What Makes The University of Scranton's MHA Program Stand Out?

If you’re considering a career in healthcare leadership, you’re probably exploring what you’ll learn in a health administration program. While every Master of Health Administration (MHA) degree teaches the fundamentals of healthcare management, The University of Scranton’s MHA goes beyond coursework to help students develop the leadership and strategic thinking skills valued by employers.

A typical MHA curriculum blends foundational business and management concepts with specialized healthcare knowledge. Areas of focus include healthcare finance, health policy and law, organizational leadership, strategic planning and operations management.

Scranton’s Master of Health Administration program provides students with a lot more than theoretical knowledge. The program’s accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME) provides a competitive edge in the job market. Students benefit from personalized advising, hands-on learning and professional mentorship. By the time they graduate, they’re fully prepared to serve in healthcare leadership positions.

Here are some of the things that set Scranton's MHA apart.

A Competency-Based Curriculum

Scranton’s MHA curriculum is built around nationally recognized Healthcare Leadership Alliance competencies:

Communication

• Verbal skills, listening skills and writing skills
• Ability to facilitate meetings, discussions and group dynamics

Leadership

• Building trust and cooperation while holding self and others accountable
• Problem-solving and decision-making abilities
• Ability to assess the potential impacts and consequences of decisions

Professionalism

• Adhering to ethical business principles
• Contributing to the community
• Ability to create, participate in and lead teams

Knowledge of the Healthcare Environment

• Understanding the interrelationships among access, quality, cost, resource allocation, accountability and community
• Ability to discuss and explain important issues in healthcare
• Ability to discuss healthcare legal principles, including standards, regulations and risk management

Business Skills and Knowledge

• Understanding of the roles, responsibilities and structures of governing bodies in healthcare organizations
• Knowledge of financial management and analysis principles
• Critical thinking and emotional intelligence
• Ability to plan and manage projects

Courses and assignments within them are mapped to these competencies, and each student’s progress in these skills is assessed at particular points in the program.

Personalized Faculty Mentorship

Upon admission, every student is assigned an academic advisor who remains with them throughout the program. They also have a fieldwork advisor who helps them identify career interests, connect with healthcare organizations and prepare for experiential learning.

Early in the program, faculty and students discuss the wide range of health administration careers, in settings like hospitals, physician practices, health systems, long-term care facilities and nonprofit organizations.

Between serving as advisors and conducting assessments throughout the program, faculty get to know students on a personal level. In the spirit of cura personalis (a Latin term meaning “care for the whole person”), faculty also check on their students’ well-being -- checking, for instance, whether they require support resources.

Learning Through Real Healthcare Experience

Experiential learning is a cornerstone of Scranton’s MHA program.

Students complete fieldwork experiences tailored to their backgrounds and career goals. Depending on their level of prior healthcare experience, fieldwork may include:

• Internships
• Administrative residencies
• Fellowships

For experienced executives enrolled in Scranton’s online MHA, faculty can customize a directed study allowing the students to complete projects directly related to their organizations, while earning academic credit.

This flexibility ensures that every student develops essential health administration skills and gains meaningful professional experience.

Executive Mentoring for Every Student

Another distinctive feature of Scranton’s MHA program is its Executive in Residence program. Students have access to a former healthcare CEO who provides individual career coaching, including:

• resume reviews
• mock interviews
• career planning

Available to on-campus and online students, the program gives students valuable insights from an experienced healthcare professional while helping them plan their careers.

Professional Development Outside the Classroom

Scranton’s program has several components beyond course work. Some are mandatory for graduation; others are additional opportunities for skill development and career networking.

Students are required, for instance, to complete 24 hours of community service (which also serves as a chance to explore career settings) and have an external mentor with whom they meet regularly.

They must join a professional organization, such as the American College of Healthcare Executives, which offers webinars, publications, career advising and opportunities to attend the group’s annual Congress on Healthcare Leadership. There are also opportunities to participate in case competitions and conduct research with faculty members.

Students are also encouraged to compete in healthcare case competitions. These events give them the opportunity to work with classmates to analyze a real-world or realistic healthcare problem and develop a practical solution. The students work as a team to assess the situation, identify the most important issues, use evidence and course concepts to develop recommendations and present a proposed solution to a panel of judges. Scranton students participate in both online competitions and others offered onsite at select national institutions. 

Global Learning Opportunities

Scranton students interested in international healthcare can broaden their perspectives through the program’s global health specialization. 

A global health management course and two additional travel courses provide them with insight into healthcare delivery systems around the world and prepare them to work with government agencies, relief organizations, global pharmaceutical or consulting firms and international health initiatives.

Make a Difference as a Healthcare Leader

The healthcare industry continues to evolve rapidly, creating demand for leaders who can manage change and improve quality. If you’re ready to take on these challenges, explore
The University of Scranton’s Master of Health Administration today!