Practical guide to UCLA's online MHA: admissions, cost, and career paths.
UCLA's Fielding School of Public Health houses a Master of Healthcare Administration that is far from a traditional two-year residential degree. The 66-unit program runs primarily online over 24 months, with periodic on-campus immersions, a structure built for working clinicians and administrators rather than full-time campus students.
That format puts a top-tier public research university within reach, but it also raises the stakes. Admission is selective, and the self-supporting per-unit fee model means the total cost is significant regardless of residency.
For many applicants, the binding constraint is not academic preparation but the ability to sustain 24 months of tuition, travel for immersions, and a full-time job while building the relationships that healthcare leadership skills ultimately depend on.
The decision many prospective UCLA MHA students face, a question common to MHA programs in California, is whether an online master's can match the depth of a residential program, especially when healthcare leadership depends on face-to-face relationships. UCLA's model answers that tension directly: the program is primarily online, but it requires two in-person immersions on the Los Angeles campus.
UCLA's Master of Healthcare Administration is delivered online, with most coursework asynchronous. For working professionals in an online master of health administration, that structure preserves employment continuity while still requiring two trips to Los Angeles. Students also join a one-hour live session each week with faculty and classmates, which keeps the cohort connected without requiring a commute. The degree requires 66 units and is typically completed in about two years. Learners may take one course per term part time or two courses per term full time, and the program offers multiple start terms per year.
Two on-campus immersions are required. Each runs about 3.5 days, roughly 20 hours, and brings students to the UCLA campus in Los Angeles. These immersions are the main in-person component of an otherwise online curriculum.
The program sits within the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. Fielding holds CEPH accreditation through December 31, 2028, which is the relevant public health accreditation for the school. The MHA itself does not list separate CAHME accreditation in the sources reviewed. That distinction matters for students who may need a specific accreditor for employer reimbursement or future roles.
UCLA's broader institutional record supports the program's reputation. Institution-wide, UCLA reports a graduation rate around 93% and a first-year retention rate near 97%. For full-time, first-time undergraduates, the estimated average net price is about $12,500 per year, which offers a useful affordability benchmark even though MHA tuition is billed per unit and differs.
Los Angeles gives UCLA MHA students direct exposure to a large healthcare ecosystem. The university's connections extend to major employers such as UCLA Health, Kaiser Permanente, and Cedars-Sinai, and the program emphasizes strategy, analytics, and finance with a required capstone project. That combination of an online format, selective in-person touchpoints, and a dense regional healthcare network is the core tradeoff UCLA asks students to weigh.
“What does UCLA actually require for MHA admission in 2026-2027?” The Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) is an online, 24-month program, but admission is not simply a degree check. Applicants need a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution comparable to a UC bachelor's, a cumulative undergraduate GPA of at least 3.0, and at least three years of professional work experience in any industry.
UCLA does not publish a specific prerequisite course list in statistics, economics, accounting, finance, or biology for the online MHA , unlike some health policy graduate programs. Instead, readiness is assessed through three core signals: a completed bachelor's degree, a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA, and meaningful professional experience. Meeting these minimums does not guarantee admission because the program may receive more qualified applicants than available places. Prior work experience in community health or health education , areas emphasized in MPH Programs in California , may be strongly considered in some Fielding contexts, but the online MHA's published requirement is broader: three years in any industry.
The online MHA requires three years of professional work experience in any industry, not necessarily healthcare. Applicants submit three letters of recommendation: one from a former professor and two from employers. If you have been out of school for more than five years, three employer letters are acceptable. Applicants with more than three years of post-baccalaureate professional experience may choose three professional references. You will also submit a statement of purpose, personal statement, résumé or CV, transcripts, and a statement of academic/work experience or professional accomplishments.
The online MHA admissions page lists November 16, 2026 as the application deadline for 2027 matriculation, while UCLA Fielding's general materials identify December 1, 2026 as a priority deadline. These dates come from different UCLA admission systems and should not be treated as interchangeable; check the specific MHA page for which deadline applies to your application. Available materials do not establish a separate final deadline after December 1, 2026, so verify the exact cutoff before applying. The program does not require the GRE, and available materials do not identify the GMAT as required or preferred. Apply through the UCLA Graduate Division application; MHA applicants should not complete SOPHAS.
International applicants educated where English is not the official language may need to submit English proficiency scores. UCLA Fielding's admissions FAQ lists minimums of TOEFL 4.5/6 and IELTS 7.0.
A university-wide admission rate and a program-specific cohort profile answer different questions, and UCLA's MHA makes that distinction important for Health Administration applicants.
UCLA's online MHA does not publish an official acceptance rate, average incoming GPA, average years of work experience, class size, or student demographics. Instead, admissions materials state minimums: a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution, a 3.0 undergraduate GPA, and three years of professional work experience. GRE scores are not required, aligning UCLA's online MHA with many No-GRE MHA Programs. For UCLA overall, the most recent campus admission rate is 10.8%1 based on 146,692 applicants and 15,903 admits.2 That figure describes undergraduate admissions, not the MHA cohort, and should not be applied to the graduate program.
Check the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health MHA program website and UCLA Graduate Division pages. Look for an official class profile, admissions statistics, or FAQ. These figures are often updated annually and may appear under admissions or student life. If you cannot find them, contact the MHA admissions office directly or attend a virtual info session. Ask for the latest class size, demographics, and whether average GPA and work experience are reported as means or ranges. Request a current student ambassador contact for a candid perspective.
