25 Best Online Bachelor’s in Healthcare Administration

The University of West Florida’s website blares, “There’s never been a better place to make a splash,” and the school means it literally and figuratively, noting its 1,600-acre campus is a short drive from Pensacola’s beaches. Don’t slather on that sunblock just yet—its BS in health services is only offered online.

UWF offers healthcare administration as a specialization within the 120-hour degree. The curriculum emphasizes “evidence-based strategies and applied skills to improve healthcare operations, quality of care, affordability, and access.”

The 48 hours of required upper-division coursework includes an internship for three credit hours (which can be repeated for three more).

Students who declare health sciences as a major have “pending” status until they complete the undergraduate course requirements (with a 2.5 GPA).

Floridians won’t find a better deal, as it’s one of the cheapest options in our top 25.

Jackson State University is a historically black university.

People who want to address societal problems will find plenty of work in healthcare administration, for which JSU offers a BS. The 122-credit-hour program provides a “theoretical and practical education, along with opportunities for direct field experience.”

Students spend their first and second years completing lower-division prerequisites, then dive in their junior year to numerous healthcare-oriented courses covering management, policy, planning and marketing, research, fiscal management, and more. Students also complete an internship during their final semester of study.

Charter Oak State College doesn’t exist. Well, at least not like a typical university, in that it’s entirely online and specializes in helping working adults complete their degrees. Its bachelor’s in healthcare administration, for instance, is geared toward “professionals working in the healthcare industry”—or an adjacent field such as insurance—who want to increase their knowledge base and earning power.

Because Charter Oak specializes in working adults, it presumes a certain amount of transfer credit for the degree, which has a 42-credit major requirement. The coursework covers:

• healthcare systems and administration
• finance
• HR
• economics
• ethics
• accounting

It culminates in a capstone course for three credits.

The school’s BS in healthcare management is a 120-hour program completed online via eight-week courses. It takes an average of three and a half years to complete, though students may earn up to 75% of their degree with transfer credits. Major coursework accounts for 57 hours, with major foundation courses providing another nine.

Degree classes include:

• Legal & Ethical Issues in Healthcare
• Research & Evidence Based Practices
• Healthcare Economics
• Grantsmanship
• a capstone.

Because of Liberty’s theological mission, students also need to complete eight hours of Christianity & Contexts courses as part of 42 hours of foundational requirements.

Most universities offering online degree programs make the process of applying for and completing a degree simple. Then there’s Southern New Hampshire University. It doesn’t charge an application fee, retrieves all of your transcripts for free, and doesn’t require standardized test scores. Maybe that’s why U.S. News and World Report ranks it No. 1 for Most Innovative Schools.

Up to 90 credits can be transferred for its 120-credit BS in healthcare administration, which offers concentrations in health information management and patient safety and quality. Most of the course names begin with “Healthcare,” followed by nouns like economics, marketing, delivery systems, reimbursement, finance, strategic management, quality management, and more. It concludes with a capstone project.

Western Kentucky University’s cohort-based program requires at least 73 hours of major coursework as part of its 120-hour degree. Like some other programs on our list, it’s credentialed by the Association of University Programs in Healthcare Administration. The coursework covers:

• medical terminology
• microeconomics
• aging
• healthcare organization management
• HR management
• health systems management
• long-term care
• running nursing facilities

Students also complete an internship during their final semester of study.

National University in San Diego was founded in 1971 by a retired U.S. Navy captain, so the school—San Diego’s largest nonprofit university—has the military in its DNA, seeking to accommodate active duty and veteran service members along with their civilian counterparts.

It also seeks to make earning a BS in healthcare administration a simple process. Available both online and on campus, the degree is built on four-week classes, which students take one at a time. The degree requires 180 quarter units, and National presumes students come into it with some amount of transfer credit. (If they don’t, they’ll just need to take additional electives.) The major coursework comes down to 15 classes, drawing from:

• accounting
• law
• financial analysis
• human-resource management
• operations-analysis management
• information-systems analysis
• strategic planning
• marketing

Some universities have admission standards that specify standardized test scores, certain high school curricula, or a minimum amount of college coursework. Then there’s BYU-Idaho, which requires students to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (“or have a close tie to the church”), and live by an honor code—even those studying online. They’ll need to be chaste, abstain from alcohol, tobacco, tea, coffee, and substance abuse, dress neatly, and other stuff. 

The good news? BYU-Idaho is cheap. Its BS in healthcare administration is a 120-credit program that includes 39 general education and 17 introductory credits. Healthcare coursework comes from nine courses for 26 credits, covering project management, health economics, healthcare finance, management, strategy, technology, and the insurance industry. They’re supplemented by 16 credits of business coursework (including an internship) and 22 elective credits.

