ASU health administration master's: accreditation, tuition, admissions, career outcomes.
A median $110,680 annual wage for medical and health services managers explains the appeal, but the right degree choice still hinges on format, cost, and accreditation. Arizona State University plays a specific role in Arizona by offering the Health Care Administration and Policy, MS online and on its Downtown Phoenix campus.
That credential is not an MHA, despite the common shorthand, and does not carry CAHME accreditation. Online graduate tuition is $605 per credit hour for residents and nonresidents, a pricing structure that removes one variable for out-of-state applicants.
The practical question is whether ASU's online and immersion formats justify the same 30-credit curriculum under different completion timelines and costs.
Prospective students reviewing MHA Programs in Arizona often assume ASU offers a Master of Health Administration, but the official graduate degree in health administration is the Health Care Administration and Policy, MS. ASU Online markets the same program as Online Master of Science in Health Care Administration and Policy. The program name changed effective Fall 2024 from the earlier Science of Health Care Delivery title, so applicants should search for the current name in the ASU catalog.
The Health Care Administration and Policy, MS is a Master of Science, not a Master of Health Administration (MHA). This distinction reflects a curriculum that pairs healthcare management with policy analysis and delivery system improvement. The degree is offered through ASU's College of Health Solutions, and the official handbook confirms the title and 30-credit requirement. Because both the on-campus and online versions share the same degree name, graduates do not receive a different credential based on format. The MS also differs from a Master of Public Health or Master of Public Administration (see MHA vs MPA vs MPH), although there is overlap in policy and management topics.
ASU delivers the Health Care Administration and Policy, MS in two formats: in-person immersion at the Downtown Phoenix campus and fully online through ASU Online. The program handbook lists the Downtown Phoenix campus and online as the delivery modes. Some individual courses may be scheduled in ways that blend synchronous and asynchronous work, but the primary choices are in-person and online. There is no separate hybrid track advertised in the current materials. The total program requires 30 credit hours, which is a standard master's length and allows students to plan around full-time or part-time enrollment. ASU Online says the program is also available in-person, confirming that the online and campus versions share the same core requirements.
One of the most important factors for health administration applicants is program accreditation. The Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME) is the recognized accreditor for healthcare management master's programs. CAHME accreditation signals that a program meets national standards for curriculum, faculty, and student outcomes, and many administrative fellowships or employers give preference to graduates of CAHME-accredited programs. Based on current ASU program pages, the program handbook, and a third-party profile, the Health Care Administration and Policy, MS does not currently hold CAHME accreditation. The program also does not list AUPHA program accreditation. This does not mean the degree is invalid, as ASU is regionally accredited, but it may affect students who specifically plan to pursue CAHME-accredited fellowship pipelines. This may limit access to some CAHME-required fellowships and certain employer screening processes. However, the degree still provides a regionally accredited master's level education and may be sufficient for many roles in health administration, policy analysis, and healthcare management. Applicants should verify accreditation status directly with ASU before enrolling if CAHME alignment is a hard requirement for their career path.
ASU's Master of Healthcare Administration is CAHME accredited and designed for working professionals, with online and hybrid options that let you advance your career without stepping away from it.
ASU’s Health Care Administration and Policy MS uses a focused application checklist. Submitting by the priority deadlines below gives applicants the most straightforward path to an admission decision.
In Arizona, medical and health services managers earn salaries that support the state's healthcare infrastructure.
The table below compares ASU published 2026 to 2027 graduate tuition and fee rates for the online format and the campus immersion format. Online graduate tuition is $605 per credit hour for residents and nonresidents, and campus immersion tuition is $952 per credit hour for Arizona residents or $1,622 per credit hour for nonresidents. These rates do not include program-specific course fees, textbooks, or living expenses. Financial aid for health administration students may include university scholarships, graduate assistantships, and federal student loans, but availability and award amounts vary by program and individual eligibility. The online Master of Science in Health Care Administration and Policy does not publish a separate program-specific tuition rate; prospective students should use ASU's tuition calculator for a personalized estimate.
| Cost Component | Online Format | Immersion Format |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition per credit hour, resident | $605 | $952 |
| Tuition per credit hour, nonresident | $605 | $1,622 |
| Estimated tuition for 30 credits, resident | $18,150 | $28,560 |
| Estimated tuition for 30 credits, nonresident | $18,150 | $48,660 |
| Mandatory term fees, student programs and GPSA | $35 Student Programs Fee + $10 GPSA fee per term | $35 per term including $10 GPSA fee |
| Online graduate tuition and fees per credit hour | $746 | N/A |
Arizona State University publishes its health administration tuition and fees clearly online, so you can plan your full investment before you apply. There are no hidden costs for online learners.
