Tharwat discusses the value of a Sokolov Executive MBA, how to balance school with other responsibilities, and Booth’s direct impact on her day-to-day work.
- By
- March 27, 2026
- Booth Women
Executive MBA Student at Chicago Booth's London Campus Dr.Tharwat El Zahran, Leader in the Healthcare Industry
Tharwat is an emergency medicine physician and medical toxicologist, trained at the American University of Beirut and Emory University. Much of her career has been spent on the front lines of emergency care, where decisions are time-critical, and consequences are real. Alongside her clinical work, Tharwat serves as Director of Operations for the Emergency Department at the American University of Beirut Medical Center, where she manages complex systems, operations, and resources under constant pressure. Outside of the hospital, Tharwat is also a mother of two, Steven and Chloe, which has shaped how deliberately she approaches her time, priorities, and long-term decisions.
As her responsibilities expanded from clinical decision-making into operational leadership, she recognized that experience alone was no longer enough. Tharwat sought a rigorous business education to sharpen her thinking in strategy, finance, operations, and leadership. When it came time for Tharwat to choose the right EMBA program for her, she chose Chicago Booth because of the academic rigor, disciplined flexibility, and exceptional faculty. More importantly, she was drawn to Booth’s intellectual culture and appreciated how Chicago Booth values data-driven thinking and lifelong learning. She was not simply seeking a degree, but investing in a community that would challenge how she thinks and continue to shape her well beyond graduation.
In this blog, you’ll learn more about Chicago Booth’s Sokolov Executive MBA Program and how Booth supports senior level executives, like Tharwat, to reach their professional goals while continuing to work full-time.
Tell us about your current role and how it’s been balancing your career with pursuing an EMBA at Booth.
In addition to my clinical work as an emergency physician and toxicologist, I am actively involved in research and medical education as an associate professor, mentoring medical students and residents. I also serve as Director of Operations, focusing on patient flow, quality, and system performance in a high-acuity environment.
Balancing these roles alongside the Executive MBA and motherhood has been demanding yet deeply rewarding. The discipline required for travel, coursework, and group work is significant, but the direct relevance of Booth’s curriculum makes the effort meaningful. Returning to the role of a student while continuing to teach and lead has been both humbling and energizing. What has stood out most is the caliber of the Booth faculty and classroom experience. Learning from world-class professors and an exceptional cohort has reshaped how I approach leadership and decision-making. I am proud to be part of a community defined by intellectual curiosity and a lasting commitment to excellence.
Tell us about your current role and how it’s been balancing your career with pursuing an EMBA at Booth.What advice can you offer to those considering the Sokolov Executive MBA Program at Chicago Booth?
- Be intentional about balance. The Executive MBA is a major commitment, and successfully managing work, study, and personal life requires discipline and planning. The academic rigor is real; the studying and exams are no joke, so coming in prepared for that level of commitment is essential.
- If you have a family, bring them on board with your journey. One of the most valuable lessons I learned from Professor Linda Ginzel was to carry your family with you through the experience. I truly enjoyed integrating my family into the Booth journey by bringing my children to Family Day, showing them my classroom, and helping them understand the time I spend away. That shared experience made the commitment more meaningful for all of us.
- Approach the program as an investment rather than just a degree. The true value of Booth comes from how deliberately you apply what you learn in real time. In every course, focus on what you can take away and implement in your work, challenge your thinking, and stay open to being pushed outside your comfort zone.
- Finally, make full use of the Booth experience. Take advantage of executive coaches, teaching assistants, professors, alumni, and the rich academic and social opportunities. Your cohort and network are a critical part of the journey and create lasting value well beyond graduation.
What’s been your favorite class at Chicago Booth thus far? Furthermore, what course(s) and other resources have been the most beneficial for your career goals?
Coming from a medical background with no formal training in business, I found many courses at Booth both interesting and eye-opening. What stood out most were the core disciplines that fundamentally reshaped how I think and make decisions, and helped me build a foundation of knowledge I previously lacked. These included microeconomics, macroeconomics, corporate finance, financial strategy, accounting, managerial psychology, and operations management.
Microeconomics and macroeconomics gave me a structured way to think about incentives, trade-offs, and concepts that translate directly to healthcare delivery and policy. Corporate finance and accounting provided the financial literacy needed to evaluate investments, allocate resources, and assess long-term sustainability with rigor rather than intuition. Managerial psychology sharpened my understanding of decision-making, cognitive biases, and leadership dynamics, while operations management helped me translate analytical frameworks into real-world process improvement in highly variable environments such as the emergency department.
What’s been your favorite class at Chicago Booth thus far? Furthermore, what course(s) and other resources have been the most beneficial for your career goals?How has the Booth community supported you in your EMBA journey?
The Booth community has been an extraordinary source of support throughout my EMBA journey. Professors and teaching assistants were consistently accessible and invested in my learning, while executive coaches and the administrative team provided guidance that helped me navigate both academic and professional challenges. Equally important were my classmates, study group colleagues, and friends, whose diverse perspectives, collaboration, and mutual support made even the most demanding moments manageable and deeply rewarding.
How is your Chicago Booth experience helping you in your day-to-day work?
My Chicago Booth experience has fundamentally changed how I approach decision-making and operations in my day-to-day work. As an emergency physician and Director of Operations, I face high-stakes decisions, constrained resources, and system inefficiencies daily. Booth has given me a structured way to address these challenges using data, KPIs, capacity analysis, and throughput targets.
Courses in operations, finance, and managerial psychology have helped me better understand flow, bottlenecks, trade-offs, and human behavior, allowing me to design more sustainable solutions in complex healthcare environments. I now routinely apply what I learn in the classroom directly to emergency department operations and leadership decisions, making the learning immediately actionable.
How is your Chicago Booth experience helping you in your day-to-day work?We hope Tharwat’s story showed you how an Executive MBA from Chicago Booth can help you advance in your career and become a better leader as a senior level executive. To learn more about Booth and how we can also support you in reaching your professional goals, we encourage you to connect with us for more information.
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