The potentially lucrative Masters in Health Administration salary is one of the major factors that makes the Masters in Health Administration (MHA) an attractive choice for an advanced degree. The Masters in Health Administration degree qualifies you for executive-level positions in healthcare delivery organizations such as hospitals, consulting agencies, health maintenance organizations and the insurance industry. MHA programs combine learning about management and finance with education about the specific issues facing the healthcare industry.
MHA programs accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME) have been vetted for quality academic programs and meet the standard of top future employers. Over 50 CAHME-accredited programs can be found throughout the country, as well as online. 120 hours of in-person instructional time is required for accreditation of online programs. Since 1993, U.S. News and World Report has ranked the University of Michigan’s Masters in Health Administration degree first in the nation. Programs such as the University of Southern California’s MHA program allow you to focus your studies in a specific area, such as Quality of Care or Health Care Finance.
Details About Masters in Health Administration Salary
Salaries for MHA graduates are affected by several factors including prior healthcare or management experience, geography, performance and specific healthcare industry. According to Payscale.com, the most popular job titles for MHA degree holders included Clinical Nurse Manager, Executive Director, Strategic Planning Manager, Operations Manager and Practice Manager. Salaries vary greatly according to job titles. Clinical Nurse Managers, for example, had a salary range of $78,741 – $104,762, while Executive Directors of Non-Profit Organizations had a salary range of $59,758 – $81,813. Positions with Insurance and Employee Benefit Funds were the highest paying, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), with an annual mean wage of $139,400 in 2011.
Geographically, the highest paying metropolitan area for healthcare managers in 2011 was Sebastian-Vero Beach, Florida, with an annual mean wage of $136,140. In terms of years of experience, MHA salaries ranged from a median of $47,500 for those with less than 1 year to a median of $102,913 in a 2012 Paycale.com report.
To maximize your earning potential with an MFA, you may wish to hone your financial and operations skills. Budget management, operations management, acute care, financial analysis, strategic planning and project management were the skills and specialties ranked with the highest median salaries in 2012. Seeking employment with a large organization may also pay dividends: the median Masters in Health Administration salary at organizations with over 50,000 employees was $84,124 in 2012, compared with $64,215 at companies with 200 – 599 employees.
