Is a Masters in Healthcare Administration Worth It?

Introduction

If you are currently working in the healthcare industry or are considering a future healthcare career, there is a good chance that you might have heard of the master’s in healthcare administration degree program.

This degree is one of the most popular graduate programs today, and there are plenty of good reasons for that. Getting this qualification offers many career benefits and can open up several different career opportunities in healthcare.

If you want to work in healthcare administration or a similar role, you may be wondering if getting a master’s degree in healthcare administration is worth it.

20 Reasons Why You Should Consider Getting an MHA

While it’s not essential to get into many healthcare administration roles available today, there are plenty of reasons why investing your time and effort into getting the MHA will pay off.

Here are twenty reasons why you should consider investing in an MHA…

1. Improve Earning Potential

If improving your earning potential is something that drives you when it comes to your career, then this could be one of the biggest reasons why getting a Master’s in Health Administration from uOttawa could be worth it for you. With this qualification, your earning potential in several roles including healthcare administration, medical and health services management and more will significantly improve. Along with this, you will be a better candidate for higher-paid job roles such as nursing director and senior hospital management roles.

2. Develop In-Demand Skills

One of the main reasons why getting your MHA degree is worth it is that there is a very high level of projected growth in healthcare management positions. Healthcare and medical service management roles are expected to grow at a rate of more than thirty percent by 2029, for example, meaning that with this degree qualification, you will certainly have no shortage of opportunities and options to improve your career and grow as a healthcare administration professional. With an MHA degree, not only are your technical skills, knowledge, and the qualification itself going to be in high demand but you will also have the opportunity to develop a wide range of soft skills that are sought after in the healthcare industry.

3. Get a Competitive Edge

Although working in healthcare administration does not require the same extensive training compared to other medical professionals such as doctors and nurses, getting an MHA is certainly worth it if you want to make yourself more appealing to potential future employers in an increasingly competitive job market. Getting this advanced degree can be an ideal way to demonstrate that you are serious about your career and have gone the extra mile to boost your credentials and improve your job skills.

4. Enjoy More Job Security

Despite the fact that the healthcare industry is relatively secure in a volatile job market compared to other industries since it offers an essential service no matter what the economy looks like, having an MHA can still be worth it for getting more job security. Getting an MHA can help you secure your job during uncertain times since you will be more likely to get hired for crucial management and administrative positions that healthcare facilities cannot do without.

5. Enjoy a Behind the Scenes Healthcare Career

Not everybody who wants to work in the healthcare industry is interested in working at the bedside and meeting the immediate needs of patients and their families. Getting an MHA can be an ideal option for you if you have been working as a healthcare professional such as a nurse but have decided that working at the bedside is not the right choice for you. In fact, former healthcare professionals with an MHA are often the most in demand since they have a different perspective of patient care that they can bring to the table compared to somebody who only has experience and training in the business side of healthcare.

6. Prepare for Executive Leadership

If your main career goal is to move up the ladder in healthcare organisations and work as an executive leader, an MHA can be a very worthwhile qualification to invest in. Typically, an MHA curriculum will include courses in marketing, finance, ethics, law, administration, project management and more. All of these subjects will provide you with a solid foundation in the key aspects of building and developing healthcare organisations, showing potential employers that you have got what it takes to be in a leadership position.

7. Learn Practical Skills

Getting a master’s degree in healthcare administration is a good move if you want to be better prepared for real-world practice. This degree program is not a research-based degree that involves theoretical concepts; it is more hands-on and involves classes such as finance and management that will help you build skills that you can then go on to apply directly to the roles that you will be expected to fulfil in the workplace once you are working in healthcare administration and leadership.

8. Variety of Career Options to Choose From

Healthcare administration is a field that is very multi-faceted with various career options. For example, marketing might be an ideal choice for you if you are outgoing and sociable, while finance is an ideal choice for people who are analytical and good with numbers. Opportunities in project management might appeal to you if you like managing resources and overseeing teams. Whatever area of healthcare administration and management you decide to get into, getting an MHA can be worthwhile as it will prepare you to work in a wide range of different specialist roles.

9. Become a Specialist

Another top reason to get a master’s degree in healthcare administration is that these programs are uniquely designed for people who want to pursue a career in managing healthcare facilities and institutions. While there are other degrees on offer that are suitable for a future career in healthcare administration, they may not be as ideal for you if you are focused on working in healthcare and want to be fully prepared. If you are committed to becoming a specialist within the healthcare management industry, then an MHA will provide you with the credentials that you need to be taken more seriously in your role compared to other degree options such as the MBA.