Besides the LDS affiliation and code of honor requirement, prospective students will need to have completed high school and any college coursework with a minimum 2.0 GPA. 

Colorado State University’s BS in Healthcare administration and management is a 120-credit program comprising 31 general-education courses and 45 credits of core degree classes. They include introductions to the U.S. healthcare system (buckle up!), health policy, and healthcare strategy, along with others covering HR management, operations management, population health management, information systems, risk management, and more. A practicum rounds everything out.

CSU also offers specializations for an additional 15 credits:

• business administration
• data management and analysis
• emergency management
• accounting
• project management
• public and nonprofit management
• public relations

Electives fill in whatever’s left to bring the total to 120.

Purdue University Global offers its BS in healthcare administration in two different online formats: regular and accelerated. Both require 180 credits to graduate, but they reach that goal in different ways. 

The regular approach mixes 33 credits of core requirements, 87 credits of open electives, and 60 credits of major coursework (including 12 credits of major electives). The major coursework boils down to eight classes covering leadership and ethics, policy and economics, operational analysis, IT, organization and management, finance, strategic planning, and a capstone. Each course lasts 10 weeks, and students can expect to spend about 15-18 per week on their studies.

Then there’s ExcelTrack, the faster, cheaper way to the BS for people with “strong professional knowledge.” Although it follows the same course length and credit requirements, it allows students to bypass topics they already know. That’s established at the beginning with a “series of assessments” and the aid of a faculty member. Each course is one credit and covers a particular skill or knowledge area, with students completing them at their own pace. They take as many one-credit courses as they want at a time.

While the City University of Seattle offers its BS in healthcare administration online, it also offers the degree on campus at a location that’s tough to beat—in the shadow of the Space Needle and a stone’s throw from the Seattle Center and its bevy of museums and other attractions.

The university’s 180-credit program splits evenly between lower- and upper-division requirements. The upper division includes 50 credits of healthcare administration coursework covering leadership, legal and ethical issues, trends, health informatics, human resources, finance, policy, and others.

A practicum tops it off, and the upper-division work is rounded out by 10 credits of undergraduate core work (Critical Thinking and Ethics and Leadership) and 25 credits of upper-division electives.

Admission to City University of Seattle couldn’t be simpler: a high school diploma or equivalent and transcripts from any other previously attended institutions. 

Concordia University in Saint Paul began in 1893 as a Christian liberal arts college, and more than 125 years later, it still describes itself as a “Christ-centered community” that emphasizes diversity and learning. 

Its BA in healthcare administration requires 40 credits of required major coursework, with classes like Epidemiological Foundations, Leadership Communication, Compliance and Regulatory Requirements, and a suite of courses that begin with the word “Healthcare”—finance, economics, information systems, diversity, and global issues. The degree requires 120 credits with electives and general-education courses added. 

Drexel University offers its BS in health services administration online and on its campus in Philadelphia, both part-time and intended for “career-focused professionals.” (Unfocused non-professionals can scram.) The curriculum emphasizes competency in healthcare administration, finance, economics and policy, ethics, marketing, and information systems.

Drexel can cram all of that into 184 credits because it operates on the quarter system. Each quarter lasts 10 weeks, so students are able to cover more topics in a shorter amount of time. Health services administration comprises 33 core credits, covering topics like ethics, HR, financial management, marketing, management, policy, ethics, and more, along with 27 additional credits in electives. Those follow general-education coursework in English, natural sciences, math, computing, business, humanities, electives, and something called “Drexel Experience” classes.

Drexel keeps admission simple. Transfer students (i.e., those with a minimum of 24 semester credits with a 2.5 GPA) need only supply transcripts. First-year students will need high school transcripts and ACT/SAT scores. And everyone will need to pay up: At $50,874, Drexel’s is the most expensive program in our top 25.

A baby in university years, Keiser University in Florida started in 1977 when Dr. Arthur Keiser and Evelyn Keiser decided to start a school for adult learners. The university now has 21 locations around Florida, many of which offer its BA in health services administration, which is also available online.

Its 120-hour degree is anchored by 48 hours of health services administration coursework, such as risk management, healthcare finance, public policy, ethics, analysis, leadership, marketing, and labor relations. Sixty credit hours of lower-division courses precede those, and students must complete 12 hours of upper-division general-education courses as well.

Keiser’s program has students complete one course at a time for four weeks, followed by a final exam to be passed before moving onto the next class. Combined with the university’s small class sizes, it “ensures easy access to faculty and hands-on education,” per Keiser’s website.

Applicants need only proof of high school graduation for admission, and tuition costs $21,008 for Floridians and non-Floridians alike. 

The University of Northwestern Ohio lies in the small city of Lima, about 50 miles east of the Indiana border. For decades it was known as a manufacturing center for locomotives, but like so many other Rust Belt cities, that went away a long time ago.

