If you’re considering going back to school right now, you might be asking yourself whether you can earn a health care management degree while working full-time. Perhaps you’ll be surprised to know that it’s relatively easy to balance a full-time job with your studies in health care leadership. Most students in these programs are already employed, so schools are prepared to work with your busy schedule. You can take evening classes after work, online classes whenever you want and even get help paying for school from your employer.
How Can You Balance Full-Time Work and School?
Some degree programs make it almost impossible for you to work while taking classes. They might ask you to sign an agreement to focus on your studies, schedule courses in the middle of the day or require hundreds of hours of unpaid internships. Health care management degrees are different. Because many students interested in a health management master’s degree have full-time jobs, colleges create study programs that work with your schedule. This means evening classes, part-time degree options and online coursework will be available to you. You’ll still have to work hard and spend your free time studying, but it’s possible to work 40 hours a week and earn your degree.
Can You Earn a Health Care Management Degree Online?
More colleges than ever are offering bachelor’s and master’s degree completely online. Professional degrees like public health, business and health care management are good candidates for the transition to distance learning. Because you don’t need to complete lab courses or work directly with patients to learn how to be a great health care manager, you don’t need to come to campus for your classes. With virtual classes, you can complete work on your own schedule. This makes it easy to balance a full-time job with your coursework. If you work Monday through Friday, you can do class assignments on the weekends rather than rushing to campus in the evening. If you have a non-traditional schedule like many health care workers, you don’t have to worry about how your shifts will impact your class attendance. Online classes are taught by the same professors and deliver the same information as traditional courses, but they make it easier for you to work and study at the same time.
Will Your Employer Pay for Your Health Management Degree?
Although you may not work at a company with unlimited tuition reimbursement, your job might help pay for your college degree. Employers want educated employees to stay with the company, and offering to reimburse tuition for full-time employees is an effective business strategy. You’re more likely to have positive feelings towards your employer if they help you graduate. Plus, you’ll be the perfect candidate for a promotion into management once you can combine your in-depth knowledge of the company with a degree in health care management. Talk to your supervisor or human resources department to learn if your company can help you pay for your school.
If you’re committed to growing your knowledge base and career prospects, you can make this work. Stop asking yourself, “Can I earn a health care management degree if I work full-time?” and start asking how to enroll in classes.
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Top 20 Graduate Programs in Health Care Management in the West