The Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) program provides graduate training in modern healthcare administration. The program is designed to prepare graduates for leadership and management positions aimed at improving health service delivery across all sectors, including provider, payor and integrated organizations. 

All coursework is 100% online and uses an accelerated term format designed for working professionals, early careerists and new graduates. This enables students to focus on building one set of skills at a time, but still graduate at the same pace as traditional graduate degree programs.

The program offers five concentration options:

  • Healthcare Leadership & Operations Management
  • Health Informatics & Digital Transformation
  • Population Health Management
  • Healthcare Quality & Patient Safety
  • Global Health & Health Equity

Program Features

  • 7-8 week accelerated semesters delivered 100% online
  • Cohort model builds lifelong relationships and collaboration among participants
  • No on-site management intensives or required in-person residencies
  • Partnership with College of Architecture, Design & Engineering leverages business expertise with specialization in healthcare
  • Expert faculty bring extensive real-world experience to courses
  • Live virtual cohorts provide deep dives into pertinent topics needed for healthcare administration and encourage networking opportunities for the students
  • Practicums completed using work projects (working professionals) or projects from partner healthcare organizations, including Jefferson Health and Jefferson Health Plans 
  • Lean Six Sigma Green Belt Certification earned during the first term
  • Executive coaches and leadership aptitude testing offered to all students for personal and professional development

Program Audiences

Healthcare administration students come from a variety of backgrounds including:

  • Recent college graduates with undergraduate majors in healthcare administration, public health and policy and business. Pre-med or pre-professional students who have decided to pursue an alternative path in healthcare are also potential candidates
  • Early careerists with relevant work experience in healthcare administration who want to advance in their career
  • Experienced non-clinical leaders, such as administrators, health IT specialists and analysts and project managers looking for senior leadership opportunities 
  • Physicians, nurses, pharmacists, therapists and other clinicians looking to transition into an administrative leadership role

"I chose this program because I’m passionate about healthcare leadership and strategic operations. I was looking for an online MHA program that would give me the structure, vigor, and knowledge to excel in this space. In just two semesters down, I feel confident to take (and have already taken) the tools, resources, and techniques learned and seamlessly implement them into the real-world setting."

Olivia Frattarelli, RT (R), CLSSGB MHA student and Director of Primary Care, Jefferson Health

Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA)/Doctor of Medicine (MD) 

Jefferson’s Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) also offers a dual-degree option for Sidney Kimmel Medical College students pursuing an MD. The Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA)/Doctor of Medicine (MD) dual degree equips future physicians with advanced leadership and healthcare management skills, preparing them to navigate complex health systems and drive organizational improvement alongside clinical practice.

Mission, Vision, Values

Mission: We improve lives by preparing ethical, work-ready leaders with the skills to manage complex healthcare operations, solve critical challenges, and enhance organizational performance for the benefit of patients and communities.

Vision: Reimagine healthcare administration education to spark revolutionary changes in healthcare delivery and enhance health outcomes globally.

Values:

  1. Integrity & Accountability: We lead with integrity, transparency, and accountability, building trust with staff, clinicians, patients, and communities.
  2. Systems Thinking: We prioritize cost, access, and quality to create sustainable and patient-centered healthcare solutions.
  3. Collaborative and People-Centered Leadership: We foster teamwork and open communication across disciplines, to empower healthcare professionals at all levels.
  4. Evidence-Based Decision-Making: We apply and contribute to evidence-based leadership and management practices.
  5. Innovation & Continuous Improvement: We foster a culture of continuous learning and creative problem-solving to equip leaders to drive meaningful change in healthcare administration.
  6. Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion: We champion diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, to create inclusive work environments and collaboration.

Program Outcomes

The Master of Healthcare Administration program prepares leaders to navigate and lead transformational change across all healthcare sectors. Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

  • Analyze the organization, financing, and delivery of healthcare services across U.S. care settings and sectors.
  • Lead and manage interdisciplinary teams to drive change and achieve organizational goals.
  • Apply analytics and informatics to evaluate interventions, optimize performance, and prioritize resource allocation.
  • Design and deliver clear, persuasive written and oral communications to engage diverse stakeholders.
  • Evaluate complex healthcare problems using critical thinking and implement system-level performance improvement strategies.
  • Design scalable improvement initiatives that enhance clinical and non-clinical outcomes across healthcare organizations.
  • Evaluate organizational performance using internal and external benchmarking and assessment methodologies.
  • Interpret and apply healthcare laws, regulations, and policy frameworks to organizational decision-making.
  • Demonstrate professional, ethical, and transparent decision-making in addressing complex healthcare challenges.

Accreditation

The Jefferson College of Population Health (JCPH) Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) program is currently a candidate for accreditation status with the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME). CAHME is a programmatic accrediting agency that conducts accreditation activities for professional programs in healthcare management at the master's level from degree-granting institutions. CAHME is recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). 

Candidate status is an indication that a program in healthcare management has voluntarilty committed to participate in a plan of self-improvement and is actively progressing toward the status of accreditation. Candidate status is not accredited status and does not guarantee eventual accredited status.

Thomas Jefferson University is accredited by The Middle States Commission on Higher Education.