If you’re in the market for a health management certificate as part of your career arc, you’ve got some good choices in the online schools available to make your certification a reality. Many larger and accredited universities have moved to or added remote coursework to increase accessibility and save on overhead costs.
There are many options to get healthcare management certificates through remote coursework, including the following options for certificates in online healthcare management:
- Yale School of Management
- Milken Institute of Public Health
- University of Pennsylvania
- EdX MicroMasters Program
- Ashworth College
Healthcare management is a growing industry, and getting a healthcare management certificate can be a great step forward in furthering your career and moving into a higher income bracket. Keep reading to learn more about how to get your health management certificate online and the best schools that will allow you to do it.
How Do I Get Certified in Healthcare Administration?
Becoming certified in healthcare administration is much like achieving any other professional online certification. It involves completing coursework through a remote workstation (usually a home laptop or desktop) and submitting assignments to prove your knowledge of the information focused on during the course.
Depending on where a person lives, a bachelor’s degree or a master’s degree is required as one of the prerequisites for even being allowed to sit in on exams for a healthcare administration certificate, so getting a cphq certification doesn’t necessarily get an individual out of having to complete college coursework to achieve certification. Therefore, it’s important for prospective students to carefully review the certification rules before signing up for an online healthcare management certificate.
The types of courses that can allow someone to earn a healthcare management certification vary greatly from program to program. Some online programs are rigid and feature scheduled classes or group discussions that must be attended for the course to be completed. Others are more individually-paced and can be completed at the leisure of the student. This can be a much better option for people trying to earn their certification around other life obligations.
Check out the things you can do with a healthcare management degree, in that article!
The 5 Best Schools to Get Your Health Management Certificate Online
There are many online certification options for health management, but some online schools are of higher quality (or have a better reputation) than others. Here are some of the things you should look for when it comes to finding a school to get your health management certificate (Source: Study.com):
- Accreditation. Whichever online school you use to achieve your health management certification, you’ll need to make sure that the school you get your certificate through is an accredited school so that the certificate will count. Otherwise, your certificate will be worthless when it comes to pursuing healthcare management jobs.
- Flexibility. One of the major advantages of getting your certification through an online school instead of going to a physical school is that it offers a lot more convenience for completing coursework regarding scheduling. This is because online schooling is often aimed at adults who are already working a full-time job or may be going to school. Look for online courses that are flexible with participation, attendance, and assignments.
- Program availability. Plenty of schools have moved to remote classes, but to get your healthcare management certificate, you’ll need to choose a school that actively offers a healthcare management certification to get the accreditation you need. Different types of healthcare management certifications are acceptable at different healthcare facilities and can depend on the job position you’re going after.
- User interface and learning environment. Some online schools are better than others at providing an intuitive user interface that is easy and enjoyable for students to use. Online schools also need to provide teachers that are invested in seeing their students succeed in completing the coursework.
- Support services. An online school needs robust technical support services (in case of technical difficulties) and support services such as job counseling that can help students use their certification to find and secure a job in the field they want to work in. Besides looking at support services, you should also look at what percentage of new graduates become employed within the health management field after graduation. Many schools provide this information.
- Cost. The cost of certification in healthcare management varies from university to university. While most online schools allow some degree of flexibility regarding payment for online courses and certifications, each one has its financial aid policies, payment plans, and other financial considerations. Check with the school you’re interested in carefully to see your options to keep your costs affordable.
Below you’ll find five of the best schools where you can currently get your health management certificate online. Each of these schools is a good choice if you want to become certified in healthcare management, and each also provides its own unique benefits.
1. Yale School of Management – Healthcare Management Online Program
Yale is an Ivy League school that is considered one of the most prestigious universities globally, and its online learning options are no different. The online program for healthcare management certification through the Yale School of Management Executive Education is one of the best programs you can take if you’re looking for healthcare management certification.
This healthcare management program is one of the fastest certifications you can achieve out of the schools on this list.
