AUM launches new bachelor’s degree combining business and health care

Auburn University at Montgomery has launched a new online bachelor’s degree in health care management, creating a pathway for students to prepare for careers in one of the largest and fastest growing sectors of today’s economy.

“Every health care organization needs people who can manage its people, finances, technology, quality, operations, and regulatory responsibilities,” said Michael McEachern, chair of AUM’s Department of Healthcare Administration. “You do not have to be a physician, nurse, or other clinician to have a meaningful and successful career in health care.”

Launched this fall, the fully online BSHM program is housed in AUM’s College of Business. The program includes a transfer pathway for students entering with an associate degree or significant prior college credit.

“One of the most important distinctions about this program is that its housed in AUM’s nationally-accredited College of Business,” McEachern said. “Students are not simply learning about health care, they are developing business and management capabilities and learning how to apply them specifically within health care organizations.”

Housing the BSHM program in AUM’s College of business places students in close proximity to faculty experts in fields such as management, finance, human resources, economics, information systems, strategy, operations, marketing data and organizational leadership.

“Health care organizations are both mission-driven organizations and complex businesses, and our College of Business gives students that management perspective,” McEachern said. “Its mission emphasizes preparing students for successful careers through high-impact educational opportunities, engaged faculty, meaningful relationships and leading-edge managerial technology. We are taking those business capabilities and teaching students how to apply them to the unique challenges of health care.”

The new program also builds on AUM’s online Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) program, which is accredited through the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education. The BSHM program’s curriculum includes two graduate-level courses from the MHA program, providing qualified students with a head start toward graduate education, McEachern said

“Using this structure, we’ve created a strong pathway for students to prepare for entry and early-career management positions at the bachelor’s level and then continue developing toward more advanced health care leadership positions through the MHA,” he said.

Convergence of needs

AUM developed the BSHM program to address the needs of health care organizations seeking professionals who understand the intersection of health care and fields such as business, leadership, finance, technology and data. At the same time, the program provides an accessible pathway for students and working professionals seeking careers in health care management without having to leave the workforce or relocate, McEachern said.

“AUM was well positioned to build this program because we already have a strong health care administration foundation at the graduate level,” he said. “The BSHM allows us to extend that expertise to undergraduate students and create a clear pathway from entry-level health care management preparation through graduate education and senior leadership development.”

AUM’s BSHM program is designed to attract a variety of students, from traditional college students who may not be interested in a clinical profession to current health care workers and transfer students with associate degrees or prior college credit. Students may also be able to transfer approximately 60 approved credit hours into the program and complete the remaining requirements in about two years, depending on their individual academic plans.

Working with AUM faculty who bring extensive health care industry expertise – collectively representing well over 100 years of practical experience — students will learn how to improve quality while controlling costs, enhance patient access and experiences, address staffing issues, use data to identify poor performance, and respond to regulatory and ethical issues.

“Our faculty’s experience allows students to participate in real case studies,” McEachern said. “The emphasis is not simply on knowing the terminology, It is on learning to analyze a situation, evaluate alternatives, make a sound management decision and communicate that decision effectively.”

Depending on their experience, graduates of the program may pursue positions in hospitals and health systems such as practice manager, health care office manager, clinic coordinator, health care operations coordinator, patient services manager, quality improvement coordinator, patient access supervisor, compliance assistant, and department or service-line coordinator.

“A BSHM degree can also serve as a foundation for advancement into higher-level management positions and for graduate education in health care administration or related fields,” McEachern said.

AUM surveyed 100 mid-level and senior level health care leaders to ensure its online BSHM program would meet employers’ needs well into the future, McEachern said.

“Flexibility matters for students and working professionals,” he said. “Many prospective students already have jobs, families, military responsibilities or previous college credit. Those perspectives helped reinforce the importance of making the degree 100% online, transfer-friendly, practical, and career focused rather than simply creating a traditional classroom-based health care degree.”

An online solution to a growing field

The need for health care managers is expected to continue growing across the U.S., especially in Alabama. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment of medical and health services managers to grow approximately 23% from 2024 to 2034, compared with about 3% for all occupations, with roughly 62,100 openings each year.

“This tells students there is both opportunity and a long-term need for capable health care managers,” McEachern said. “The message we continually hear from health care professionals is that organizations need employees who can do more than understand a single function. They need people who can look across an organization, understand how decisions affect different departments and stakeholders, interpret information, communicate effectively and help solve problems.”

Health care is critical to every community, but it has particular importance in Alabama and across the Southeast, where communities include large urban health systems as well as rural hospitals, physician practices, long-term care facilities, public health organizations, rehabilitation providers, insurers and other health care organizations.

The workforce data reinforces that need. Alabama projects medical and health services management employment to grow from approximately 9,130 positions in 2022 to 11,810 by 2032, with nearly 1,000 openings annually when growth and replacement needs are considered.

An online BSHM degree allows AUM to reach students nationally and throughout Alabama, including those who may not live within commuting distance of Montgomery, and prepare them to contribute to health care organizations in their own communities, McEachern said.

“We are preparing students to understand the business of health care while never losing sight of the purpose of health care,” he said.

With the BSHM program, AUM now has the opportunity to build a continuum of healthcare management education, from the undergraduate to graduate levels to prepare people at different stages of their careers to serve health care organizations and communities, McEachern said.

“Ultimately, our goal is not simply to graduate students with a degree, but to develop people who can help make health care organizations better places for patients, employees and the communities they serve,” he said. “We also want our students to have the confidence and competence to contribute to solutions while working with a wide range of people. The transition from performing a job to understanding and helping manage the organization is one of the most important outcomes we want this degree to provide.”