The MBA in Healthcare Management requires 16 courses in healthcare, business and management. Students can choose to pursue the program online or on-site. Either way, they can expect the same high-quality coursework taught by faculty at the top of their fields.

Online students participate in two on-site courses; each course is three days long and fulfills one course requirement. All other courses are offered either online or on-site in Schenectady over three 10-week terms and during an accelerated summer session. Courses offer a combination of business theory and hands-on experience in practical healthcare business applications, preparing students for business leadership positions across a broad range of disciplines in the vibrant healthcare industry.

Healthcare Management MBA Curriculum

Curriculum (16 courses, 48 credits)

Fourteen Required Courses:

  • Introduction to Health Systems 
  • Health Systems Management
  • Health Operations 
  • Healthcare Leadership Proseminar* 
  • Healthcare Marketing
  • Statistical Methods for Data Analytics 
  • Financial and Managerial Accounting for Decision Making
  • Healthcare Finance 
  • Health Economics 
  • Health Informatics 
  • Health Policy Dynamics 
  • Legal Aspects of Healthcare 
  • Managerial Epidemiology  
  • Strategic Issues for Healthcare Organizations (Health Capstone)*

Two Elective Courses

Students may take select non-equivalent courses offered in one of the following programs: Online MBA, MS in Healthcare Data Analytics and courses from the MS in Bioethics program.

  • Swiss Healthcare Study/Tour
  • Healthcare Operations Research
  • Group Practice Administration
  • Any MBA elective approved by advisor

*Residency requirements: Online students are required to participate in two onsite sessions at our Capital Region Campus in Schenectady, NY. Each is three days long (Friday-Sunday). These residencies typically occur in September and April of each year.

Practical Experience Requirement

An internship is required for students who enter the program with little or no prior work experience. Most students who are working full-time waive the internship requirement. For others, the internship is a valuable resume builder and can often lead directly to a job offer.

The healthcare internship is typically performed in the summer between the first and second year of the graduate study program. However, many students opt to fulfill this requirement on a part-time basis (10 to 20 hours per week) throughout the academic year. Our healthcare management students successfully obtain high-quality paid internships with well-known and respected regional healthcare organizations, such as Capital District Physicians' Health Plan, Albany Medical Center and Stratton Veterans Administration Medical Center.

Combined Degree Program

Clarkson University also offers a Combined Degree Program for the MBA in Healthcare Management and MS in Healthcare Data Analytics. 

It has become increasingly valuable for people in management positions of health care organizations to possess both the business and management background provided by the Healthcare Management, MBA, and the skills and tools provided by the Healthcare Data Analytics, MS. Students can realize this powerful combination and take advantage of many synergies by working toward both degrees simultaneously.

View the Combined Degree Program curriculum. 

Competency Model

The Clarkson Healthcare MBA Program uses a Competency Model to guide the curriculum, preparing students for professional healthcare management careers. The model has been developed with input from healthcare managers, executives, practitioners and alums. By achieving these competencies throughout the program, students are well-prepared for the challenges of working in the healthcare industry.

Domain
Competencies

Critical Thinking

  • Analytical abilities: Defining the problem, gathering and analyzing appropriate data.
  • Decision making skills: Selecting actions based on evidence and analysis.
  • Plan, monitor, and control implementation.

Written and Verbal Communication

  • Communicate effectively verbally.
  • Communicate effectively in written form.

Ethics and Social Responsibility

  • Become ethically competent decision makers. 
  • Value social responsibility for organizations and individuals.

Disciplinary Excellence

  • Academic proficiency in the application of management. principles to healthcare problems and settings.
  • Academic proficiency in Marketing – research, analysis, planning & implementation.
  • Academic proficiency in Management – managing people and teams, operations, efficient use of resources.
  • Academic proficiency in Finance – financing strategies, instruments, and markets.
  • Academic proficiency in Health Economics – microeconomic principles as applied to the healthcare sector.
  • Academic proficiency in Accounting – principles and managerial applications.
  • Academic proficiency in Healthcare Management and Strategy – strategic thinking & planning.

Leadership

  • A willingness and ability to assume leadership roles.

Teamwork

  • The ability to work effectively in groups.
  • The ability to synergistically accomplish common goals.