A doctorate in healthcare administration is a small field, and small enough
to name completely. 35 programs exist in the federal data, at
34 institutions, and between them they confer about
448 doctorates a year. Every one of them is on this page.
The two facts most likely to surprise you are that 22 of the
35 are taught online, and that 48% of the degrees awarded
come from just five programs.
The 25 Largest Doctorate in Healthcare Administration Programs
Ordered by doctorates conferred a year. The badge on each card is the federal
award level, which separates research doctorates from practice ones.
1 Doctor of Health Care Administration, DHA
Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences
Fully online Research doctorate
Tulsa, OK
82 doctorates conferred
Oklahoma State calls this a professional degree and states plainly that there is no dissertation requirement, which is worth knowing given the federal record files it as a research doctorate.
The DHA is 62 credit hours delivered entirely online, with the majority of courses fully asynchronous, and the university is explicit that the format exists to accommodate the schedules of working professionals. Required coursework includes Dynamics of Health Care Markets, Healthcare Public Policy, Advanced Clinical Operations Management, Advanced Cases in Health Care Leadership, Cases in Health Care Quality and Process Improvement, and Advanced Health Care Law.
Prior graduate work can carry a long way into it. Students holding graduate-level coursework no more than ten years old may apply up to 30 of the 62 credit hours toward the degree, assessed case by case after admission. The program sits in the School of Health Care Administration within the Graduate College, admitted its first doctoral cohort in autumn 2022, and asks for a minimum graduate GPA of 3.00 alongside a statement of career goals.
- No dissertation: a professional doctorate
- 62 credit hours, fully online and mostly asynchronous
- Up to 30 credits transferable from prior graduate work
- First doctoral cohort admitted 2022
View Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences's Doctor of Health Care Administration, DHA
2 PhD in Healthcare Administration
Walden
Fully online Research doctorate
Minneapolis, MN
42 doctorates conferred
Walden's is a PhD rather than a practice doctorate, and it pairs advanced research training with healthcare operations expertise.
The program is delivered online and written for experienced healthcare professionals, with the stated aim of developing the research skills to drive sustainable improvements in healthcare delivery. The university names operational efficiency, patient outcomes and workforce diversity as what graduates are equipped to affect.
Walden is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, the institutional accreditation that makes the degree recognized; no programmatic accreditor operates at doctoral level in this field.
- A PhD, not a practice doctorate
- Delivered online
- Written for experienced healthcare professionals
- Institutionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission
View Walden's PhD in Healthcare Administration
3 Doctor of Health Administration
University of Phoenix-Arizona
Fully online Research doctorate
Phoenix, AZ
34 doctorates conferred
University of Phoenix's online D.H.A. offers traditional and applied dissertation pathways with faculty supervision and an oral defense.
The program requires at least 54 credits. Its healthcare core covers complex health systems, risk management, economics, policy, population health, epidemiology and program evaluation. Research courses address qualitative methods, statistics and study design.
Both dissertation pathways follow the same curriculum and review requirements. The traditional route investigates a research problem for scholarly audiences; the applied route examines a defined problem in a professional or organizational setting. Additional enrollment may be needed to finish the dissertation, and the university notes that extension courses add time and cost.
- Online Doctor of Health Administration
- 54-credit minimum
- Traditional or applied dissertation
- Faculty-guided research and oral defense
View University of Phoenix-Arizona's Doctor of Health Administration
4 Doctor of Health Administration
Capella
Fully online Research doctorate
Minneapolis, MN
29 doctorates conferred
Capella frames its DHA around applying evidence-based leadership and management strategies rather than around producing original research.
The program is taught online and organised around three things the university names: cultivating strategic thinking and a results-driven leadership style, analysing the challenges and opportunities of health policy development and implementation, and evaluating emerging trends and innovations in health administration.
That emphasis places it with the practice doctorates in character, whatever the federal award level says, and it is aimed at people who intend to lead healthcare organizations rather than to study them from outside.