10. Make Systemic Changes

With an MHA, you can get into a career as a healthcare manager that gives you a special position where you can make a difference. In these roles, you will be overseeing things on an operational level, and you will have the chance to make changes by solving systemic problems. For example, if you are working as a hospital manager, you will have a direct impact on the facility’s hiring practices, allowing you to solve staff shortages and other issues. You may have the authority to create budgets and policies, giving you the power to make real changes at an institutional level.

11. Develop Valued Skills

Along with being in high demand, many of the skills that you will have the opportunity to develop while getting your master’s in healthcare administration degree will be highly valued. An MHA puts you in a position where your talents and skillset will be valued as you will offer a set of skills that many of your co-workers will not possess. Successfully managing and running a healthcare facility requires much more than the healthcare professionals who tend to the needs of the patients, and it’s often the highly skilled and knowledgeable people who work behind the scenes who are able to ensure that the organisation runs smoothly.

12. Improve Your Understanding of Healthcare

Getting an MHA can help you develop the knowledge that you need to understand more about how the healthcare system works. Healthcare can sometimes be a complex system to understand even for those who are working in the industry. With an MHA, you will have the knowledge needed to understand the intricate details of the healthcare system, putting you in a better position to address some of the issues within it at an organisational level.

13. Mentorship Opportunities

If you enjoy the idea of mentoring and training other people who want to get into a healthcare administration career, then an MHA can be an ideal degree program to help you reach this goal. Some universities and colleges offer mentorship programs where healthcare administration professionals have the chance to share their experience and knowledge with others. If you feel called to teach others or inspire people to reach their full potential, this might be a good reason to consider getting an MHA. Not only will you be advancing your own career, but you’ll be helping others reach their career goals too.

14. Get a Career in Public Policy

If you have an interest in politics as well as healthcare, you may find that an MHA is a worthwhile degree to take as it allows you to become an agent of social change and have an impact on public policy. Some career roles in public policy that you may be interested in getting into with a master’s in healthcare administration include healthcare policy consultant, healthcare policy analyst, and health policy communication specialist.

15. Start Your Own Business

The MHA degree program isn’t just useful for people who are looking for employment. If you have innovative ideas and prefer the idea of working for yourself rather than for a company, entrepreneurship might be a better choice for you. If you want to start your own healthcare company in the future, getting an MHA is definitely worthwhile since it will prepare you and help you develop the skills that you need to run a healthcare business successfully.

16. Work in Technology

If you are interested in technology, getting an MHA can help you get roles in companies that aim to use the power of technology to improve the delivery of healthcare across the country or even around the world. Medical equipment, biotechnology, and telehealth are just some examples of industries today that are often hiring skilled administration professionals to support their operations.

17. Become More Organised

Good organisational skills are essential for any healthcare career, and getting an MHA is a great way to seriously improve this skill. Healthcare administrators are often valued for their ability to make sure that a healthcare organisation is running as effectively and as efficiently as possible, which requires strong organisational skills. When you get an MHA, you can practice developing this skill within the academic setting and be prepared to apply it to a professional setting once you graduate.

18. Improve Your Communication Skills

Good communication skills are essential in every aspect of the healthcare industry, including healthcare administration. An MHA is a degree program that is designed to help you become a better future leader, and for this reason, these programs will often also include training in properly communicating with others on various levels. Getting an MHA can help you improve a wide range of communication skills including negotiation, handling conflicts and grievances professionally, and mediating between parties with conflicting interests.

19. Boost Your Problem-Solving Skills

Getting an MHA is a great step to preparing yourself for a wide range of careers that require you to be a good problem-solver. This degree program will provide you with an opportunity to improve your ability to analyse issues and find creative ways to solve problems; a skill that can help to improve both your career and your personal life.

20. Convenient to Get

Finally, one major concern that people have when they consider attending college for a graduate degree is the time commitment required. The good news is that there are now more flexible options available when it comes to getting your MHA. For example, online programs make it easy for you to fit studying around your work and other commitments by providing you with an option to study that you can do from home at times that suit you best, rather than demanding that you be on campus for certain days and times. Pursuing an MHA doesn’t have to alter your life thanks to the various flexible options out there. Whether you go for an online degree, short degree program, part-time course, hybrid program or something else, there is an option for everybody.

The Bottom Line

Whether you’re currently working in healthcare or are considering a future career in healthcare administration, there are many reasons why getting your MHA is worth it.