This healthcare management certification course is designed to cover the following aspects of healthcare management:
- Learning how to allocate financial resources and funding within the healthcare system on many different levels
- Learning what qualities make for a good healthcare manager when it comes to providing financial stewardship for a hospital or other medical facility
- Learn how to effectively operate a healthcare office structure such as a hospital administrative wing using state-of-the-art management tools that make you a better leader within the healthcare system
- Learn what kind of quality and compliance standards are required in the organization of a healthcare management system and how an administrator can successfully meet them at every level of the organizational structure
- Learn how to both acquire funding and market a group healthcare practice to increase profits and streamline financial affairs
This course involves roughly five to seven hours of coursework a week and costs $2,500 to complete.
This program is designed to help healthcare professionals and administrators enhance their business acumen and operational knowledge to deliver better healthcare.
2. Milken Institute of Public Health – Healthcare Management Online Course
This healthcare management certification offered by Milken Institute of Public Health gives students access to a wide knowledge pool when it comes to fundamental concepts in healthcare management. This course is a six-week engagement (with a two-week orientation period) designed to cover the following aspects of healthcare management.
Here are some of the concepts you can expect to learn with this healthcare management certification:
- Learning how to focus on delivering consistent solutions to patient problems to reinforce a growing medical practice
- Learning how to both manage a healthcare workforce and guide them in a new age of inclusivity and workplace awareness
- Learning how the healthcare market works as well as how healthcare funds are allocated both at the private and governmental levels
- Learning how to lead a healthcare team and proactively solve management problems on the fly while guiding a diverse group of healthcare professionals toward the same overarching management goals
This healthcare management course can prove useful both to medical professionals and clerical professionals or office managers who want to be involved in healthcare management systems. Any professional who wants a better grasp on the administrative side of a healthcare structure would benefit from pursuing their healthcare management certification through the Milken Institute of Public Health. The price of this online certification in healthcare management is $1,900.
3. University of Pennsylvania – The Business of Health Care Specialization (Coursera)
This online certification in healthcare management is offered by the University of Pennsylvania. The health care specialization is partnered with Penn State’s Wharton and Penn Medicine department, which allows students to learn on-the-ground healthcare business terminology and concepts from a variety of professionals in the field.
This course differs from some of the other healthcare management certifications available in that scheduling for the coursework involved with this certification is completely flexible. Students can complete the course as quickly or as slowly as they need. This can be a great advantage for students who are already juggling other family or job responsibilities on top of trying to further their education in healthcare management.
One unique aspect of the Health Care Specialization through the University of Pennsylvania is that it offers an Applied Learning Project as part of the certification that allows you to put the concepts you learned throughout the course into practical use with a real-world scenario to see what your experience has taught you about succeeding in healthcare management administration.
Here are some of the other concepts that you’ll learn in this course:
- Learning healthcare financial management, even if you aren’t a financial professional
- Learning about the economy behind healthcare delivery and how to navigate insurance claims and pricing models
- Learning how to manage healthcare professionals from healthcare clerical workers up to nurses, surgeons, and healthcare administrators
- Learning how to apply innovation in behavioral economics as well as various structures within healthcare operations management
Penn State is an Ivy League school on par with Yale and Harvard, making it one of the most prestigious schools that you can get your healthcare management certification through. Financial aid and payment plans for this online course (and other courses offered through Penn State) are also available if needed.
4. EDX MicroMasters Program in Healthcare Administration
The MicroMasters Program offered through EDX is designed to emulate a master’s degree in healthcare management, only streamlined into an online course that can be completed in a fraction of the time it takes to complete a master’s degree.
This MicroMasters program has a seven-month duration of 5-7 hours a week, making it one of the longer healthcare management certifications on this list. But for less than $1,300, it’s also one of the most comprehensive healthcare certification courses that you can take.
This online certification is a great way for someone already involved in healthcare administration or management to further their education around their other job requirements. Whether you’re looking to make yourself more competitive to move up into a higher pay bracket in administration or you want to facilitate a lateral shift into a different aspect of healthcare, this certification can give you a crash course in all the information you’ll need to know to be a healthcare management administrator.
