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Career Compass: Mapping Educational Routes to Digital Health

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23 May 2025

9 Min Read

Taylor's Team (Editor)

IN THIS ARTICLE

Lost at what to study? Discover your direction with our Career Compass! Explore opportunities in the Digital Health field to map your educational path.

The way we get and receive healthcare is changing — and so are the careers shaping its future. From artificial intelligence (AI) helping doctors make diagnoses to health apps on your phone, digital health is changing how care reaches people anytime, anywhere.

 

If you care about helping communities, are curious about new technology, or want to imagine new ways of providing care, this fast-growing field offers careers that combine science, kindness, and digital innovation.

What is Digital Health?

But what exactly is digital health, and why should you, as a high schooler or high school graduate, consider a career in this field?

 

The answer lies in how digital health is transforming healthcare—using technology like mobile apps, AI, data, and wearables to help people stay healthy and get care more easily. From remote check-ups and smart hospital systems to personalised wellness tools, digital health is where science, tech, and care come together to shape a healthier, more connected future.

What are the careers in Digital Health?

The field of digital health offers a wide range of dynamic career paths that integrate healthcare with technology to improve medical systems, enhance patient care, and promote global health accessibility. Whether you're passionate about telehealth services, health informatics, wearable health tech, AI-driven diagnostics, or digital health strategy, there’s a niche for you. Let’s explore some exciting careers in this field and the educational routes to achieving them!

1. Health Informatics Specialist

Two doctors reviewing a patient file together at a desk, working with electronic medical records on a computer.
What does this career do?

 

A Health Informatics Specialist helps make sure digital systems in hospitals work smoothly and securely. They manage how patient data is collected, stored, and shared using platforms like Electronic Health Records (EHRs), and make sure everything follows privacy rules. While a lot of their work happens behind the scenes, they also work directly with doctors and nurses — helping them use the systems, collecting feedback, and improving how the tech fits into everyday hospital tasks.

 

Where can you work in this career?
  • Sunway Medical Centre: Implements digital health systems and manages patient records, lab systems, and hospital IT infrastructure.
  • DoctorOnCall: A telehealth platform that relies on secure data systems and compliance management to offer digital consultations and medication delivery.
  • Ministry of Health Malaysia (MOH): Manages national-level health information platforms such as MyHDW (Malaysian Health Data Warehouse), supporting public health decision-making..
 
Who is this career for? 

 

This career is ideal for individuals who enjoy working with technology in meaningful ways, especially when it helps people. If you’re detail-oriented, interested in how data can improve healthcare, and have a strong sense of responsibility around security, efficiency, and privacy, this role offers a rewarding path for you.

 

What to study for this career?

2. Digital Health Data Analyst

Medical professionals analysing 3D diagnostic scans on digital monitors in a hospital corridor.
What does this career do?

 

A Digital Health Data Analyst takes lots of complex health information and turns it into useful insights that make healthcare better. They gather and study data from things like electronic health records, wearable gadgets, and medical studies to help doctors and hospitals make smart, evidence-based decisions. Using stats, patterns, and AI-powered tools, they help predict disease outbreaks, improve how hospitals run, and make patient care more effective. Basically, they’re the brains behind the data that drives smart health solutions.

 

Where can you work in this career?
  • Naluri: A digital health startup that combines data analytics with behavioural science to personalise mental and physical health support.
  • GE HealthCare: Develops digital diagnostic tools and analytics platforms that rely on patient and hospital data.
  • Institute for Clinical Research (ICR) Malaysia: Uses health data to inform research and national healthcare policy decisions.
 
Who is this career for? 

 

This career is ideal for those who enjoy working with data, patterns, and purpose. If you’re curious about healthcare, interested in how numbers can tell a story, and motivated to make better decisions in health systems, this role is a powerful way to use data for good.

 

What to study for this career?

Not sure if this path is right for you? Talk with a counsellor to explore how your interests can fit into the world of digital health — and find out which programmes can help you get there. They’re here to help you map it out.

 

TALK TO US

3. Digital Therapeutics Specialist

Doctor using a tablet in a data-rich environment with digital health graphics in the background.
What does this career do?

 

A Digital Therapeutics (DTx) Specialist creates clinically backed, software-based treatments that help patients manage or recover from chronic illnesses and mental health challenges. These digital tools — like gamified apps, AI-guided therapy, or personalised health programmes — are designed to support behaviour change and improve overall wellbeing. While some DTx can work on their own, they're often used together with medication to boost treatment outcomes and provide more holistic care.

