The 5 healthcare administration programs in Arizona cost roughly the
same as each other and perform nothing like each other. Public and private tuition
here differ by a few hundred dollars a year. Their completion rates differ by
39 points. Nowhere else on this site is the price so uninformative.
When the Sticker Price Carries No Information
A reader comparing these 5 programs on cost alone would
conclude they are interchangeable. Public tuition averages
$11,478 a year in state and private
$12,489, a difference of about
$1,011. In Florida the same
comparison spans nearly eight times; here it is essentially flat.
The reason is what kind of institutions these are. All
4 of the private programs ranked below are run by
for-profit universities, and for-profit pricing is set to compete with public
tuition rather than with residential private colleges. So the usual signal, that
a higher price marks a selective residential institution, is simply not present
in Arizona. Every option looks like a bargain and one of them is a state
flagship.
On completion the two sides are not close. The public institution graduates
68% of its first-time students; the private ones average
29%. That 39 point gap is among the widest on
this site and it is invisible in the price.
The caveats matter more than usual because the private figure is so low.
Institutional graduation rate counts first-time full-time students against a
four-year clock, and several of these are large open-admission online
providers whose students overwhelmingly enroll part time around work. That
design choice depresses the measure regardless of teaching quality. What it
does not do is make the number irrelevant: a student who does enroll full time
is still looking at an institution where most of that cohort does not finish
on schedule. The right response is to ask each admissions office what share of
their healthcare administration students specifically complete, rather than to
assume the price has already told you.
1 Health Care Administration and Policy, BS
Arizona State University Campus Immersion
On campus
Tempe, AZ
$11,478 in-state tuition68% graduation rate90% admit rate59.8 score
ASU's Health Care Administration and Policy B.S. connects management with policy, informatics and systems engineering in the College of Health Solutions.
The 120-credit degree is offered at Downtown Phoenix, Arizona, with online and ASU Local options also listed. You examine how healthcare systems are designed and how leadership, economics, finance and social conditions affect care. Experiential opportunities include internships, research and applied projects.
Course examples include Global Health Care Systems, Health Care Finance, Economics for Health Majors, and Population Health Policy and Legislation. The program's learning outcomes include analyzing health data and evaluating how policy and economic decisions influence the delivery of services.
- 120-credit B.S.
- Option in Downtown Phoenix, AZ
- College of Health Solutions
- Policy, informatics and systems engineering
View Arizona State University Campus Immersion's Health Care Administration and Policy, BS
2 Bachelor of Science in Health Care Administration
Grand Canyon
Fully online
Phoenix, AZ
$16,473 in-state tuition43% graduation rate79% admit rate59.5 score
GCU offers its 120-credit Healthcare Administration B.S. on campus and online, with Christian ethics and organizational leadership included in the curriculum.
The program sits in the College of Nursing and Health Care Professions. The published course lengths are 15 weeks on campus and seven weeks online. You can transfer up to 90 credits, with a limit of 84 lower-division credits, subject to the university's evaluation.
Coursework examines organizational structures, financial decisions, third-party payers and the public and private influences on healthcare. Communication, dispute resolution, leadership, risk management and information technology are among the areas of study. The degree prepares you for the nonclinical business side of healthcare organizations.
- 120 credits
- Campus and online formats
- Up to 90 transfer credits
- Christian ethics and leadership
View Grand Canyon's Bachelor of Science in Health Care Administration
3 Healthcare Administration (Completion Degree)
Bryan
Fully online
Tempe, AZ
$12,194 in-state tuition41% graduation rate57.2 score
Bryan's Healthcare Administration B.S. is a completion program with concentrations in Health Information Management Systems and Public Health.
The curriculum centers on healthcare data: managing it, evaluating its quality, analyzing it and presenting findings that support organizational decisions. Revenue-cycle management, quality improvement and health information systems form part of the core.
The catalog identifies a block-transfer route for graduates of Bryan's Medical Billing and Coding certificate and Health Information Management and Support Services associate program. Other applicable associate degrees can also be considered. The information-systems concentration examines databases and data accuracy, while the public-health concentration adds program evaluation, policy and community health information.
- Bachelor's completion route
- Two concentration options
- Data management and visualization
- Associate-degree block-transfer review
View Bryan's Healthcare Administration (Completion Degree)
4 Bachelor of Science in Health Administration
University of Phoenix-Arizona
Fully online
Phoenix, AZ
$9,552 in-state tuition21% graduation rate50.2 score
University of Phoenix organizes its online Health Administration B.S. into five-week courses and finishes with a healthcare strategy capstone.
The degree requires 120 credits. Core subjects include medical terminology, business communication, electronic health records, healthcare accounting and finance, human resources, policy and risk management. Courses also examine facility planning and the relationship between quality measurement and organizational performance.
In the Health Care Strategy Capstone, you apply the program's learning outcomes to strategic planning for healthcare organizations. The curriculum approaches healthcare through administration, operations and compliance, with coursework on the legal and regulatory responsibilities that affect those decisions.
- 120-credit online B.S.
- Five-week courses
- Health Care Strategy Capstone
- Finance, facilities and risk management
View University of Phoenix-Arizona's Bachelor of Science in Health Administration
5 Bachelor of Healthcare Management: Health Services Administration Management
American InterContinental University System
Fully online
Chandler, AZ
$11,737 in-state tuition9% graduation rate44.6 score
AIU's Healthcare Management bachelor's offers a Health Services Administration Management specialization with five-week courses.
The university lists the 180-credit program online and at its locations in Atlanta, Georgia, and Houston, Texas. The specialization focuses on the structure, operation and regulation of the U.S. healthcare system, with applications in hospitals, physician practices, insurance and long-term care.
You study organizational leadership, financial management, compliance and strategic planning. The core includes accounting, the legal and ethical environment of business, financial management and an introduction to healthcare. The finance course examines forecasting, capital budgeting, financial statements and the risks involved in projects.
- Health Services Administration Management specialization
- Five-week courses
- Locations listed: online; Atlanta, GA; Houston, TX
- Business and healthcare core
View American InterContinental University System's Bachelor of Healthcare Management: Health Services Administration Management
How We Scored Arizona's Healthcare Administration Programs
Graduation rate carries 40% of the score, in-state tuition 25%, delivery
flexibility 20% and admission selectivity 15%. Every input is federal IPEDS data
or the school's own program page, and a program has to report both a graduation
rate and a tuition figure, and still be enrolling new students, to be ranked at
all. Weights are never renormalized
around a missing factor, because that turns non-disclosure into an advantage. The
same model runs on every state page, with no editorial override and no paid
placement. The full weighting, and the factors left out deliberately, are in the
ranking methodology (version 1.0).
No accreditation factor appears at this level. CAHME accredits healthcare
management programs at master's level only, so no bachelor's degree anywhere
carries it, and an undergraduate program claiming otherwise is describing
something that does not exist. Where a school states AUPHA certification on its
own page, that is reported on the program rather than scored.