Leaning into Leadership Opportunities

A man wearing glasses sits on a staircase.

(Photo: Karsten Moran)

Leaning into Leadership Opportunities

By Rebecca Maxon

Mitesh Ghia, MBA’26 (Flor), just completed his third master’s degree. He started his career in education, earning two degrees at Rutgers University, and teaching high-school honors biology, middle-school earth science and college freshman biology. With plans to one day become a school superintendent, he also obtained a master’s degree in education administration from Kean University.

Then came the fork in the road. Ghia left education to take on a series of roles that led to pharmaceuticals. “I became increasingly curious about how science translates into treatments that impact patients. That curiosity, combined with an interest in business and strategy, led me to explore opportunities in the pharmaceutical industry.”

After more than 12 years at Novartis, he now heads their Government Pricing and Reporting group, which entails pricing strategy, deal assessments, analytics and more. “I oversee the pricing compliance and strategy, including evaluating the financial and regulatory implications of contracting decisions across key channels like Medicaid and Medicare.”

As he progressed in his career at Novartis, Ghia realized that he wanted a more formal business foundation to complement his comprehensive hands-on job experience. “I was especially interested in strengthening my skills in finance, strategy and leadership to make me a solid candidate for executive roles.”

FDU’s MBA program offered him a pathway to his goal. “I chose the program because of its flexibility and strong connections to working professionals. It allowed me to immediately apply what I’m learning to my role, which makes the experience much more practical and impactful.”

Through its corporate partnership program, Silberman College of Business offers select graduate programs at corporate partner sites, including at Novartis, in a hybrid format. This flexibility makes completing a graduate degree easier for students already working full-time.

“My hope is that my MBA positions me for greater leadership opportunities, allowing me to take on more strategic roles and have a larger impact within the organization,” says Ghia.