With a keen interest in healthcare and a passion for public speaking, Zachary Tam has blended his heritage with academic rigor, personal discovery, and professional aspirations in his journey thus far.
Raised in a family of physicians, Tam’s early exposure to the healthcare industry profoundly influenced his career trajectory. “I was raised by physicians,” he says, “but when I was seven, they told me not to go to medical school.” This surprising advice from his parents helped shape his understanding of the healthcare industry’s challenges and inspired him to seek solutions from a different angle.
A Family Tradition Reimagined
His grandparents came to the U.S. from Hong Kong in 1970. Tam’s paternal grandfather was one of the first Asian Americans to go to Harvard’s anesthesiology program, and his maternal grandmother was a nurse. As a life in medicine offered a way to help people and to make a decent living for the family, as well as promised a path to reaching the American dream, his parents continued that course of action, meeting in medical school. His father pursued a career in healthcare, his mother, an obstetrician-gynecologist. So why did they deter him from following suit?
“I guess the reason they told me not to go to medical school is because my mom was working 70-hour shifts at New York Presbyterian. And my dad was working from the business side of healthcare, both of them working to make the medical industry better. And both continually ran into obstacles,” Tam says. “And I learned from a really young age that commerce is what accelerates people to make their jobs work more efficiently and focus on the things they want to do.”
As Tam approached college age, he was determined to help fix the healthcare industry through business. “So, I wanted to be able to pursue healthcare—but following the advice of my parents—not necessarily as a physician, but someone who works it from another angle.” The realization led him to McIntire and an interest in learning about commerce as a spark for change.
Finding Himself in Academics and Extracurriculars
He’s coming at it through data by concentrating in Accounting while pursuing the Business Analytics Track. “I just really like the language of business. It’s the one that I think is most concrete. And I liked Accounting because there’s a clear right answer,” he says. His fascination with business analytics, particularly his love for tools like Tableau, complements his Accounting studies, allowing him to bridge the gap between data and decision-making.
His commitment to commerce carries over into his extracurricular activities, too. As the lead TA for Accounting, he takes pride in helping first- and second-year students navigate the complexities of the subject. His summer internship at Chartis, a healthcare consulting firm, aligns with his career goals as well. “I’m lucky to be on a project that works with one of the best healthcare systems in the world,” he enthuses. The internship has provided him with practical experience in handling vast amounts of data and communicating insights effectively.
Public speaking is another area where Tam excels, earning him the designation as a Joseph Miniotas Communication Scholar at McIntire. His background in high school debate has honed his presentation skills, which has proved invaluable in the Comm School. “I was a debate kid in high school, so I knew looking into the Commerce program, there are a lot of presentations,” he says. This skill set was particularly appealing to him when he applied to McIntire, as well as the opportunity to present to real executives and apply his skills in real-world scenarios.
Beyond his academic and professional pursuits, Tam has been a part of the International Relations Organization (IRO) and Enactus, two organizations that reflect his diverse interests. In IRO, Tam climbed the ranks to become Vice President, where he spearheaded initiatives like the Week of IRO, which significantly boosted membership and engagement. “We co-aligned all of our social events at the beginning of the year with Orientation Week,” he recalls, “and added about 150 new members.”
In Enactus, Tam led a project with a local LGBTQIA+ and minority-owned Charlottesville restaurant. His involvement in the initiative was both professionally rewarding and personally enlightening. “Just being a queer Asian American and aligning with that business was really fun,” he says. This experience underscored the importance of embracing one’s identity. “When I joined Enactus and I learned that I was being staffed on a queer-owned Asian restaurant, I was like, ‘I’m not queer.’ And then I found out that I was,” Tam says, advising students to explore their identity outside of the classroom while aligning it with their academic pursuits. “I joined Enactus because I was interested in consulting, and I ended up learning something really important about myself.”
Tam’s academic curiosity also extends beyond commerce. Double-majoring in American Studies at the College of Arts & Sciences, he says the coursework allows him to indulge his love for history, writing, American culture, as well as analysis. “American Studies is like the culmination of AP U.S. History and AP English,” he says.
Looking ahead, Tam is eager to continue his journey in healthcare consulting, with an eye on possibly pursuing a master’s in accounting and obtaining a CPA. “After spending my whole life in school, getting into the business world is something I’m prepared for,” he states confidently.