Here are some of the many things you will learn if you pursue your healthcare management certification through edX’s MicroMasters program in Healthcare Administration:
- Learning how to apply case studies to real-world situations to manage and act as a leader in hospital and other healthcare administrative structures; this can involve everything from conflict resolution in office management to dealing with problematic or challenging
patient interactions - Learning how to financially manage a healthcare administration including setting and sticking to financial budgets, acquiring outside or privatized funding, following financial forecasts in the healthcare market, and manipulating capitalist structures in healthcare administration
- Learning healthcare advocacy such as patient rights, employee rights, preventative care, and navigating the workplace culture
- Understanding how consumerism, insurance markets, and other financial factors affect the healthcare management system and how hospital administrators need to react to navigate those changes successfully
This program consists of seven separate courses and a capstone exam used to determine certification approval. Students who complete this certification can complete their MBA in healthcare administration online for additional fees. Since most healthcare management administrators at the executive level have at least a master’s degree in healthcare management, a healthcare management certification is a good jumping-off point for that career path.
Being in healthcare management involves a fine balance between advocating for the rights of patients and advocating for the rights of workers within the healthcare community – all while trying to juggle financing both sides of the board. This is a complex tightrope walk at best and can be disastrous if neglected by executive administrators. This is one reason why healthcare management has been a steadily growing field since the early 2010s.
5. Ashworth College Healthcare Management Certificate
The healthcare management certificate offered online through Ashworth College can be used as credits for an associate’s degree in Healthcare Management. This healthcare management certificate is intended as a stepping-stone toward a more advanced degree in healthcare management or business management related to healthcare.
A major advantage of this healthcare management program is that Ashworth College provides career services that help prospective students to set up and send out resumes, write cover letters to prospective employers, conduct their job interviews, and other tools that are used by students to pursue a job after they complete their degree or certification.
The Healthcare Management Certificate at Ashworth College is designed to be completed in six months, but it provides up to a year for students to complete their coursework. That makes this a very flexible option for students who may juggle other life responsibilities while pursuing their degrees online.
Here are some of the other concepts you’ll explore while pursuing your Healthcare Management Certificate online through Ashworth College:
- Managing a medical office, including areas such as insurance claim processing, medical records management, patient management relations, and medical terminology
- More advanced medical procedures in the office such as physical examinations, laboratory procedures, diagnosis, physical therapy, and addressing immediate medical emergencies
- In-depth knowledge of anatomy and physiology that covers every major organ and system in the body, genetics, reproduction, immunological diseases, and many more medical conditions
- The proper storage, management, and collection of medical records and patient confidentiality laws concerning patients’ medical records
This coursework provides a great starting point for furthering a healthcare management career and can be a great way to get into a lucrative healthcare management position. The emphasis on medical procedures also means that the person who achieves this certification won’t just have strong clerical and administrative skills. They’ll also have basic knowledge of the kinds of medical procedures and disorders that will normally be encountered in clinical practice.
What Can I Do with a Healthcare Management Certificate?
A Healthcare Management Certificate can be used to pursue a job in many different healthcare management positions. Healthcare is one of the world’s largest career fields and can span many different kinds of operations and specializations. (Source: Rasmussen College)
Here are a few job titles that can be achieved by earning a Healthcare Management Certificate:
- Clinical or healthcare office director
- Health and social services specialist
- Medical records management specialist
- Healthcare office manager
- Healthcare clinic administrator
As you can see, there are many different careers that you could potentially pursue with a healthcare management certification, which makes it easy for potential employees to specialize in an aspect of healthcare management that most interests them. For example, a healthcare management administrator who wants to run a clinic will have very different career goals than someone who wants to process healthcare medical records or insurance claims for a living.
A healthcare management certification can also be used to earn credits towards a more complex healthcare management degree, such as an associate’s or bachelor’s degree in healthcare management.
What is a CPHM Certification?
