Healthcare Administration Graduate Certificate Programs

Updated: Dec 23, 2023

For those who want to positively affect healthcare in their communities while also working in the business sector, a career in healthcare administration can be a great fit. Many healthcare administration graduate certificates (sometimes referred to as post-master’s or post-graduate certificates) are geared towards professionals already working in healthcare. These programs are often offered both online and on-campus, allowing students to decide what course format makes the most sense for their needs. Healthcare administrators often have many responsibilities within their healthcare setting, including managing day-to-day operations.

What Are the Online Healthcare Administration Graduate Certificate Requirements?

Online healthcare administration graduate certificate admission requirements vary from program to program. When searching for the right healthcare administration graduate certificate, it’s key that students check admissions dates, as well as whether any pre-requisite or entrance testing is required. It’s also important to check whether your program has any requirements that you must meet in the time period between your program acceptance and the first day of the semester.

Admission requirements for healthcare administration graduate certificate programs may include:

Completion of a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in a health-related field (some programs may require a minimum GPA of 3.0 or higher)
Letters of reference
Statement of purpose/intent
Resume or CV

What Type of Classes Are Included in the Online Healthcare Administration Graduate Certificate Curriculum?

When searching for an online healthcare administration graduate certificate program, it’s important for professionals to find a curriculum that’s congruent with their career goals.

Courses required for completion of a healthcare administration graduate certificate may include:

Healthcare ethics
Population health management
Healthcare policy
Accounting in healthcare
Healthcare systems
Healthcare management

What Type of Careers Can I Pursue with an Online Healthcare Administration Graduate Certificate?

Professionals who earn an online healthcare administration graduate certificate will likely find that many career opportunities open up upon completion. Some students choose to get an online graduate certificate in order to advance within their current company, while others choose to explore opportunities within the administration of new healthcare systems.

Career opportunities available to professionals who earn their graduate certificate in healthcare administration may include:

Population Health Manager: A population health manager focuses on patient care within a specific population. This could range from a large demographic of people at risk for certain conditions or a group of people who have already been diagnosed with a condition.
Health Educator: Professionals in this position can work in a variety of settings, from community health service organizations to insurance companies. A health educator works with patients to help them understand health conditions, utilize preventive medicine services, manage diagnoses, and more.
Patient Finance Manager: A patient finance manager works to oversee the patient billing operations of a hospital or other healthcare organization. In addition to managing any current issues within a healthcare system, a professional in this position also needs to utilize forward projection to make future financial plans.
Clinical Information Director: A clinical information director works to ensure that professionals within a healthcare community have the information they need to improve patient outcomes. Professionals in this position often work closely with the hospital’s information technology staff, evaluating and updating systems to ensure that healthcare providers have easy access to patient health records and other information.
Community Health Organizer: A professional in this role works to help community residents get the healthcare that they need. Community health organizers may develop and implement public health programs, work with community health centers to ensure that their patients get the healthcare they need, and strategize to identify future healthcare needs within a community’s population.