Unlike other programs in our top 25, Northwestern Ohio’s BS in healthcare administration is a “2 + 2” degree. That means students spend the first two years completing an associate’s degree in a health-related field (or transfer in with one), then complete the BS. The university says the approach “gives you both hands-on training and the business skills” required to be a manager in healthcare administration.

The degree requires 47 hours of major coursework, covering healthcare management, information technology, finance and accounting, economics, quality metrics, and a capstone course. Thirty-two hours general-education requirements and 11 hours of electives round out the credits.

The University of Northwestern Ohio has minimal application requirements—just transcripts and a diploma.

New England College lives up to its name, as its website describes its hometown of Henniker, NH, as a “quintessential New England town”—it even has a covered bridge. However, NEC students won’t spend much time checking out the sights, as most of its degrees are offered 100% online.

That includes the BS in healthcare administration, a 120-credit degree comprising 40 credits of general education, 28 credits of electives, and 52 credits of major coursework. That boils down to 13 major classes covering ethics, statistics, economics, marketing, financial management, health informatics, accounting, and more. Courses last seven weeks, and NEC allows students to transfer up to 90 credits.

Admission requires a high school diploma and transcripts, though NEC doesn’t require standardized test scores or an application fee.

Touro University began in 1970 in New York City and has since become “a system of Jewish-sponsored nonprofit higher and professional educational institutions,” but its history goes much further back. To 1790, actually, and a speech George Washington made at a synagogue in Rhode Island, which inspired Isaac and Judah Touro to become educational benefactors.

Designed for working adults, the university’s BS in health sciences in healthcare administration is a 120-credit degree. It offers two concentrations: healthcare management and nutrition and health. Concentrations account for 12 of the 51 major credit hours, which include courses like Organizational Behavior, Cultural Competence in Healthcare, Health Information Systems, Management of Health Services, and many others, along with a capstone.

The degree also requires 24 hours of healthcare administration electives and 45 general-education hours, and up to 90 credit hours can be transferred in.

Touro estimates that full-time students can finish the program in three and a half years. Admission requires only a high school diploma or equivalent. 

A Catholic, Jesuit school in Denver, Regis University emphasizes “the importance of critical thinking, having a global perspective, and standing up for those who do not have a voice”—basically a bull’s eye for the mission of healthcare.

Regis offers an online BS in healthcare administration that can be completed in as little as 24-30 months. Class sizes are small, instruction asynchronous, and sessions last eight weeks—it’s all designed to accommodate working adults. Students can transfer in up to 87 of the 120 required credits. 

Major coursework comes from 13 courses, including a two-part class called the Evolving Healthcare System, classes on law, safety, information systems, research methods, a capstone and an internship, and more. The degree also requires 48 hours of general core studies.

Admission at Regis is a little stricter than some of the others in the 25 best online bachelor’s in healthcare administration. Aside from transcripts, it also requires two letters of recommendation, a résumé, and a 200-word personal statement. Tuition is also higher: $45,990, making it one of the most expensive programs on our list.

Grand Canyon University’s BS in healthcare administration emphasizes “five main domains” in its 120-credit degree: communication and relationship management; leadership and professionalism; healthcare environment and business acumen; financial management, information technology, and risk management; and organizational development and human resources. Technically, that’s about ten areas, but you can’t argue with comprehensiveness.

The degree requires up to 40 credits of general education, 56 for the major, and up to 30 for electives. Because Grand Canyon University is a Christian school, it espouses a “values-based curriculum” that includes four credits of Christian Worldview in its general-education requirements and Spirituality and Christian Values in Health Care and Wellness in the major. Other major courses look at ethics, accounting, IT, quality, healthcare systems, statistics, risk management, and more. It culminates with a “writing intensive” portfolio capstone.

Grand Canyon University touts its 73% acceptance rate for first-time, full-time, degree-seeking students. Applicants need only submit their transcripts.

The oldest Catholic university in Florida, Saint Leo University—located in Saint Leo, about 30 miles northeast of Tampa—is one of those schools whose online students (13,000+) dwarf those on campus (2,200+). Maybe it’s because Tampa is so hot and humid?

Regardless, its BS in healthcare administration is a 120-credit-hour program, divided into 42 hours of “university explorations” (a.k.a. general education), 36 business prerequisites called “common body of knowledge,” 21-30 major requirements, and electives.

The major coursework boils down to just six classes covering organization, management, community health, quality improvement, planning and policy management, and contemporary issues in healthcare. That’s because up to 12 credits come from an internship, where students spend their final semester working full-time. (Students who already work in the healthcare industry are eligible for a waiver.)

Applicants need to submit proof of high school graduation and transcripts, and they can expect to pay $27,880, which is a little more than average for the 25 best online bachelor’s in healthcare administration.