- Taught online
- Evidence-based leadership and management strategies
- Health policy development and implementation
- Oriented to practice rather than original research
View Capella's Doctor of Health Administration
5 PhD in Health Policy and Management
UNC Chapel Hill
On campus Research doctorate
Chapel Hill, NC
28 doctorates conferred
This one is residential and genuinely research-first: the PhD trains students in quantitative and qualitative methods to become independent health services and health policy researchers.
Housed in the Department of Health Policy and Management at UNC's Gillings School of Global Public Health, the program states its mission as giving students the skills to conduct high-impact health services and health policy research: research into how to organize, manage, finance and deliver care, increase efficiency and improve patient safety.
The distinction from the online practice doctorates elsewhere on this page is real and worth weighing. The curriculum is built around rigorous methods training and research experience, the department publishes its students' work and tracks them onto the academic job market, and the degree is designed to produce researchers rather than administrators.
- Residential PhD, not an online practice doctorate
- Quantitative and qualitative methods training
- Gillings School of Global Public Health
- Oriented to the academic job market
View UNC Chapel Hill's PhD in Health Policy and Management
6 Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Health Policy and Management
Johns Hopkins
On campus Research doctorate
Baltimore, MD
26 doctorates conferred
Johns Hopkins states the shape of the commitment up front: onsite, full-time, four to five years.
The PhD in Health Policy and Management is offered by the department of the same name at the Bloomberg School of Public Health. Unlike most programs at this award level it is not built around a working professional's schedule: it is a residential, full-time research degree, and the four-to-five-year span is the university's own estimate rather than an outside one.
That makes it a different proposition from the majority of the field, where 22 of the 35 doctoral programs in this subject are taught online and most assume a student who stays in post throughout.
- Onsite and full-time
- Four to five years
- Bloomberg School of Public Health
- Department of Health Policy and Management
View Johns Hopkins's Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Health Policy and Management
7 Doctor of Health Administration
Medical University of South Carolina
On campus Research doctorate
Charleston, SC
26 doctorates conferred
The third year is given over entirely to supervised doctoral project research, and the second includes an intensive health policy trip to Washington, D.C.
MUSC runs the Doctor of Health Administration as 57 credits across eight semesters in a blended format: asynchronous online instruction carries the teaching, with face-to-face meetings punctuating it and new cohorts starting each autumn. The first two years are formal coursework delivered through online presentations and asynchronous discussion.
The structure then changes shape rather than continuing. Year three is devoted to individual supervised doctoral project research, which is where the degree is actually earned. Three or more years of significant healthcare experience is strongly preferred for admission, so this is a degree built for people already in post rather than for students continuing straight from a master's.
- 57 credits across eight semesters
- Year three is supervised doctoral project research
- Intensive health policy trip to Washington, D.C.
- Three years of healthcare experience strongly preferred
View Medical University of South Carolina's Doctor of Health Administration
8 Health Services Research (Ph.D.)
Eastern Virginia Medical School
On campus Research doctorate
Norfolk, VA
21 doctorates conferred
The institution on this row has since merged: Eastern Virginia Medical School is now part of Old Dominion University, and the doctorate is ODU's PhD in Health Services Research.
The federal data still carries this program under the Eastern Virginia Medical School name it was reported under. The degree itself is a Doctor of Philosophy in Health Services Research, and the program states its mission as developing leaders and problem solvers whose work improves population health in Eastern Virginia and then statewide, nationally and internationally.
Health services researchers here examine healthcare quality and effectiveness, primary and managed care, and new technologies, among other research and practice topics. Graduates are pointed at a wide set of destinations: academia, industry, professional organizations, research centres, health policy groups, clinical settings, and federal, state, local and international agencies.
- Now part of Old Dominion University
- PhD in Health Services Research
- Focus on care quality, effectiveness and new technologies
- Routes into academia, policy groups and government
View Eastern Virginia Medical School's Health Services Research (Ph.D.)