Choosing between ASU's on-ground immersion and ASU Online is often the first structural decision for the health administration master's. The shared curriculum is built around the same 30-credit framework, but the pace, course sequencing, and completion timeline differ enough to shape the student experience.
The Health Care Administration and Policy, MS requires 30 total credits: an 18-credit required core, a 6-credit focus area, and a 1-credit capstone. The core includes six courses: HCD 501, HCD 502, HCD 510, HCD 511, HCD 521, and HCD 575. These courses establish the administrative and policy foundation, with the remaining credits shaped by the student's chosen focus area. Because the core is consistent across delivery formats, students do not choose a simpler core for the online path.
ASU lists three focus area options. The program handbook names Health Policy and Advocacy, Health Systems Management, and Performance Improvement in Health Care. The degree page uses slightly different wording, including Health Systems Administration and Management, Health Care Quality and Safety, and Health Policy, Equity and Ethics. Both describe three specialization choices, so the labels may vary by catalog year or delivery format. The 6-credit focus area is compact enough to add a specialization without extending the total credit load. Students should verify the current focus area titles before applying.
The capstone is not a stand-alone final paper completed all at once. Students first complete HCD 592, a 1-credit research requirement, twice in consecutive terms. Only after those two terms do they take HCD 550, the 1-credit capstone. This sequence builds research continuity before the capstone, which earns 1 credit within the 30-credit total.
The immersion version is on-ground and designed to be finished in about 9 months. In contrast, ASU Online offers a full-time 12-month timeline or a part-time 24-month timeline. The online format follows a structured term and session schedule, with required courses offered in specific sessions such as Fall A, Spring A, Summer, Fall B, Spring B, and Summer C. That staged structure can make online progression feel more sequential than the shorter immersion path. The materials reviewed do not specify residency, cohort interaction, or whether online courses are synchronous or asynchronous, so prospective students should confirm those delivery details with ASU directly.
Nationally, medical and health services managers earn a median annual wage of $110,680, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
ASU does not currently publish program-level salary tables for health administration specifically in Arizona. The available figures below come from ASU's 2015-2016 university-wide career outcomes report and from College of Health Solutions alumni messaging. Salary medians for medical and health services managers or practice administrators in Arizona were not available in the provided Bureau of Labor Statistics data, so this table focuses on reported ASU career outcomes instead.
| Career Outcome Metric | ASU Reported Data | Scope and Year |
|---|---|---|
| Undergraduate employment rate 90 days after graduation | 85% | ASU Career Outcomes Report, 2015-2016 |
| Undergraduate employment or job offer rate | 87% | ASU Career Outcomes Report, 2015-2016 |
| Undergraduate average salary among salary reporters | $43,352 | ASU Career Outcomes Report, 2015-2016 |
| Graduate employment rate 90 days after graduation | 90% | ASU Career Outcomes Report, 2015-2016 |
| Selected top healthcare-related undergraduate employers | Banner Health; Dignity Health; Mayo Clinic | ASU Career Outcomes Report, 2015-2016 |
| College of Health Solutions alumni employment sectors | Hospitals, health care offices, corporations, schools and universities, government agencies, nonprofit organizations | ASU College of Health Solutions alumni messaging |
For Arizona residents weighing local health administration master's options alongside online MPH programs in Arizona, ASU, University of Arizona, and Northern Arizona University often appear on the same shortlist. However, a reliable 2026 side-by-side comparison depends on program-level details that are not equally documentable across all three schools. Based on the source material reviewed, ASU's Health Care Administration and Policy MS is the only program with confirmed enrollment, cost, and admissions specifics.1 Details for University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University health administration master's programs could not be verified from the same source set. The comparison below reflects only facts that could be confirmed; places marked not verified should be treated as gaps in documentation, not as evidence that those programs lack these components.
The biggest practical takeaway is that ASU offers two clear delivery paths and predictable costs for Arizona residents. The online per-credit rate of $278 with a $2,500 semester cap1 can be attractive for working professionals, while the Downtown Phoenix immersion option suits students who want an on-campus experience. Because University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University program details are not documented here, in-state applicants should not assume those schools have identical formats, tuition, or admission thresholds. Each university may structure its health administration offerings differently, and some may emphasize public health, rural healthcare, or long-term care administration in ways that change the value proposition.
Before making a final decision, applicants should visit the official graduate program pages for University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University, request current program handbooks, and ask admissions staff to confirm accreditation, per-credit tuition, delivery mode, and minimum GPA. Comparing schools on third-party aggregators can be misleading if the data reflects older cycles or a different degree track. ASU's confirmed details provide a useful baseline, but the other two schools require direct verification before they can be placed alongside ASU in a true three-way comparison.