The “Nazarene” in Trevecca Nazarene University tips you off to the school’s “Christ-centered community”—JC hailed from Nazareth—where you can “reach your education goals while also deepening your faith and worldview.” 

But the main thing students should know is that Trevecca’s BS in healthcare administration requires 40 credit hours from an accredited institution (with a minimum 2.0 GPA). That’s how students are able to finish their degrees in as little as 18 months, per the program’s website.

The degree requires 30 hours of general education, 54 hours of general electives, and 36 hours of core major coursework. That comes from 12 classes covering law, health regulations, financial management, strategic management, electronic health records, long term care, as well as a course called Biblical Perspectives and the Christian Worldview.

Trevecca is on the pricier end of schools among the 25 best online bachelor’s in healthcare administration, but the entry requirements make it a shorter program, so it could possibly be cheaper in the long run.

Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, IN, is one of about 20 universities affiliated with the Wesleyan Church. As such, the school describes its “primary value” as Christlikeness, i.e., a lifestyle of “Commitment, Leadership, Service, Stewardship, Innovation, and Diversity.” (The capitalization indicates Indiana Wesleyan isn’t messing around.)

The BS in healthcare administration follows that directive by integrating “a biblical framework into the practice and standards that guide interactions within the healthcare industry.” The classes that make up the 48 major credit hours look pretty typical: healthcare management, HR, accounting, health principles and policies, statistics, marketing, strategy development, and a capstone project. Courses are taken one at a time in order until students have fulfilled all requirements.

Speaking of requirements, Indiana Wesleyan asks that students have at least 60 transferable credit hours from another institution before they start their core BS coursework. As much as 40 hours of that can come from the Prior Learning Assessment, which allows students to test out of requirements. Applicants will also need to supply transcripts and $9,020, making Indiana Wesleyan one of the cheaper options among schools in our top 25.

Lying on the shore of Lake Champlain in Burlington, VT, Champlain College enjoys picturesque views of the lake and surrounding mountains. But because its BS in healthcare administration is offered online, the closest you’ll come to that before graduation is a picture on your computer’s desktop.

Take heart: Champlain College’s 120-hour degree moves quickly. Classes last seven weeks, with two seven-week terms per semester and three semesters per year. Students may transfer in up to 90 credits. Note that “quick” doesn’t mean “easy”; the school estimates students will spend 10-17 hours per week per class.

Major coursework comprises 69 credits in classes like Navigating the U.S. Healthcare System (if only that was open to everyone), Agile Project Management, Health Finance & Economics, Healthcare Communication, Clinical Systems Management, and many more. Included among them is a capstone project where students work in a healthcare setting. Fifty-one credits of general-education courses round out the degree.

Admission to Champlain College requires transcripts (including high school for applicants who haven’t completed an associate’s degree), résumé, and short-answer essay questions that are part of the application. It also requires a good chunk of change, $47,400.

Bismarck, ND, is known for several things: the state capitol building, the zoo, Ft. Abraham Lincoln State Park. You know what it’s not known for? Mild winters. The average high temperature in January is 23 degrees, so maybe online learning is the way to go here?

University of Mary’s BS in healthcare administration “focuses on the management of the business aspects of healthcare,” per its website. The 22 required courses go heavy on business, with two in accounting, another called Advanced Spreadsheets, management classes for finance and HR, and several economics classes. Healthcare courses include Intro to Healthcare Administration, the American Healthcare System, Medical Terminology, and others.

University of Mary’s online program is intended for degree completion, and it can be finished in as little as 18 months, depending on transfer credit. Prospective students need to contact the school for admission requirements, but they should plan to spend $24,640, placing it above the average cost for the 25 best online bachelor’s in healthcare administration.

When you want to study a health profession, it makes a certain amount of sense to go to a school that only teaches healthcare instead of a university that teaches a lot of subjects, including healthcare. The Pennsylvania College of Health Sciences has it right there in its name. Based in Lancaster, it began as a nursing school in 1903 but expanded into health sciences in the 1950s.

The college’s BS in healthcare administration is offered in an accelerated online format, with asynchronous coursework for maximum flexibility. The coursework is divided into two parts: science and humanities requirements (64 credits) and healthcare administration, health sciences, and interprofessional collaborative requirements (56 credits).

Whereas other programs heavily emphasize the business aspects of healthcare administration, Penn College of Health Sciences unsurprisingly goes the other direction, with 36 credits of healthcare administration and 13 credits of research, teaching, project management, and capstone coursework.

Tuition costs $29,992 for all students, and admission is pretty simple: high school and any college transcripts, along with SAT/ACT scores. The school also factors in class rank, academic performance, community service, and healthcare-related service into consideration for admission.