9 Doctor of Healthcare Administration
Franklin
Fully online Research doctorate
Columbus, OH
15 doctorates conferred
Franklin's online D.H.A. develops a dissertation step by step while studying healthcare quality, policy, informatics and organizational leadership.
The applied doctorate requires 60 credits and accepts up to 33 credits for eligible prior doctoral learning. Coursework examines patient safety, risk management, process improvement, databases and analytics, along with how healthcare policies are developed and enforced.
The dissertation or dissertation in practice addresses a workplace problem through research and a proposed solution. Support includes faculty and graduate advisers, a personal librarian, peers and the dissertation committee. Transfer decisions and research progress affect each student's completion plan.
- 60-credit applied doctorate
- Online coursework
- Up to 33 eligible transfer credits
- Guided dissertation development
View Franklin's Doctor of Healthcare Administration
10 Doctor of Philosophy in Administration-Health Services
University of Alabama at Birmingham
On campus Research doctorate
Birmingham, AL
14 doctorates conferred
UAB builds the doctorate across five schools at once, drawing faculty from health professions, business, public health, medicine and nursing into one interdisciplinary program.
The PhD in Administration-Health Services offers advanced study in both the conceptual and the applied sides of health administration and health services, and its interdisciplinary foundation is not a figure of speech: the university names the School of Health Professions, the Collat School of Business, the School of Public Health, the Heersink School of Medicine and the School of Nursing as the departments its faculty come from.
The program also draws on campus research centres including the Lister Hill Center for Health Policy, the Center for Outcomes and Effectiveness Research and Education, and the Center for Aging. A Master of Science in Health Services Research runs alongside it, available only to students already enrolled in the doctoral program.
- Faculty drawn from five UAB schools
- Access to the Lister Hill Center for Health Policy
- An embedded MSHSR open only to doctoral students
- Conceptual and applied study combined
View University of Alabama at Birmingham's Doctor of Philosophy in Administration-Health Services
11 Doctor of Health Administration
Central Michigan
On campus Research doctorate
Mount Pleasant, MI
12 doctorates conferred
Fellows of the American College of Healthcare Executives may receive up to six graduate credit hours toward the degree, which is a credit for professional standing rather than for prior study.
Central Michigan delivers the DHA in a modular format built from 15 courses and six intensive seminars across the first two years of the didactic portion, mixing online learning with face-to-face seminars. Students choose between a three-year and a five-year degree plan, so the pace is set at the outset rather than assumed.
After a comprehensive examination students become doctoral candidates and move to dissertation preparation, implementation and defence before a committee. The program is aimed at upper-level healthcare professionals already working in the field, and applications close on 31 May.
- Up to six credit hours for ACHE fellows
- 15 courses and six intensive seminars
- Choice of a three- or five-year plan
- Comprehensive examination before candidacy
View Central Michigan's Doctor of Health Administration
12 Doctor of Health Administration
University of Mississippi
Fully online Research doctorate
University, MS
12 doctorates conferred
The University of Mississippi's D.H.A. is taught through its Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi, with primarily online study and mandatory campus sessions.
The School of Health Related Professions designs the professional doctorate for completion in three years. Applicants need a master's degree or professional doctorate with a minimum 3.00 GPA. The program applies research to practical healthcare problems.
Students complete a doctoral project and defense under an advisory committee. Campus-session dates are supplied before enrollment, and attendance is required. Prior doctoral coursework may qualify for up to nine transfer credits after review, with limits on course age, grades and equivalency.
- Medical Center in Jackson, MS
- Online study with required campus sessions
- Three-year program design
- Doctoral project and defense
View University of Mississippi's Doctor of Health Administration
13 Loma Linda
Fully online Other doctorate
Loma Linda, CA
11 doctorates conferred
Filed under neither research nor professional practice in the federal record.
