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Master of Healthcare Administration

Franklin University Master's degree in healthcare administration banner Program OverviewProgram DetailsWhy Choose Franklin

Lead healthcare organizations through an ever-changing environment

Balancing patient needs with fiscal responsibility makes healthcare an especially complex entity, requiring effective leadership at the helm. It demands leaders who possess focused determination to deliver strong ideas that drive operational results without sacrificing quality of care.

Group medical practices, public health organizations, nonprofits, and hospital systems all need qualified healthcare administrators to successfully lead them through operational challenges healthcare organizations encounter, including three of the most common: process improvement, managing with physicians, and risk management. Demand is strong for healthcare leaders, with a projected growth rate of 16% through 2020.1

Finish your degree in as few as 16 months

Franklin University’s Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) Program provides the essential knowledge required for you to undertake senior managerial and planning work in a variety of healthcare settings. You can move through our MHA degree program swiftly, realizing the real-world benefits of your degree in as few as 16 months, which is faster than many other programs. And, if you qualify, GMAT and GRE requirements may be waived, allowing you to begin your program of study immediately, without a long-preparation cycle. (Please see full program admission requirements for details.)

Prepare for an executive-level position in a dynamic and growing field

With Franklin’s MHA, you’ll develop healthcare specific competencies in the following areas: leadership and strategy, operations management, law and policy, accounting and finance, and management, preparing you to hold career titles such as Managed Care Director, Director of Admitting, Hospital COO, and Managed Care Analyst, just to name a few.

Uniquely designed for the busy professional, our MHA courses are planned and updated in accordance with the changing healthcare environment. In addition to preparing you for executive-level positions, you’ll be challenged through an array of academic methodologies, including case studies, lectures, group assignments, and community and healthcare projects. You’ll also be exposed to trending marketplace topics, such as healthcare reform, health information technology, and accountable care organizations (ACOs).

Learn up-to-date curriculum reviewed by top healthcare executives

In addition, a prominent industry-specific Advisory Board oversees our relevant curriculum. Input from Board Members like the hospital president and COO of Mt. Carmel East Hospital, a medical association CEO, an SVP at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, and the President of Grady Memorial Hospitals, inject industry-specific learnings into your classes and coursework.

Earn your degree from a university built for busy adults

Earn your degree on your terms by taking classes 100% online. Regionally accredited and nonprofit, Franklin was built from the ground-up to satisfy the needs of adult learners. Faculty with industry expertise means you gain relevant knowledge to apply directly to your current or future career, while our flexible course schedules help to balance your education with work, family, and life. Get started on your future today!

1Source information provided by Economic Modeling Specialists International (EMSI)

Gain The Skills Employers Desire

  • Healthcare Leadership & Strategy
    • Assure delivery of quality patient care, financial stability, and enhanced public and professional image
    • Coordinate with boards of directors, medical staff, and senior management in the development of strategic plans
    • Participate in strategic planning, ensuring resources are aligned with mission
    • Oversee strategic and tactical plans for ensuring competitive positioning
    • Inform stakeholders on business, market, and political factors affecting healthcare environments
    • Identify new business opportunities that benefit organizations while meeting community needs
    • Represent organizations in relationships and negotiations with healthcare agencies, partners, and communities
    • Monitor trend analyses, medical cost-containment strategies, provider network evaluations, rate-setting support analyses, provider reimbursement, and risk-sharing strategies
    • Provide executive leadership of healthcare operations, including fiscal and treasury operations, marketing, managed care contracting, clinical revenue cycle management, IT, compliance, network and business development, and strategic planning and advocacy
  • Healthcare Operations Management
    • Foster smooth, efficient operations by anticipating problems and ensuring timely resolutions
    • Lead operations in accordance with customer needs, government regulations, and organizational policies
    • Direct, supervise, and coordinate staff activities in support of strategic plans, providing cost-effective, quality care
    • Ensure high-quality healthcare delivery that meets or exceeds standards within a reasonable cost structure
    • Develop roadmaps and implementation plans for capitalizing on strategic opportunities
    • Evaluate vendors, provide recommendations for selection, and manage post-selection vendor relationships
    • Define and implement management execution systems strategies for global supply chains using business governance models that support short- and long-term supply chain goals
    • Act as primary operational expert, ensuring smooth operation of strategic processes
    • Oversee initiatives that address societal issues contributing to poor health, toward the betterment of global and national communities
  • Healthcare Law & Policy
    • Implement patient care, staffing, and other policies and procedures to remain compliant with local, state, and federal regulations, and facility bylaws
    • Oversee facility inspections, including obtaining required data from accrediting agencies and working with functional areas to facilitate continuous flow of information
    • Provide leadership and guidance for quality assurance and utilization review programs
    • Interface with government and non-government regulatory and accrediting agencies to advocate on behalf of clinical programs
    • Analyze state and local budget proposals to determine impact on healthcare and public programs
    • Track budget development throughout legislative processes
    • Manage legislative policy and budget research, data analyses, and coalition work
  • Healthcare Accounting & Finance
    • Prepare and monitor annual budgets, demonstrating expected revenues and expenditures in conformity with fiscal programs and policies
    • Oversee preparation of administrative budgets and the development of transparent and relevant fiscal and operational reports
    • Ensure sound fiscal operations while promoting cost-effective production of services
    • Implement effective financial models, and cost and revenue allocation strategies
    • Monitor key metrics, such as operational volumes, expenses, service utilization, market share, and profitability
    • Analyze cost performance, administrative costs, and financial performance to identify opportunities for improved profitability
    • Make key business decisions based on financial-related data, such as cost projects, premium rate filing, provider contracts, medical and administrative expenses, benchmarking, and performance
  • Management
    • Attract, recruit, manage, and inspire A-list employees who move organizations forward
    • Use innovative assessment tools to assist in making optimal hiring decisions
    • Analyze job evaluations, salary surveys, and individual and group performance-based pay
    • Drive best-in-class management and succession planning processes, ensuring the right talent for the right roles at the right time
    • Design and develop competitive compensation and reward strategies
    • Establish and maintain fair and equitable compensation and benefits programs
    • Create long-term human capital development initiatives to establish and maintain global competitiveness
    • Manage strategic roadmaps for maximizing employee performance and creating business value
    • Identify key forces impacting future workforce, such as skill shortages, economic conditions, and changes to business strategies
    • Understand current workforce in terms of metrics and trends, developing key insights into the story behind the data
    • Develop and maintain employee relations, ensuring coordination of quality patient care and service delivery to achieve business development goals