 

Where can you work in this career?
  • Naluri: A digital health startup that combines data analytics with behavioural science to personalise mental and physical health support.
  • ThoughtFull: Mental health platform delivering personalised support via self-guided content and therapist chat, active in Malaysia and Singapore.
  • Intellect Singapore: One of Southeast Asia’s largest mental health tech startups, offering clinically backed therapy modules, mood tracking, and company wellness programmes.
 
Who is this career for? 

 

This career is ideal for those who are passionate about mental wellness, behavioural science, and creative tech solutions. If you're someone who enjoys exploring how apps, games, and personalised digital experiences can help people lead healthier lives, this field lets you turn compassion into innovation.

 

What to study for this career?
  • High School: Focus on subjects like Biology, Science and Visual Arts.
  • Pre-U: Consider a foundation in Science, Arts or Design. Cambridge A Level or AUSMAT are excellent options too.
  • Undergraduate: Pursue a bachelor’s degree in Psychology, Pharmacy or Design in Creative Media specialised in UI/UX.
  • Beyond: Advanced degrees or certifications in health product strategy & market access or neurotechnology & immersive health can enhance your expertise.

4. Virtual Clinical Trials Specialist

Nurse conducting a telehealth consultation with a patient via tablet in a home or clinic setting.
What does this career do?

 

A Virtual Clinical Trials Specialist manages the planning and coordination of clinical studies that use digital platforms, wearables, and remote monitoring tools. From overseeing video consultations to managing secure data collection from health apps and devices, this role ensures clinical trials run smoothly and efficiently, no matter where participants are located.

 

Where can you work in this career?
  • DOC2US: A Malaysian telehealth company working with universities and healthcare partners to support remote care and digital health research.
  • Novotech Malaysia: A regional clinical research organisation (CRO) offering decentralised and hybrid trial services across Asia.
  • ObvioHealth: A digital health CRO delivering app-based, remote clinical trials with virtual recruitment, ePROs (electronic patient-reported outcomes), and real-time data.
 
Who is this career for? 

 

This role is ideal for individuals who enjoy organising, managing projects, and improving digital trial systems. If you're interested in healthcare research but want a career that blends digital tools, logistics, and real-world impact, this is a great path.

 

What to study for this career?
  • High School: Focus on subjects like Mathematics, Biology or Computer Science.  
  • Pre-U: Consider a foundation in Science. Cambridge A Level or AUSMAT  are excellent options too.
  • Undergraduate: Pursue a bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Science or Pharmacy.
  • Beyond: Advanced degrees or certification in real-world evidence (RWE) & health outcomes research, biomedical data science or health technology assessment (HTA) can be beneficial

5. Digital Health Strategist

Healthcare team in a meeting room discussing digital health strategies with a laptop and charts.
What does this career do?

 

A Digital Health Strategist leads the planning and execution of digital health transformation across care systems. From scaling telemedicine services to evaluating Health tech platforms, they ensure that new digital solutions are clinically relevant, ethically sound, and user-friendly. 

 

Where can you work in this career?
  • Accenture Health: A global consultancy advising hospitals, governments, and insurers on digital health implementation and policy.
  • Mercy Malaysia: A humanitarian NGO delivering healthcare solutions in crises. Recently involved in expanding digital access to health services and building resilient health systems in low-resource communities.
  • Ministry of Health Malaysia (MOH): Oversees national digital health initiatives including MyHDW (Malaysian Health Data Warehouse), TelePrimary Care, and eNotifikasi
 
Who is this career for? 

 

This role is perfect for creative problem-solvers who want to lead new ideas and make a real difference in people’s lives through innovation. If you're someone who’s excited by big ideas, curious about how apps, systems, and tech can improve healthcare, and want to help shape how people get care in the future, this career puts you at the centre of change.

 

What to study for this career?
  • High School: Focus on subjects like Mathematics, Computer Science, or Biology.
  • Pre-U: Consider a foundation in Arts, Computing or Science as well as Diploma in Information Technology. Cambridge A Level or AUSMAT are excellent options too.
  • Undergraduate: Pursue a bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Science, or Psychology.
  • Beyond: Advanced degrees or certifications in AI (artificial intelligence) governance & ethical health and climate-smart digital health can enhance your expertise.

Conclusion

Embarking on a career in digital health opens exciting opportunities, from building smart healthcare apps and managing electronic medical records to designing AI tools that support mental wellness and remote care. Whether you're interested in health, data, tech, or people, there’s a place for you in this future-ready field.

 

By focusing on the right subjects in high school and pursuing relevant degrees and skills, you can turn your curiosity about healthcare and technology into a meaningful career that improves lives. Remember, the future of healthcare is being shaped today — and you have the potential to help lead the way.

Inspired by the career options in this article? Book a session with our education counsellor and take the first step towards your future.

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