Best Healthcare Administration Degrees Online with Financial Aid
An online healthcare administration degree sets you up for success – but it also costs in the thousands. To ensure your degree is within your budget, check out this list of online healthcare administration degrees with the best financial aid.
Healthcare administration is a fast-growing field, and you’ll most likely need a degree in that field to access the many opportunities within this industry. Whether you’re looking for a bachelor’s, MHA, or DHA degree, you’re likely to spend more than $20,000 on your education.
Don’t exit this blog just yet, though — there are various ways to lower the cost of your degree, such as choosing an online program or attending part-time. One of the most effective ways to make a healthcare administration degree more affordable is to apply for financial aid.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 72% of undergraduate students and 74% of graduate students receive some form of financial aid. Aid types include scholarships, loans, grants, and work-study programs. It can come from the government, academic institutions, or private organizations.
While 72-74% of students sounds like a large number, the amount of financial aid can vary greatly from school to school. This guide outlines online healthcare administration degrees with the best financial aid packages. Be sure to read to the end for some tips on how to stand out when applying for scholarships, grants, and other financial aid.
Financial Aid Features: Healthcare Administration Programs with Aid
Many accredited healthcare administration programs offer financial aid, but not all aid packages are created equal. To help you uncover the schools with the best aid opportunities, we researched a slew of online programs. The ones below stood out in terms of overall affordability and ease in applying for aid opportunities.
Grand Canyon University
Grand Canyon University offers online healthcare administration degrees for students at every level. These include its online bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate programs. All were designed for working professionals, and students have flexibility and freedom in how they complete coursework and when they watch class lessons.
The programs are also quite affordable, even before aid: The bachelor’s degree costs $485 per credit, and the master’s degree is $590 per credit. The doctorate is $8,700 per semester no matter how many credits are taken. GCU also offers multiple financial aid packages.
Opportunities include a $2,000 healthcare administration alumni grant for students who already have a degree from the college and scholarships specifically for online students. The school also offers scholarships for veterans and active military personnel. Students are automatically considered for financial aid when they submit their program application and Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA.
Ohio University
The online master’s degree of healthcare administration at Ohio University is often regarded as one of the most affordable options in the nation. Students pay on a per-credit basis at a rate of $658 for Ohio residents and $677 for non-residents. The program is designed for working professionals and is completed in a part-time format over two years.
Ohio University also offers tuition discounts for military personnel and veterans, alumni of their undergraduate programs, and employees of their corporate partners. On top of these tuition discounts, the school offers scholarships and grants, some of which are specifically for MHA candidates.
Students are automatically considered for any scholarships when they fill out the application for the MHA program. For extra savings, the program doesn’t require students to submit a GRE/GMAT, which are standardized tests with their own fees.
Southern New Hampshire University
Southern New Hampshire University’s promise to healthcare administration students is simple but powerful: a quality degree at a low cost. The school offers fully online bachelor’s degrees and master’s degrees in healthcare administration. In either program, students can specialize in an area of interest, such as healthcare personnel management or information management.
Along with a low tuition rate, the school waives all applicant fees. They also offer a 30% military discount for active-duty service members and their spouses. On top of these tuition discounts, SNHU offers generous financial aid packages. These often include scholarships, grants, and any applicable tuition discounts. For school-funded aid, students don’t need to fill out a separate application. Instead, they are automatically considered for it when applying.
Most aid renews automatically as long as a student maintains strong academic performance. The university also accepts the majority of credits from other academic institutions, making it an affordable option for transfer students.
University of Utah
This university is home to one of the best master’s degrees in healthcare administration. Students at the University of Utah can choose from a full-time in-person option, an online option designed for professionals, or a hybrid option designed for those working full-time in the field. The two programs designed for professionals offer degree flexibility, so coursework fits around a full-time work schedule.
Another feature that sets the program apart is the university’s financial aid packages. The University of Utah offers generous graduate student financial aid. The most common types include scholarships, grants, and student loans. The school even offers MHA-specific scholarships, including the First Ascent Student Scholarship. In fact, all MHA candidates are guaranteed $5,000 or more in scholarships if they apply before April 1 for the upcoming fall semester.
Medical Group Management Association and the university’s women’s resource center also provide scholarships to MHA candidates aligned with their missions. Additional scholarships are offered for MHA candidates from diverse backgrounds.
University of Washington
The University of Washington hosts a high-quality Master of Health Administration. The program is known for its hybrid format and innovative curriculum that includes a summer-long internship in the field. At $899 per credit, the program is pricier, though it makes up for the higher tuition costs with ample aid opportunities.