14 Doctor of Health Administration
A T Still University of Health Sciences
Fully online Research doctorate
Kirksville, MO
9 doctorates conferred
A.T. Still teaches the DHA with coursework completed one hundred percent online, through its College of Graduate Health Studies.
The curriculum is built to blend the theoretical with the practical, and the financial content is unusually concrete for a doctorate: students apply financial and economic principles to executive decisions about capitalization, credit ratings, debt capacity, alternative funding sources, business plan development and overall organizational finance strategy. Teaching combines integrated online instruction with directed readings and written interaction.
The research stage has documented entry requirements rather than an informal transition. Students assemble a preliminary title, problem and purpose statement and a research question, and submit an updated curriculum vitae, a professional reflection, a writing sample and a valid CITI certificate, the standard credential for human-subjects research training.
- Coursework completed one hundred percent online
- Executive finance: credit ratings, debt capacity, capitalization
- CITI human-subjects certification required to proceed
- College of Graduate Health Studies
View A T Still University of Health Sciences's Doctor of Health Administration
15 Doctor of Medical Science in Healthcare Leadership
Northeastern University Professional Programs
Fully online Professional practice
Boston, MA
9 doctorates conferred
Northeastern's Doctor of Medical Science in Healthcare Leadership pairs a specialized concentration with a problem-based thesis.
The online professional doctorate serves healthcare professionals pursuing leadership, administration, education or advocacy. Concentration options include business management for healthcare, patient safety, health law, public health, health informatics practice and artificial intelligence applications.
Research-methods and thesis-writing courses prepare you to address a healthcare problem through your concentration. Full-time and part-time options are listed. Additional concentrations, including extreme medicine and health informatics research, carry in-person requirements, so the selected concentration determines whether travel is part of the plan.
- Doctor of Medical Science
- Concentration-based curriculum
- Problem-based thesis
- Online and travel-dependent concentration options
View Northeastern University Professional Programs's Doctor of Medical Science in Healthcare Leadership
16 PhD, Health Services Research
University of Maryland-College Park
On campus Research doctorate
College Park, MD
9 doctorates conferred
Maryland's Health Services Research Ph.D. combines individual research mentoring with qualifying, proposal and dissertation examinations.
The program in College Park, Maryland, studies how organizational, economic, social and policy factors shape healthcare delivery. Its training supports research into the planning, management and evaluation of clinical services and public health programs.
After coursework, students take a qualifying exam and an oral proposal defense before advancing to candidacy. The dissertation concludes with an oral defense. Students participate in faculty research and independent scholarship, with teaching and research assistantships among the available funding routes; individual funding packages vary.
- Health Services Research Ph.D.
- College Park, MD
- Individual research mentoring
- Qualifying exam and dissertation defense
View University of Maryland-College Park's PhD, Health Services Research
17 PhD in Health Services & Policy Research
Boston
On campus Research doctorate
Boston, MA
7 doctorates conferred
Boston University's Health Services and Policy Research Ph.D. offers emphases in Health Economics, Health and Social Policy, and Implementation and Evaluation.
The program develops quantitative, qualitative and mixed-methods research skills. Required work includes research design, grant writing, public health pedagogy, a mentored teaching practicum, health economics and quality measurement. Electives help define the research emphasis.
The bulletin lists at least 42 units, or at least 32 for students with an earned master's when relevant course waivers are granted. Ph.D. coursework requires a B or better. Students complete the qualifying process and an orally defended dissertation within the program's seven-year limit.
- Three research emphases
- Quantitative and qualitative methods
- Mentored teaching practicum
- Dissertation and oral defense
View Boston's PhD in Health Services & Policy Research
18 Doctor of Healthcare Administration (DHA)
MCPHS
Fully online Other doctorate
Boston, MA
7 doctorates conferred
MCPHS's part-time online D.H.A. culminates in an Applied Practice-Based Research Project developed through a five-course sequence.
