Master of Health Administration (MHA)

Program Location Distance Education/Online
  • Master of Health Administration (MHA)
    • -MHA - Informatics Track**
    • - MHA - Organizational Leadership Track
    • - MHA - Public Health Track
    • - MHA - Project Management Track
Program Credits Master of Health Administration (MHA): 30 Credits
  • - MHA - Informatics Track** - 30 Credits
  • - MHA - Leadership Track: 30 Credits
  • - MHA - Public Health Track: 30 Credits
  • - MHA - Project Management Track: 30 Credits
Program Length

Master of Health Administration (MHA):

  • 2 Trimesters, 32 Instructional Weeks or
  • 3 Trimesters, 48 Instructional Weeks or
  • 5 Trimesters, 80 Instructional Weeks
  • - MHA - Informatics Track**:

    • 2 Trimesters, 32 Instructional Weeks or
    • 3 Trimesters, 48 Instructional Weeks or
    • 5 Trimesters, 80 Instructional Weeks

    - MHA - Organizational Leadership Track:

    • 2 Trimesters, 32 Instructional Weeks or
    • 3 Trimesters, 48 Instructional Weeks or
    • 5 Trimesters, 80 Instructional Weeks

    - MHA - Public Health Track:

    • 2 Trimesters, 32 Instructional Weeks or
    • 3 Trimesters, 48 Instructional Weeks or
    • 5 Trimesters, 80 Instructional Weeks

    - MHA - Project Management Track:

    • 2 Trimesters, 32 Instructional Weeks or
    • 3 Trimesters, 48 Instructional Weeks or
    • 5 Trimesters, 80 Instructional Weeks
Time to Complete Master of Health Administration (MHA): 8 Months, 12 Months or 20 Months
  • - MHA - Informatics Track**:  8 Months, 12 Months or 20 Months
  • - MHA - Organizational Leadership Track: 8 Months, 12 Months or 20 Months
  • - MHA - Public Health Track: 8 Months, 12 Months or 20 Months
  • - MHA - Project Management Track: 8 Months, 12 Months or 20 Months

*Program length may vary.

** Informatics Track will be available Spring 2 2023. 

WCU distance education programs may not be available to residents in all states.

Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Code: 11-9111.00, 11-3011.00, 13-1111.00

Program Mission: The mission of the Master of Health Administration program at West Coast University is to provide recent graduates, early to mid-careerists, and working professionals from diverse educational and cultural backgrounds with the qualities of leadership and managerial tools required to become leaders who effect change within health care provider organizations and firms.

Program Objective: The Master of Health Administration degree provides students with a strong foundation in the core functional areas of Management with a focus on the Health Care industry. The program prepares students with the multidisciplinary skills required for the entry- level managerial positions to meet the challenges facing the health care industry and the significant social impact it has on the economy.

Program Learning Outcomes

Upon graduation students will be able to:

  1. Analyze ethical and legal practices to make informed decisions within healthcare organizations.
  2. Evaluate the culturally diverse healthcare environment including diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB), and the social determinants of health and health disparities to foster better patient outcomes.
  3. Perform core technical business skills and plans such as financing of healthcare services, market analysis, environmental scanning, and data information management within the healthcare environment to make informed data-driven decisions.
  4. Articulate leadership models within healthcare organizations to drive strategic planning, facilitating the delivery of high-quality care while upholding financial stability.
  5. Discuss the inter-professional relationships within a healthcare setting to practice effective teamwork and team-based care to help build better patient-centered outcomes.
  6. Identify entrepreneurial opportunities within the global healthcare industry to assist in achieving a competitive advantage.

Admission Requirements

Applicants for the Master of Health Administration must:

  1. Complete an online application for admissions.
  2. Participate in an interview with a University Admissions Advisor.
  3. Complete an enrollment agreement, consisting of program policies, costs, completion requirements, and other student obligations.
  4. Have a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution with a 2.7 cumulative GPA or higher.
    1. Applicants with an undergraduate GPA 2.00-2.69 may be considered for probationary admission after meeting the following admissions requirements:
      1. The applicant must provide a letter of intent.
      2. The applicant must be approved for admission following an interview with the Program Dean/Director.
      3. The applicant must satisfy program prerequisites. 
      4. A student admitted under the probationary admissions pathway must achieve a cumulative GPA of 3.0 on all coursework attempted over the first trimester (two terms). Students who meet this standard will be converted to a full admit status and will be subject to the standard Satisfactory Academic Progress requirement for the duration of their program.  Students failing to meet these requirements following the first trimester (two terms) will be withdrawn from the university.  
      5. Students accepted under the probationary admissions pathway will be considered regular students and eligible for Title IV, if the student otherwise qualifies for funding, for the first trimester of their program of study while completing the requirements for full admission to their program.
  5. Provide official undergraduate transcripts of a baccalaureate degree prior to the end of the add/drop period of the first term.
    1. Applicants submitting non-U.S. or non-English transcripts will be required to have their coursework evaluated by a transcript evaluation service to determine the equivalency to a U.S. degree/course. If the transcript evaluation is unclear as to the equivalency to a U.S. degree/course, the Program Dean will evaluate transcripts to determine if a minimum of 3 academic years of undergraduate coursework has been completed for admission.
    2. Applicants submitting advanced degrees will be reviewed by the Program Dean to determine if a minimum of 3 academic years of undergraduate coursework has been completed for admission.
    3. Master of Health Administration Transfer Credit Evaluation: Only graduate level courses in which a grade of B- or better was received, taken in a program similar to the Master of Health Administration will be evaluated for transfer credit. A maximum of nine (9) credit hours will be considered for transfer and must reflect the same content and course credit as the course for which transfer credit is requested.

