State University of New York Institute of Technology at Utica/Rome

School of Management, M.S. in Health Services Administration

Utica, New York

DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAM

The Health Services Management Program offers a number of courses for the Master of Science in Health Services Administration (M.S.) degree program entirely online in an effort to serve working professionals and other students who are place-bound. The online courses are presented in a Web-based asynchronous learning mode, which allows students to work on their classes with a great deal of flexibility and within the confines of their personal circumstances. All that is required is a computer, an Internet connection, and the desire to pursue a health services degree. Students can complete a substantial number of credit hours online, but at least two campus residencies are required. Residencies last from one to three days and are scheduled in May. The purpose of these residencies is to ensure program integrity and to identify any areas of academic weakness. Students may be advised to repeat some course work or to engage in other academic activities to satisfy any concerns of the reviewing panel. Each 1-credit residency is graded on a pass-fail basis, and the credit does not apply to the degree program. The first residency is scheduled after the completion of 12 credit hours; additional credit hours, but no more than 6, may be permitted before the residency with permission from the student's adviser. The second residency is completed when all course work is finished and/or prior to an internship. During the second residency, a student presentation is required, including the major project completed for the Capstone Course.

The Master of Science in Health Services Administration program is primarily intended for students who have academic preparation in the liberal arts, the applied sciences, or business. However, students without a background in one of these areas may pursue the degree by taking additional courses in prerequisite areas.

DELIVERY MEDIA

Courses are delivered via an asynchronous learning network (ALN). An ALN is a new approach to teaching and learning that is student centered. ALNs emphasize innovative instruction and learning. The activities of the course are the same as those in a traditional class. Students read course materials, write papers, do research, and communicate with their instructors and fellow students. The learning is both interactive with faculty members and collaborative with other students. Students can work together on case studies, groups projects, and any number of other activities. The students and the faculty members use technology to accomplish these tasks. The course design facilitates these activities through a computer network. Instructors and students can also leverage the wealth of resources available through the Internet to support this instruction.

PROGRAM OF STUDY

The Master of Science in Health Services Administration degree program promotes the use of management organization and theory and an understanding of health-care delivery, reimbursement and financing systems, and applied research to formulate, implement, and evaluate managerial decisions in a health-care setting. Areas of focus in the curriculum are management, health policy, legal topics in health care, financial management, health marketing and strategic planning, quantitative methods of data collection and analysis, and research methods.

The program may require up to 45 credit hours of graduate course work depending on the student's prior experience and education. The degree program is flexible in order to accommodate the diverse backgrounds of the targeted student population. Students whose baccalaureate degree programs were in not in areas of business or health care typically need to complete a series of background and prerequisite courses. In addition, students with no previous health-related work experience are required to complete a 6-credit-hour internship, which is determined by the Program Director upon admission. Students who document either previous academic training or occupationally developed expertise may not be required to complete some or all of the prerequisite course work. However, no student may graduate with fewer than 33 credit hours of completed graduate course work.

State University of New York (SUNY) Institute of Technology is the newest and youngest college in the sixty-four-campus SUNY system. It is a leader in technology, innovation, and excellence. The Institute's School of Management is a pioneer in delivering high-quality education over the Internet.

The core required courses are health-care systems, health policy, health economics, legal issues in health care, organizational management for health-care organizations, financial management problems, financial management of health-care organizations, health-care marketing and strategic planning, quantitative business analysis, quantitative methods for health services administration (research methods), and the integrative Capstone Course in environments and strategies. In addition to the core courses, students are required to complete at least 6 hours of electives. Elective courses that are offered online include advanced management accounting, fund accounting, and management information systems.

At the conclusion of the student's fourth online course, a minimum GPA of 3.0 is required, and no more than two grades of C are permitted, regardless of GPA. A GPA below the minimum results in academic counseling and may require the student to withdraw from the distance learning program.

STUDENT SERVICES

Technical support, online libraries, a virtual bookstore, and a help desk, which provides assistance via phone, e-mail, or Web-page links, are all available. There is an entire online Learning Center, which offers access to numerous Web search engines, reference help and materials, instructional sites and tutorials, and many other services. Transfer and career advisement are also offered to online students.

CREDIT OPTIONS

As noted above, students who document previous academic course work and/or relevant professional experience may have some prerequisite course work waived.

FACULTY

The faculty members have extensive experience in their fields and meet the highest standards for quality.

ADMISSION

Requirements for admission include a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university with a minimum GPA of 3.0 and a course in statistics and a course in accounting with a grade of C or better. Students who do not meet these course requirements may be admitted with a deficiency. GMAT or GRE scores are also required. Scores on the GMAT are evaluated using the guideline of a total of 1,000 points based on 200 x the undergraduate GPA + the GMAT score. While prior academic achievement and GMAT or GRE scores are used as the basic guide to determine admissibility, if an applicant has demonstrated through exceptional performance in a management career that his or her undergraduate record is not indicative of academic performance or if a promising candidate does not score well on the GMAT or GRE, conditional admittance may be granted.

TUITION AND FEES

In-state students take advantage of low SUNY tuition rates, making the program very affordable. Graduate tuition rates are $213 per credit hour for students who are New York residents and $351 per credit hour for nonresident students.

FINANCIAL AID

Scholarships, financial aid, and internships are available.

CONTACT

School of Management
P.O. Box 3050
SUNY Institute of Technology at Utica/Rome
Utica, New York 13504-3050
E-mail: [email protected]
Web site: http://www.sunyit.edu/academics/programs/hsm/?select=gprograms

APPLYING

Applications are available online or by contacting the School.