makes the learning experience more dynamic. It is the ultimate proof of how this MBA is expanding my perspective in real-time.

My Top 3 Tips for Making an Online MBA Realistic for Healthcare Professionals

For everyone working in healthcare and wondering if they can do this: you don’t need to find extra hours to be a successful graduate student, you just need to find the synergy. If you are a healthcare professional looking to level up, here is how you make it work:

1. Protect Your Morning Energy: Don't burn out on homework at 6:00 AM. Use your morning to plan, creating the energy needed to be fully present for your job while saving the mental fuel to do the academic work at 7:00 PM.
      → Check out Cassidy's post about a Day in the Life of an OMBA Student for additional inspiration!
2. Embrace Real-Time Application: Use your coursework to solve professional bottlenecks. When class assignments and hospital operations overlap, the MBA stops being a chore and starts becoming a strategic tool.
3. Take the Reset Seriously: Walking, cooking, or watching a show isn't wasted time. This balance is the fuel that prevents burnout and keeps your professional and academic lives in sync.

Ultimately, to those of you wondering if you can fit a degree into your busy life, let me remind you that you are already managing more than you realize! The skills you use at work are your greatest assets in the classroom. I wish you the very best of luck as you begin your own journey and discover the unique synergy that will drive your success!

Arcadia Cook is an MBA candidate at Northeastern University focusing on Business Analytics, while working full-time at Boston Children's Hospital, supporting faculty advancement and operational initiatives. A graduate of Skidmore College with dual degrees in Business and Economics, she’s passionate about making systems smarter and more efficient. Outside of balancing work and school, you can find her trying new restaurants around Boston, painting, or experimenting with new recipes in her kitchen.