Common aid types include scholarships, fellowships, and grants. The program also offers four MHA-specific scholarships. The Health Systems Excellence, Equity, and Distinction Award provides up to $5,000 for diverse applicants. The Current Topics in Health Care Award offers $3,000 to $5,000 to students conducting research. Those interested in taking on a leadership role after graduation are eligible for the Emerging Leader Award or the Impact Award, which both provide $3,000 to $5,000.
Additionally, the school offers multiple assistantship positions for graduate students, including some with a full tuition waiver.
Most Popular Financial Aid Options for Healthcare Administration Students
Financial aid opportunities often are in different amounts and have varied eligibility requirements, yet most fall into one of three categories: scholarships, grants, or loans. Continue reading to learn more about these three types of financial aid and discover scholarships and grants specifically for healthcare administration students.
Scholarships
Scholarships are the most attractive type of financial aid because they don’t have to be paid back and often don’t have additional stipulations such as completing an assistantship in a lab or completing a summer internship with a specific company. Typically, they are awarded based on financial need, merit, or a combination of both.
Some scholarships have additional eligibility requirements, such as studying a specific field or being a student from a certain state. Scholarships for healthcare administration students are often great ones to apply for since there’s a smaller application pool.
To jumpstart your scholarship search, explore the three below:
Grants
Grants are another great financial aid option. Universities, private institutions, and government organizations offer grants, and eligibility is often determined by merit, financial need, or a combination of other factors. Like scholarships, they provide aid that doesn’t need to be paid back. Unlike scholarships, grants often have stipulations such as completing an internship with the awarding company or completing a professional development program.
Because of these extra stipulations, it’s ideal to apply for grants aligned with your professional goals. Fortunately, there are many grants specifically for people who want to work in healthcare administration.
Some standout grants include:
- David A. Winston Health Policy Fellowship
- NHA Foundation Graduate Studies Tuition Aid Program
- Tylenol Future Care Grant
Loans
The third and most common option is student loans. With this form of financial aid, students are awarded a set amount of money they must pay back with interest after they graduate. If you work while getting a graduate degree, you may have to pay student loans back while in school.
Federal and state governments and private organizations both offer loans. For most, students must fill out the FASFA. Private loans sometimes have additional screening procedures, though they also have a higher interest rate than government-subsidized loans.
Eligibility & Application Checklist for Students
Every opportunity has distinctive requirements, but the process to apply for financial aid is similar for most. To make that process faster and easier, you can gather application materials ahead of time, brainstorm essay ideas, and complete general application components such as the FAFSA. To help, we developed the checklist below.
Complete the FAFSA Early
The FASFA is a government application where students and their families enter details about their income, debt, and other financial circumstances. Most graduate students want to fill it out, since government aid and many privately funded aid sources utilize the FASFA to determine financial need. Filling out the application is easy, free, and can be done online through this government website.
Thoroughly Review Eligibility Criteria & Requirements
To make it easier to apply for financial aid, gather a list of potential opportunities and review their eligibility criteria. If you meet the requirements for one, jot down important information so you can add it to your application. For example, if a specific scholarship wants applicants who wish to reform healthcare administration, you could write an essay on a specific area you’re interested in changing.
Check Deadlines and Apply Early
When reviewing eligibility requirements, jot down the deadlines for all opportunities for which you’re eligible. You can then add those deadlines to your planner or calendar, since missing a deadline means you missed that specific financial aid opportunity.
Along with jotting down deadlines, you also want to apply early. Make a timeline of when you’ll do certain tasks for each application, such as gathering materials or writing essays, and aim to finish all tasks a week or two before the actual deadline.
Gather All Necessary Documents
Once any deadlines are on your calendar, it’s time to get started on the applications. Start by gathering any necessary documents, such as the FASFA or undergraduate or high school transcripts. You should also set aside time to write any essays or answers to shorter questions. For a faster application process, keep all documents in one place with clear labels so you can find what’s needed for each application easily.
Receive Feedback on Supplemental Materials
Before you submit essays, statements of purpose, or other written components, get a friend, family member, or professional to review them. If you’re a current college student, there may be online academic tutors or writing consultants who can review your written materials before submitting them.
Review Award Letters
Applications are submitted. Now it’s time for the award letters to roll in. As they do, examine each in terms of how much aid it offers compared to the tuition price. If you applied for private scholarships, those will probably arrive separately, though you should consider them as part of the aid package for any program.
