Masters in Healthcare Admin or certificate?? Any ideas or suggestions??

[rebel100]

What is the end goal? I'm all about Masters degree's and the offering from Western Governors Univ. mentioned above is an option (though it's $3250/semester, with a semester being 6 months long) but I'm not sure how your planning to apply it. You already have a Bachelors and can't find a good job...how will a Masters change this?

I don't mean any offense...please don't take it that way...but where is the value in Nurses Aide/EKG Tech to Masters? I think there is something in between there that you can exploit and not make the jump to a Masters until your in a position to really afford it, and benefit from the knowledge.

Are you working now? Become an expert in joint commission and AHCA compliance. get an entry level hospital job in patient billing/accounting. Go to a tech school and earn the LPN, then turn that into a job, then transition to RN. Maybe there is something in case management that would be attractive and blend your skills better. I don't know, but it sounds like you need a job not a Masters.

I'm just shooting from the hip, and you didn't detail your full circumstance, but there are a couple of things I would recommend. #1 unless your employer or someone else is paying for it...don't do the Masters yet. I don't see the benefit. Your friend said there aren't many jobs with a MHA...I would tend to agree with the exception being that those already in healthcare middle management could see a push to the next level with the added education. BTW, it may vary across the country, but most of the hospital admins I know have some sort of clinical background coupled with an MBA...but that may just be my limited experience.

If money is truly tight I would be leery of trying to spend my way out in the way you seem to describe.

I have a good friend who interned here at my hospital when she was in college, she found a couple of mentors and her internship led to a pretty good job when she finished her Bachelors. She became an expert...truly an expert in hospital regulatory compliance. While working she was able to use tuition reimbursement for her Masters. She was recently headhunted to a new position at a physicians group...she parlayed an internship/networking and her strong work ethic into her dream job.