Career Opportunities

  • Managed Care Director

    Managed Care Directors oversee managed care operations, including developing, implementing, and negotiating managed care contracts, strategies, and tactics.

    View Salary Trends
  • Admissions Director

    Admissions Directors lead and manage the insurance, financial, and care aspects of patient admissions, discharges, and transfers.

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  • Hospital CEO

    Hospital CEOs provide vision, leadership, strategic direction, and policymaking for hospitals, health systems, and other health organizations.

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  • Hospital COO

    Hospital COOs ensure smooth, efficient business operations for hospitals and medical facilities, while working to reduce operating costs and enhance revenues.

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  • Managed Care Analyst

    Managed Care Analysts collect, assess, and validate medical data in order to understand trends and provide insight to management for well-informed decision making.

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  • Home Health Agency President

    Home Health Agency Presidents develop and implement fiscal and functional strategic plans designed to generate opportunity, boost revenue, and improve competitive positioning.

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  • Chief Administrator

    Chief Administrators manage all aspects of physician practice groups, ensuring smooth, profitable operations, including directing policy, solving problems, and overseeing business unit initiatives.

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  • Senior Vice President

    Senior Vice Presidents for Healthcare Policy initiate, implement, and communicate operational and other policies in order to increase profitability and operational efficiency.

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  • Health System Vice President

    Health System Vice Presidents plan strategies and formulate policies to ensure that medical and health services organizations meet business goals and objectives.

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Employment Outlook

From 2010-2020 jobs in Healthcare Administration are expected to increase by 16%.

Source information provided by Economic Modeling Specialists International (EMSI)

Our Recipe For Your Success

Academic & Industry Experts

Classes are taught and designed by credentialed professionals with real-world experience.
 

  • Programs are designed by combining the insight of industry leaders with the academic expertise of our faculty, ensuring what you learn translates into on-the-job success.

  • Academic concepts and theories are brought to life through our teaching faculty’s professional expertise, and can be immediately applied in your career.

  • Faculty with industry experience teach our courses, not graduate students or life-time academics, so you learn not only the theories behind the practice but also how to apply them in real-world situations.

Relevant & Consistent Curriculum

What you learn is a reflection of the program you choose, not the format in which it’s applied.
 

  • All programs are designed for learning outcomes to flow from the program level into actual coursework.

  • This top-down approach allows credentialed professionals to customize assignments based on trending industry topics without deviating from a program’s core outcomes.

  • Regardless of your professor or the format of your class, you receive the same quality education.

Hands-On Learning Experience

Franklin's coursework teaches not only theories and concepts, but also how they apply to practical situations.

 

  • Professional course designers ensure that class activities such as learning simulations, case studies, interactive videos, and group exercises are relevant and appropriate.

  • A curriculum development team is dedicated to making sure all courses are intuitively designed so content is taught in a logical manner that facilitates your success in the classroom and beyond.

Continuously Evolving Programs

Consistent program reviews ensure our programs stay at the forefront of industry trends.
 

  • Survey results and feedback from student and faculty assessments are reviewed regularly so that our programs are always improving and up-to-date.

  • A structured review process helps identify industry gaps that guide curriculum enhancements allowing our academic and industry experts to regularly implement new industry trends.

  • Regular assessment provides hard data that is used to improve student learning and teaching methods.

Get the details

Read course descriptions, learn about degree options, and meet program faculty.

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