The 36-credit program is designed for healthcare managers and focuses on evidence-based organizational decisions. Students identify a problem of practice, review evidence, develop and evaluate a response, and prepare their work for dissemination with faculty guidance.
The degree awards the D.H.A. and uses an applied project rather than a Ph.D. dissertation. An optional Global Comparative Healthcare Seminar includes travel to London, England, to examine another healthcare system. The separate Doctor of Medical Science program has its own provider-focused admissions and curriculum.
- 36-credit D.H.A.
- Part-time online study
- Applied research project
- Optional global healthcare seminar
View MCPHS's Doctor of Healthcare Administration (DHA)
19 Doctor of Public Health (Dr.P.H.) in Health Policy and Management
New York Medical College
Fully online Research doctorate
Valhalla, NY
7 doctorates conferred
New York Medical College's Health Policy and Management Dr.P.H. includes an internship and dissertation, with a fully online live-class option.
The 54-credit program is designed for experienced public health professionals with an M.P.H. or closely related degree. Its structure includes two years of coursework, a one-year internship and dissertation research, with particular attention to financing, access, equity and the social forces affecting healthcare.
The online track meets through live Zoom sessions and has no campus residency requirement. An in-person option uses late-afternoon and evening classes, often in a hybrid format. The internship may take place at your current employer if the work differs from your regular duties; research and internship work can continue during summers.
- 54-credit Dr.P.H.
- Live online or campus track
- One-year internship
- Dissertation research
View New York Medical College's Doctor of Public Health (Dr.P.H.) in Health Policy and Management
20 Health Services Organization and Policy PhD
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
On campus Research doctorate
Ann Arbor, MI
7 doctorates conferred
Michigan's Health Services Organization and Policy Ph.D. pairs health-policy research with a chosen theoretical discipline, such as economics or organizational studies.
The program examines healthcare financing, organization, use and evaluation alongside the wider factors that influence public health. Cognate areas include economics, finance, operations research and decision science, political science, quantitative methods, and sociology and organizational studies.
Guided research connects students with faculty projects, while the WIDTH workshop provides a forum for discussing dissertation ideas and findings across disciplines. Applicants identify their intended cognate and research interests. A master's degree is common among applicants but is not required for consideration.
- Health Services Organization and Policy Ph.D.
- Disciplinary cognate choice
- Guided faculty research
- Interdisciplinary dissertation workshop
View University of Michigan-Ann Arbor's Health Services Organization and Policy PhD
21 Doctorate of Business Administration in Healthcare Management and Leadership
California Intercontinental
Fully online Research doctorate
Sioux Falls, SD
6 doctorates conferred
California Intercontinental's online D.B.A. in Healthcare Management and Leadership includes a choice of doctoral research project or dissertation.
The 60-semester-credit plan divides coursework into 30 business-core credits, 15 specialization credits and 15 research credits, plus a comprehensive competency assessment. Healthcare courses cover leadership, economic evaluation, disaster management, marketing and quality management.
Students take one six-week course at a time. Both research routes progress through a proposal, literature, methodology, findings and conclusions, ending in an oral presentation or defense. Admission requires a master's degree, a professional resume and a completed application.
- Online D.B.A. specialization
- 60 semester credits
- Six-week courses
- Research project or dissertation
View California Intercontinental's Doctorate of Business Administration in Healthcare Management and Leadership
22 Doctor of Health Administration (DHA)
Northcentral
Fully online Research doctorate
San Diego, CA
5 doctorates conferred
Northcentral merged with National University in 2022; the current online D.H.A. combines healthcare leadership coursework with an applied dissertation.
National's program requires at least 60 credits beyond a master's degree, with up to 12 eligible doctoral transfer credits. Courses cover healthcare finance, systems thinking, human resources, communication, quality management, and health law, ethics and policy.
