Part-Time Online Healthcare Informatics Degrees (MSHI Programs)

Healthcare informatics is an interdisciplinary field with many applications and a fast-growing sector.

For job seekers, this opens up a high demand for productive jobs related to the need for information technology in the healthcare system.

Master of health informatics (MHI) has part-time and online options.

With them, working professionals can earn their degrees and advance their skills while keeping their current jobs.

In response to the ways that working adults are taking towards higher education, universities offer programs for people who need more time to complete the program to keep up with family and work commitments.

These options are also suitable for people who want to advance their skills to change their careers without the need to quit their current jobs.

The increasing population and the increased digital record-keeping make a job in healthcare informatics stable and bring it a lot of growth potential.

Courses in this area usually cover digital information management, data analytics, information system design, and how all this relates to healthcare.

Programs may include concentrations or specialties in analytics or data science, which opens up even more prestigious job opportunities.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the employment in healthcare occupations to increase by 2.4 million openings, which is 18% through 2028.

This growth is much faster than the national average for all occupations.

With an MHI degree, professionals get a high-earning potential in analytical, managerial, and directorial roles.

Online learning is a flexible environment for working professionals in the fields of healthcare, clinical settings, pharmacy, or nursing settings, as well as IT, who want to keep working while earning their degrees.

There are multiple distance learning or online degree programs in health informatics, but not all of them are designed equally.

In some, students can enroll only on certain start dates, and the program should be completed in the cohort.

Others provide both more flexible start dates and self-paced study for decreased or increased completion timeline.

You should carefully research the program of your consideration to find what works for your best.

There are programs that aren’t described as “part-time” but they are actually considered part-time.

In those programs, students can take as little as one class at a time.

If you want a more accelerated program, but still flexible and self-paced, you can find those too.

Sometimes, the credits required by the program depend on your workplace and educational background, so be sure to ask the academic advisor of the program the appropriate questions.

Part-Time Online Healthcare Informatics Programs

Arizona State University – College of Health Solutions Department of Biomedical Informatics

The master of health informatics from ASU is 100% online without any on-site requirements.

This is an accelerated program, which is an excellent choice for students who wish to complete their studies as fast as possible.

The faculty members teaching the course are active members of the medical community.

The classes are delivered in recorded form, which students can watch at any time convenient for them.

However, the program may include specific times when students have to log in to access some activities or information.

U.S. News and World Report ranked ASU as #1 in innovation science.

Typically, part-time students take one course per 7.5-week session.

However, they can also benefit from self-paced learning at an accelerated rate of up to 18 credits in the fall and spring and up to 7 credits in the summer.

The program has two start dates in fall and spring.

The program offers a total of 30 credits.

To be admitted, students need a bachelor’s or master’s degree in a related field, e.g., nursing, computer science, pharmacy, biology, public health, medicine.

The program prepares students for the positions of analysts or managers of healthcare informatics.

The cost is $862 per credit for both in-state and out-of-state students.

George Mason University – College of Health and Human Services Department of Health Administration and Policy

George Mason University a.k.a. Mason offers an online MSHI program.

It is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME) and the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM).

The program includes 33 to 39 credits and lasts for 28 or 32 months.

Courses are available online, on-campus, as well as part-time.

The fully online master’s of health informatics offers courses in a condensed eight-week timeline.

Students can take one course at a time and complete the program within two and a half years.

The online program includes 39 credits and offers students with relevant educational and work background a chance to waive two introductory courses.

The final project can be either a master’s thesis or a capstone practicum.

Both require two semesters to complete.

Undergraduate students with relevant background can join the accelerated BS to MS in health informatics.

The program also includes concentrations in the health analytics field.

The school also offers an 18-credit online graduate certificate in health informatics and data analytics, which can be completed within 12 months.

No prior experience or degree is required for the certificate.

Admission requirements do not include any work experience in healthcare or information technology.

However, the competitive admission committee considers them.

Mason also has a bridge program for students new to health informatics.

The program costs $835 per credits, which includes the fee for distance learning.

Start dates are available in most months, and the fall 2020 application fee has been canceled.

The University of Scranton – College of Arts and Sciences

The University of Scranton offers an online master’s degree in health informatics.

The university is a candidate for accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM).

U.S. News and World Report ranked the school #6 in the list of the best regional universities.

The members of faculty who design courses are active workers of healthcare and health administrators from Scranton’s Panuska College of Professional Studies and the Kania School of Management accredited by the AACSB.

The program comprises 11 courses by 3 credits each for a total of 33 credits.

The credits cover three core concentrations, which include informatics, information systems, and information technology.

Ten courses are in health informatics and one course is a specialized elective.

Every course is online and offered in an eight-week format.

Start dates are available in January, May, and August.

Students can take more than one course per term.

However, most students complete the online program part-time within two years, studying one course per term.

The final three-credit capstone course can be completed in one term.

The admission requirements include a bachelor’s degree.

The online certificate in health informatics includes the first four courses of the online health informatics program.

The certificate can be obtained in eight months.

If you continue to the master’s program, the credits earned in the certificate program will be automatically transferred.

The cost is $757 per credit plus the online health informatics program and graduate certificate fees.

George Washington University – Milken Institute School of Public Health

George Washington University offers a CAHME-accredited HealthInformatics@GW program.

It can be completed in two years or takes up to five years with a part-time online study.

The program isn’t entirely online and includes two campus visits to Washington, DC.

The program includes eight modules each 10 weeks long and includes a total of 45 credits.

With the final capstone course, students can apply the knowledge they gained in collecting, translating, and analyzing data to come up with solutions to real and relevant issues in healthcare.

The program is perfect for healthcare or IT professionals who wish to understand and manage data for the overall improvement of healthcare.

The school is ranked #12 on the list of the best public health schools in the nation by the U.S. News & World Report.

Besides, the coursework is Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society-approved (HIMSS) and meets the standards for efficient education in healthcare.

Students learn in small classes up to 12 students per professor.

The start dates take place each quarter.

The program is developed for working professionals with two years of full-time health experience or three years of full-time experience in another industry.

80% of health informatics students at GW have five-plus years of appropriate experience.

The University of Illinois – Chicago College of Applied Health Sciences

This master of science in health informatics is accredited by CAHIIM and is 100% online with over 12 courses.

The school also offers four post-baccalaureate certificated that take one year each to complete.

A post-masters health informatics certificate is available as well and can be completed within 18 months.

The program includes 38 credits and covers comprehensive real-life issues related to integrating data in healthcare through collecting records, structuring, and maintaining information, and using tools to improve healthcare outcomes.

Students have 12 hours for electives, which they can use to gain a concentration in health data science.

The data of UIC demonstrated that 88% of graduates from health information management find employment in the field of their choosing within a year after graduation.

Bottom Line: Part-Time Online MHA Programs

Online programs are a great option for working professionals or those who have to balance their studies and life.

According to the National Center of Educational Statistics, the enrollment percentage to part-time programs increased by 13% from 2006 to 2016.

In response to the increased enrollment, colleges and universities enhanced and improved their options for online programs.

So people who wish to receive a higher education don’t have to quit jobs and refuse the careers they are already developing anymore.

Universities accommodate to the needs of their students for life-work balance by allowing slower-paced classes and accelerated learning.

The format and time of the study are up to students, depending on the program they choose.