Health Administration Degrees in Kentucky

Click to search for online health administration programs that are currently taking applications for 2025.

Although Kentucky lies around the midpoint in terms of the breakdown of hospitals per state at 94 total hospitals, it holds the second worst quality of care as a whole in US News' recent health care quality rankings.

According to the CDC National Vital Statistics System, Kentucky outpaces the US average in deaths caused by cancer, heart disease, chronic lower respiratory disease, accidents, stroke, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, flu/pneumonia, kidney disease, and septicemia. In fact, Kentucky leads the nation in cancer deaths (source).

Looking at the above statistics, one can assume that many factors play in Kentucky's appalling public health response, of one which includes the appropriate collection and allocation of financial resources.

This is one of the states that need health care administrators the most. If you are a truly passionate individual who wants to see a state depleted of appropriate resources needed for the under-served population, then a career in healthcare administration might be right for you. Follow below to read about the highlights of a Master's in Health Administration and the value it can bring to you to become a leader in healthcare.

What Can a Health Administrator Do?

According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS), there are about 4,710 medical and health services managers, or in other words 2.51 medical and health services managers per 1000 people, employed in the state of Kentucky (source). The annual median wage for these managers is $80,710.

Possible employment opportunities can come from many different industries including medical and surgical hospitals, offices of physicians, outpatient care centers, nursing care facilities, home health care services, medical and diagnostic laboratories, pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing, scientific research and development services, and other ambulatory health care services, just to name a few.

As mentioned in the first paragraph, Kentucky is a state with an underwhelming healthcare infrastructure that under serves Kentucky citizens. Going back to school for an MHA is for passionate and dedicated individuals looking to impact whole communities.

MHA Programs Available in Kentucky

Western Kentucky University

This university is situated in the friendly city, Bowling Green, and has three regional campuses in Glasgow, Owensboro, and Elizabethtown-Fort Knox. The university helps prepare it students achieve life-time goals, backing up their mission with around 40 top recognitions for academic programs.

It was recently ranked by Value Colleges as the top value college in online learning by Value Colleges due to its world-class advisement services available to Western Kentucky University students across the world.

This university boasts an online executive MHA program that guides students in the right direction through benefits of convenience, networking opportunities, and cornerstone knowledge in administration (source).

The executive MHA program offers two paths for admission:

1. Automatic admission for applicants with 5+ years experience in healthcare, and
2. Interview and determination by committee for applicants with less than 5 years of experience.

You will need to fill out an executive MHA application, submit your resume, write a letter of intent, and obtain two letter of recommendations from immediate supervisors from your two previously held positions. Neither pathway requires GRE scores.

University of Kentucky

The mission of this university is to "educate, innovate, health, and serve" lives. It fosters an environment for students to thrive with the opportunities to engage in multidisciplinary studies, programs, and research objectives.

University of Kentucky's School of Public Health also offers a rigorous MHA program in their department. This department's mission is to provide the necessary competency for its students to thrive in a managerial and leadership role in any position they undertake.

The program boasts strong academic-practitioner partnerships, allowing for students to find practicum, internships, and work experiences relevant to the competencies. In addition, the program hosts smaller class size, faculty expertise from a wide range of areas, an active student organization, and high graduation and placement rates.

To gain admission to this department, it is recommended to have an undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher. This will be weighted with your personal statement, three recommendation letters, official scores on the GRE or GMAT, and other factors, depending on your status as an international student.

Click to search for online health administration programs that are currently taking applications.

List of Programs

CAHME Accredited Kentucky Health Administration Degrees

CAHME (Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education) is the top accrediting board for health admin and management programs. Below, you will find a list of all of the CAHME accredited healthcare programs in Kentucky. Keep scrolling or jump to all programs for all programs.

University of Kentucky

MHA

CAHME Accredited

List of Kentucky Healthcare Administration Programs

On a twelve hour course, resident students can expect to pay $6,854.00 and non-resident students can expect to pay $15,666.00. In addition to other associated fees, students in the School of Public Health are required to pay a Student Health Mandatory Fee regardless of location.