The research sequence develops a practice-based problem, literature review and study design, leading to a dissertation project and defense. Graduation requires at least 48 credits through the university and a minimum 3.0 GPA. The Northcentral name on this card reflects the institution in the historical federal dataset.
- Now part of National University
- Online D.H.A.
- 60-credit minimum
- Applied dissertation and defense
View Northcentral's Doctor of Health Administration (DHA)
23 Loma Linda
Fully online Research doctorate
Loma Linda, CA
4 doctorates conferred
A university of 4,210, teaching it online.
24 Ph.D. in Health Policy and Administration
Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus
On campus Research doctorate
University Park, PA
4 doctorates conferred
Penn State's Health Policy and Administration Ph.D. branches into three research tracks after the first year.
Students choose Health Economics, Healthcare Management and Organizations, or Population Health and Demography. The degree focuses on how health services are organized and financed, with statistical methods for empirical research in policy and administration.
Related options include graduate study in demography and a dual-title Ph.D. in Demography. Graduate assistantships support entering doctoral students, and the department identifies additional funding opportunities for research and conference presentations. The Ph.D. is distinct from the College of Medicine's separately listed Dr.P.H.
- Three research tracks
- Health services financing and organization
- Dual-title Demography option
- Graduate assistantship support
View Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus's Ph.D. in Health Policy and Administration
25 Doctor of Business Administration - Major in Business Administration - Specialization in Healthcare Administration
Indiana Wesleyan University-National & Global
Fully online Other doctorate
Marion, IN
3 doctorates conferred
Indiana Wesleyan's D.B.A. Healthcare Administration specialization uses an Applied Doctoral Project and awards a Trust Edge Leadership Certificate.
The 60-credit program combines online study with one required weekend residency per year. It applies the university's Virtuous Business Model to healthcare leadership, consulting, education and organizational change. Students develop research-based solutions to healthcare problems and connect their studies with professional practice.
The catalog requires completion of the doctoral project within six years of starting the program, with continued enrollment while finishing it. Graduation requires a minimum 3.25 GPA and at least a B- in each course. Applicants bring a relevant master's degree and healthcare administration experience, with individual review provisions for exceptional candidates.
- Online study with annual weekend residency
- Applied Doctoral Project
- Trust Edge Leadership Certificate
- Virtuous Business Model
View Indiana Wesleyan University-National & Global's Doctor of Business Administration - Major in Business Administration - Specialization in Healthcare Administration
The Remaining 10 Programs
Each of these confers 3 doctorates a year or fewer. They are
listed rather than carded because at this size the school and the state are
most of what there is to say.
26 Keiser University-Ft Lauderdale FL · Online ·
3 a year
27 University of Iowa IA · On campus ·
3 a year
28 University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus PA · On campus ·
3 a year
29 American InterContinental University System AZ · Online ·
2 a year
30 Emory GA · On campus ·
2 a year
31 University of Pennsylvania PA · Online ·
2 a year
32 Morehouse School of Medicine GA · Online ·
1 a year
33 Rutgers University-New Brunswick NJ · Online ·
1 a year
34 University of Cincinnati-Main Campus OH · Online ·
1 a year
35 Virginia Commonwealth VA · Online ·
1 a year
The concentration in that list is the thing to take from it. Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences confers 82 doctorates a year, 18% of every one awarded in
the field and more than the next two programs combined.
Five programs between them account for 48%. Below that the numbers fall
away fast, and 14 of the 35 confer five a year or fewer, which
means a cohort you could fit around one table.
Ownership sorts almost perfectly by delivery, and it is the clearest pattern on
this page. All five for-profit programs are
online, without exception, and together they
award 113 doctorates a year, 25% of the
national total from five programs out of 35. The
13 campus-based programs are 10 public and
3 private non-profit, and not one of them is run for profit.
Neither fact makes a program good or bad by itself. Both are worth knowing before
you read a marketing page, because they say something about who is competing for
your enrolment and how.