UCLA's Master of Healthcare Administration is a self-supporting online degree, which means the program sets a flat per-unit fee that covers the cost of instruction instead of separating in-state and out-of-state tuition. For the 2025-2026 academic year, the published rate is $950 per unit.
Because the MHA is delivered online as a self-supporting program, UCLA does not apply a separate nonresident tuition rate to this degree. All students, whether California residents or not, pay the same $950 per unit. UCLA's general graduate tuition schedule may show different resident and nonresident prices for other programs, but those rates do not apply to the MHA.
The MHA requires 66 units to complete. At $950 per unit, total program tuition is $62,700. UCLA's tuition and financial aid page and the registrar's self-supporting degree fee table both list this $62,700 total, which matches the published two-year, full-time plan.1
UCLA states that the $950 per-unit price includes University Fees based on a full-time, two-year program. The tuition materials do not itemize a separate campus fee, technology fee, or health insurance charge for online MHA students. If you enroll part time or extend beyond the standard 24-month schedule, confirm whether University Fees adjust with your enrollment status.
This pricing structure keeps the total predictable compared with other affordable online MHA programs. You can multiply 66 units by $950 and arrive at $62,700 without a resident/nonresident calculation. The main variables above the base tuition are books, immersion travel, and any personal health insurance or fee changes tied to part-time pacing.
The UCLA Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) is a 66-unit online MHA program structured over two years, with four 10-week terms each year. Full-time students follow a prescribed sequence; part-time students may take one course at a time. The curriculum combines asynchronous coursework, weekly live sessions, and two required on-campus immersions in Los Angeles.
Required core study spans healthcare finance, health policy, organizational behavior, data analytics, and strategic management. The core also includes PH 201 plus a sequence of healthcare administration courses numbered HA 401 through HA 405 and HA 411 through HA 417. Because UCLA does not publish titles for every course number in public materials, students should review the current program catalog for the exact course names tied to those numbers.
The program requires 12 elective units from selected-topic courses such as HA 406, HA 407, HA 408, and HA 418. Offerings vary by quarter. Selected-topic electives have included healthcare marketing, healthcare innovations and e-health, human resource management, and health reform: policy and implementation. Current program materials do not list formal concentrations or specializations. Online students choose from the available selected-topic courses in the term they are offered, rather than declaring a named concentration.
The required capstone is Healthcare Administration 400, a four-unit course taken in Term 7 over one quarter. Students complete the Healthcare Hero simulation, a high-stakes, data-driven hospital-management exercise. In the simulation, students manage a fictional hospital facing financial and operational challenges, capacity constraints, and investment trade-offs while balancing mission and margin. The capstone develops problem-solving, project-management, and communication skills.
Most coursework is asynchronous. Students work through recorded content, readings, and interactive assignments on their own schedule each week. A typical course pairs about three hours of recorded lectures with additional asynchronous work and one scheduled live session per week. Those weekly live sessions, usually about one hour, provide structured interaction with faculty and classmates. The program is not fully self-paced; students should expect weekly scheduled live participation, though exact day, time, and attendance expectations can vary by course. All regular coursework is online except for two required in-person immersions in Los Angeles. Healthcare Administration 596 comes first, and Healthcare Administration 597 follows. The second immersion, HA 597, is designed to prepare students for the capstone. UCLA does not publish the dates for these immersions, so admitted students should confirm scheduling details directly with the program.
A UCLA MHA does not just add a credential to your resume. It puts you inside a network of health systems, alumni, and executive recruiters that can accelerate your path into healthcare leadership by years.
Prospective students often have the same questions about accreditation, cost, admissions, and the online format. Here are concise answers based on current UCLA materials as of September 2026.
No. UCLA's online MHA is accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) through 2028, not by CAHME. CEPH accreditation applies to the Fielding School of Public Health, and the MHA falls under that public health accreditation. Prospective students specifically seeking CAHME accreditation should confirm current status with the program.
Tuition for the 66-unit online MHA is $62,700 at $950 per unit for the 2025-2026 academic year. Additional costs include a $135 application fee, a one-time $97.43 document fee, about $100 per course for books and supplies, and travel expenses for two required on-campus immersions. Because travel costs vary by location, UCLA does not publish a fixed all-in total.
Applicants need a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution, such as an online health administration bachelor's degree, with an overall GPA of at least 3.0, or 3.0 in related graduate work. UCLA expects about three years of professional work experience; materials do not specify whether all experience must be healthcare-related or whether part-time work counts. The GRE is not required. Priority deadline for 2026 matriculation was December 1, 2025, and a November 16, 2026 deadline is also listed.
Yes. Although the MHA is delivered online, students must attend two short on-campus immersions during the 24-month program. UCLA has not published fixed dates or a standard travel cost for these sessions. The online format is not fully remote; travel and lodging are the student's responsibility beyond tuition.
Yes. One $10,000 scholarship is available to an incoming MHA student each start, requiring a separate internal application. Eligible employees and family members of participating employers, including UCLA Health, may receive a 10% tuition discount through the AllCampus Workplace Network. Other UCLA employees may qualify for a $6,000 stipend. Students can also apply for federal aid using UCLA's school code 001315-00; whether discounts stack with the scholarship is not specified.
