Online MHA – Public Health

The MHA – Public Health Track Experience

Throughout this specialized track, you will:

• Learn the fundamentals of healthcare management and leadership with preparation on how to face modern-day challenges of the healthcare industry
• Fine-tune the focus of your MHA education with specialized courses in public health
• Learn from highly experienced faculty members who are attentive, easily accessible, and invested in your success
• Get all-around support with a Student Success advisor, a faculty mentor, no-cost tutors, a Career Services team, and more
• Enjoy the flexibility of a 100% online curriculum with mobile-friendly content that can be easily accessed on the go
• Access LinkedIn Learning at no cost, allowing you to learn new professional skills and earn certificates for your LinkedIn profile

Health Administration Curriculum

To achieve the graduation requirement of 30 credits, all students must complete 30 credits of core and track courses. Core courses provide students with the specific discipline experience required for the degree. All students will complete at least 21 core course credits as detailed below. The remaining 9 credits are based on the program track the student is enrolled in. The currently available programs are:

Master of Health Administration (MHA)

• MHA – Informatics Track**
• MHA – Organizational Leadership Track
• MHA – Public Health Track
• MHA – Project Management Track

^{**Informatics Track will be available Spring 2, 2023.}  

Core Courses: 

Core Courses to be completed by all students (21 credits)

Core courses to be completed if no track chosen (9 credits)

Track Courses:

Informatics Track

Track courses to be completed in the Informatics Track (9 credits)

Organizational Leadership Track

Track courses to be completed in the Organizational Leadership Track (9 credits)

Public Health Track

Track courses to be completed in the Public Health Track (9 credits)

Project Management Track

Track courses to be completed in the Project Management Track (9 credits)

Academic Calendar

New academic terms begin, on average, every eight weeks. Please speak with your advisor for any questions concerning the expected length of your program. You can review our Academic Calendar to see when each term begins and ends.

How Much Does The MHA – Public Health Track Cost?

We know school is a substantial commitment. At WCU, we want to equip you with all the information you need to make the right decision for your future.

Our goal is to give you a clear understanding of MHA – Public Health track tuition costs so you can be well-informed as you navigate the application and enrollment process. To assist you in your decision, we provide a breakdown below of the MHA – Public Health track costs at West Coast University.

We offer several MHA – Public Health track financial aid options – including scholarships, grants, and loan access – to help support you through your studies. We also offer reduced tuition rates for military personnel and their spouses.

For more information about your financial support options, visit our financial aid page.

Admission Requirements

Applicants for the Master of Health Administration must:

1. Complete an online application for admissions.
2. Participate in an interview with a University Admissions Advisor.
3. Complete an enrollment agreement, consisting of program policies, costs, completion requirements, and other student obligations.
4. Have a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution with a 2.7 cumulative GPA or higher.
   1. Applicants with an undergraduate GPA 2.00-2.69 may be considered for probationary admission after meeting the following admissions requirements:
      1. The applicant must provide a letter of intent.
      2. The applicant must be approved for admission following an interview with the Program Dean/Director.
      3. The applicant must satisfy program prerequisites and achieve a cumulative GPA of 3.0 on all coursework attempted over the first trimester (two terms). Students failing to meet these requirements following the first trimester (two terms) will be withdrawn from the university.
5. Provide official undergraduate transcripts of a baccalaureate degree prior to the end of the add/drop period of the first term.
   1. Applicants submitting non-U.S. or non-English transcripts will be required to have their coursework evaluated by a transcript evaluation service to determine the equivalency to a U.S. degree/course. If the transcript evaluation is unclear as to the equivalency to a U.S. degree/course, the Program Dean will evaluate transcripts to determine if a minimum of 3 academic years of undergraduate coursework has been completed for admission.
   2. Applicants submitting advanced degrees will be reviewed by the Program Dean to determine if a minimum of 3 academic years of undergraduate coursework has been completed for admission.
   3. Master of Health Administration Transfer Credit Evaluation: Only graduate level courses in which a grade of B- or better was received, taken in a program similar to the Master of Health Administration will be evaluated for transfer credit. A maximum of nine (9) credit hours will be considered for transfer and must reflect the same content and course credit as the course for which transfer credit is requested.

Hands-on Support from Our Career Services Team

As a WCU student or graduate, you will receive ongoing assistance with your career planning and job search efforts from our Career Services department.¹

Our career advisors will sit down with you to help plan your next steps for looking for and obtaining the right job, and they’ll provide valuable resources such as professional development workshops, access to career fairs, help lining up meetings with industry recruiters, and more. They’ll even send you job listings you are likely to be interested in.

Don’t hesitate to reach out to WCU Career Services if you need assistance.

Public Health Job Placement Opportunities

There are various types of roles that may be available to MHA – Public Health graduates, including roles such as health education specialist, community health worker, and health service managers.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, work environments for these types of jobs may include:

• Government facilities
• Individual and family services
• Hospitals (state, local, and private)
• Religious, grantmaking, civic, professional, and similar organizations
• Outpatient care centers
• Offices of physicians
• Nursing and residential care facilities², ³

No-Cost LinkedIn Learning Account for MHA Students

At WCU, we leverage LinkedIn Learning to help better equip our MHA students for the job market. In addition to the high-quality education, you will receive through your Master of Health Administration curriculum, you will also gain access to LinkedIn Learning’s extensive library of educational video content, which is created by industry professionals across various disciplines.

For every MHA core course you take, you will also sign up for a LinkedIn Learning module, which you will complete by the end of the term. The module will align with what you are learning in the MHA program, and you will earn a certificate of completion once you’re done.

You can upload that certificate to your LinkedIn profile, which can help you better appeal to prospective employers when you’re searching for a job.

Featured Faculty

Alexandra Auslander, PhD, MPH, MS

Assistant Professor, Master of Public Health Program

Dr. Alexandra Auslander is an Associate Professor for West Coast University’s Master of Public Health (MPH) program. Prior to joining WCU, Dr. Auslander was a lecturer for the Department of Kinesiology and Health Promotion at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, as well as an adjunct professor for the Department of Physical Education at Fullerton College and Cypress College.

In addition to teaching public health courses at WCU, Dr. Auslander is working for a research team in community public health as a physical activity subject matter expert. Her team’s focus is on reducing the risk of chronic disease in underserved and vulnerable populations in Southern California. The project, which focuses on adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and toxic stress, is being funded by a grant from the Surgeon General of California.

Dr. Auslander earned her PhD in health promotion with a concentration in public health from Claremont Graduate University, which is where she also earned her Master of Public Health (MPH) in with a focus on biostatistics and epidemiology. She additionally has a master’s degree in kinesiology from California Polytechnic University, Pomona and a bachelor’s degree in biology from San Francisco State University.

From 2015 to 2019, Dr. Auslander completed a Community and Global Health Fellowship at Claremont Graduate University. Her academic and professional honors include the 2015-2016 Cal Poly Pomona Intercollegiate Athletics Recognition of Appreciation, the 2016 Travel Award from Claremont Graduate University, and acceptance into the 2016 Chancellor’s Doctoral Incentive Program from the California University Chancellor’s Office. Dr. Auslander has also been awarded grants, fellowships, contracts, and research opportunities from the 2016 Delta Omega Honorary Society in Public Health.

With a passion for public health research, Dr. Auslander has had her work published in various health journals, and she has presented her research papers at the conventions of regional and national industry associations.

Dr. Auslander is married with two young children and a lab dog. She loves to cook, exercise, travel, and eat great food. One of her favorite sayings is “Cook with Love and Eat with Passion.”