CPHM stands for “Certified Professional in Healthcare Management.” (Source: Payscale) This certification prepares healthcare management administrators for a variety of different job positions related to healthcare management, including the following:
- Hospital administrator
- Clinical director
- Resident care director
- Nursing Manager
- Medical Billing Operations Director
Like other healthcare management certificates, a CPHM certification prepares a healthcare management administrative professional for a wide range of specialized positions within the administrative wing of healthcare management, from supervising employees to supervising medical records. Achieving a CPHM certification not only makes it easier to find a job in these fields, but it also allows prospective employees to demand a higher starting salary as well.
Is a Bachelor's in Healthcare Management Worth It?
Whether a bachelor’s degree in healthcare management is worth the money and the effort is really up to who you ask. Here are a few things you need to take into consideration before pursuing a bachelor’s degree in healthcare management (Source: City Data):
- If you go after higher positions in healthcare management, such as hospital administrative roles, you will be competing against other professionals who have achieved a full master’s degree in healthcare administration. So, a bachelor’s degree may be good enough to get you into middle management in hospital administrative roles, but you probably won’t be running the show if you stop at this degree.
- It is possible to get to a higher position in healthcare management with only a bachelor’s degree. Still, it will require decades of working your way up the food chain to achieve that level in your career—you won’t be starting in upper management; you’ll be starting at the bottom of the ladder.
- Many entry-level management positions seek other qualifications outside of a healthcare management degree, such as a nursing degree or other medical degree, along with three to five years of management experience. This can make it difficult for people with a bachelor’s in healthcare management to get into management positions in some geographical areas.
- The saturation of the job market with people with nursing degrees means that many people with nursing degrees are seeking positions in management rather than in the nursing field, leading to increased competition for those with a bachelor’s in healthcare management alone.
- Healthcare management experience can often give job candidates a leg up over those with a more qualifying degree. Therefore, if you have a healthcare management degree and have extensive experience successfully running free clinics or working in other pro bono healthcare administrative positions, you’ll have unique experiences that will translate to more interest during the job application process.
- People who go into healthcare management need to have a personality that meshes well with the healthcare management and healthcare administration environments. This includes the ability to manage people with a positive attitude, juggle multiple tasks simultaneously, and stay educated on state-of-the-art changes in healthcare infrastructure.
- Taking on a bachelor’s degree involves taking on additional student debt in many cases. Even though healthcare management is a growing field that has led to a surplus of open positions in the industry, getting a degree means taking on a financial burden to pay the degree back even if you start in a low-paying entry-level position. It may take several years for you to pay your degree off.
- Whether a bachelor’s in healthcare management is worth it depends largely on the personality of the person undertaking the degree, not just their ability to do the work. Working in healthcare management requires a deft hand at many soft skills, including inter-office conflict resolution, the ability to multitask in many different areas of business, and the ability to persuade others in managerial and clerical affairs. It’s not worth getting the degree without the drive.
Whether a bachelor’s degree in healthcare management is worth it depends a lot on an individual student’s goals concerning their future career in healthcare administration, their prior experience, their prior education in the field, and what they want to specialize in.
Healthcare administrators who want to be “in the field” or on the nursing floor managing other nurses may be better served with a nursing degree. At the same time, healthcare management can be a great degree for medical record keepers. It all depends on your end goals and what you want your career in healthcare management to look like.
Before committing any money to a healthcare management certification, it’s a good idea for prospective students to look into several different healthcare management areas to determine exactly where they see themselves falling and what they want their future job to look like. Those who want to run a hospital will ultimately need to pursue a different (and harder) path than someone who wants to work on the lower rungs of hospital administration as a clerk.
It's Never Been Easier to Get Your Health Management Certificate Online
Even with society’s new pressures in the aftermath of the COVID-19 healthcare crisis, society has never been better prepared to facilitate distance learning and online education. Getting a healthcare management certification online can be a good place to start for anybody wanting to either start a career path in healthcare management or make themselves a stronger hiring candidate.
Thanks to technology there are infinite online certifications available nowadays for you. From NLP Certification Courses Online , Help of Technology in Student Mental Health to Online Life Coach Certifications and countless more, now you can become a health expert from the comfort of your home!