Eligible for Reentry

A student who has been academically dismissed from West Coast University may apply for reentry to the University's MHA program if:

The applicant was in good standing with the University excluding previous Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) or GPA requirements at the time of their dismissal. If any other "good standing" issues exist, the individual would be admitted to the university on probationary status. If a student in probationary status is not in "good standing" after completing their first trimester of coursework in the MHA program, they would be dismissed from the University. If an applicant was previously dismissed from West Coast University for any conduct violations, he/she would not be admitted into the program. Please refer to the "Good Standing" policy for specific information on the terms.

Individuals granted reentry would have their successfully completed WCU credits, and credits previously transferred from other institutions, considered for applicability to the MHA degree. Decisions regarding transferability of credit are made by the MHA Program Dean.

An individual who is readmitted by this clause will not be considered for dismissal due to the course failures in other WCU programs. Any failures that occur after the student has reentered the university into the MHA program would be subject to the university dismissal policy.

Health Administration Progression Requirements

A minimum grade of a “C-” will be required to receive course credit in the MHA Program. Should a student receive below a “C-“ grade, it will not be considered a passing grade for the MHA program and the student will be required to retake the course. The earned grade will be counted into the student’s CGPA and will be replaced once the course is repeated with a passing grade.  The student will be placed on an academic action plan to repeat the course and may be required to meet with the program Dean.

Transfer Credits

Students who request to transfer credits from previously attended institutions must submit sealed official transcripts to the Registrar's Office from originating institutions prior to their first day of class. If students are unable to submit transcripts or transcripts are unavailable, students may be conditionally enrolled for a period of one (1) term through the submission of unofficial transcripts, submitted no later than four (4) days after the start of a student's first term. Students failing to submit official transcripts prior to the final day of the first term may be denied transfer credit for prior courses. In addition to official transcripts, copies of course descriptions, school catalogs, and course syllabi may be requested for evaluation purposes.

Individuals who are concurrently enrolled at another institution at the time of their matriculation to West Coast University, may be allowed to request transfer credit for courses that are in-progress. In this situation, official transcripts must be received by the end of the first term of matriculation to receive transfer credit.

Please note all veteran students are required to submit all postsecondary transcripts. Please see the Veterans Educational Benefits policy in the Financial Policies and Information Section of the Catalog.

Health Administration Curriculum

To achieve the graduation requirement of 30 credits, all students must complete 30 credits of core and track courses. Core courses provide students with the specific discipline experience required for the degree. All students will complete at least 21 core course credits as detailed below. The remaining 9 credits are based on the program track the student is enrolled in. The currently available programs are:

Master of Health Administration (MHA)

  • MHA - Informatics Track**
  • MHA – Organizational Leadership Track
  • MHA – Public Health Track
  • MHA – Project Management Track

**Informatics Track will be available Spring 2, 2023.  

Core Courses: 

Core Courses to be completed by all students (21 credits)

HA 500Legal and Ethical Issues in Health Care Management

3

HA 505Information Systems for Health Care Programs

3

HA 520Financial Management for Health Care Managers

3

HA 545Hospital Administration and Management

3

HA 550Leadership Models for Health Care Managers

3

HA 555Project Management

3

HA 565Capstone Course: Cases in Health Care Management

3

Total Credit Hours:21

Core courses to be completed if no track chosen (9 credits)
HA 525Marketing Management for Health Care Professionals

3

HA 540Strategic Planning in Health Care Organizations

3

HA 560Entrepreneurial Opportunities in Health Care Industry

3

Total Credit Hours:9

Track Courses:

Informatics Track

Track courses to be completed in the Informatics Track (9 credits)

HA 510Database Systems, Design and Informatics

3

HA 512Project Management in Healthcare Informatics

3

HA 515Implementation, Management, and Evaluation of Healthcare Systems

3

Total Credit Hours:9

Organizational Leadership Track

Track courses to be completed in the Organizational Leadership Track (9 credits)

BUS 525Principles of Management

3

BUS 535Organizational Behavior and Leadership

3

BUS 545Fundamentals of Operations Management

3

Total Credit Hours:9

Public Health Track

Track courses to be completed in the Public Health Track (9 credits)

PH 500Foundations of Public Health

3

PH 515Cultural Diversity & Health Disparities in Public Health

3

PH 536Environmental and Occupational Health

3

Total Credit Hours:9

Project Management Track

Track courses to be completed in the Project Management Track (9 credits)

BUS 535Organizational Behavior and Leadership

3

BUS 545Fundamentals of Operations Management

3

HA 557Project Management II

3

Total Credit Hours:9

MHA Program Costs

For program costs, please see the Graduate Tuition and Fees section.