Bachelor of Science in Health Administration (BSHA), Finance Track


Program Location 
Distance Education/Online
Program Credits 
120 Credits 
Program Length 

10 trimesters, 160 Instructional Weeks or

20 Trimesters, 320 Instructional Weeks

Time to Complete 

40 Months or

80 Months

WCU distance education programs may not be available to residents in all states.

Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) Code: 11-9111.00

Mission Statement:

The mission of the Bachelor of Science in Health Administration (BSHA) program is to prepare students from diverse educational and cultural backgrounds for entry-level administrative positions within healthcare service environments.  Graduates may use competencies in the areas of operations, financial analysis, policy development, business management, and risk management to promote effective healthcare administration.  

Program Learning Outcomes
  • Apply financial management principles for decision making and strategic planning in healthcare organizations.  
  • Analyze the application of organizational business skills to operational management and administration of healthcare organizations.  
  • Evaluate quality improvement standards and practices to optimize business performance improvement of healthcare organizations.  
  • Interpret healthcare ethical, legal, and compliance matters to support healthcare services, patient data and confidentiality, and information systems.  
  • Evaluate innovative information technology to support business management and organizational dynamics of healthcare organizations.  
  • Assess the impact of collaborative interprofessional relationships and team building principles within healthcare organizations.  
  • Demonstrate the application of leadership models and techniques to the strategic needs of healthcare organizations.  

Admission Requirements

  1. Proof of high school graduation or equivalent;
  2. Meet all programmatic admissions criteria.  Individuals with 15 or more college-level credits are required to have a 2.0 GPA in post-secondary education.  
  3. Participate in an interview with a University Admissions Advisor.
  4. Submit a completed application for admission.
  5. Complete and execute an enrollment agreement. If the applicant is under the age of 18, enrollment documents must be signed by a parent or guardian.  
  6. Bachelor of Science in Health Administration Transfer Credit Evaluation:  Only undergraduate level courses in which a grade of C (2.0) or better was received will be evaluated for transfer credit.  A maximum of ninety (90) total credits may be considered for transfer, subject to the following criteria:
    1. A maximum of thirty (30) credits may be accepted from alternative credit options, such as CLEP/AP/IB/ACE, etc.
    2.  A maximum of thirty (30) credits may be accepted from military training or work experience
    3. All undergraduate students must complete at least thirty (30) credits in-residence at West Coast University  
    4. At least twenty-four (24) of the in-residence credits must come from core program courses

Additional criteria for transfer credit by type of credit is as follows: 

  General Education Credits (39 cr.)

  • Students may transfer up to thirty-three (33) general education credits.  All general education courses considered for transfer credit must reflect content aligned with one or more of the BSHA general education competencies.
  • All students are required to complete FYS002: Foundations of Success and CAPS401: General Education Capstone in-residence.  

  Elective Credits (30 cr.)

  • Students may transfer up to thirty (30) elective course credits.

  Program Core & Track Credits (51 cr.)

  • Students may transfer up to twenty-seven (27) core and track course credits.  All core and track courses considered for transfer credit must reflect the same content and course credit as the course for which transfer credit is requested.

Eligibility for Reentry

A student who has been academically dismissed from West Coast University may apply for reentry to the University's BSHA program if:

The applicant was in good standing with the University excluding previous Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) or GPA requirements at the time of their dismissal.  If any other "good standing" issues exist, the individual would be admitted to the university on probationary status.  If a student in probationary status is not in "good standing" after completing their first semester of coursework in the BSHA program, they would be dismissed from the University.  If an applicant was previously dismissed from West Coast University for any conduct violations, he/she would not be admitted into the program.  Please refer to the "Good Standing" policy for specific information on the terms.  

Individuals granted reentry would have their successfully completed WCU credits, and credits previously transferred from other institutions, considered for applicability to the BSHA degree.  Decisions regarding transferability of credit are made by the BSHA program Dean or Director.  

An individual who is readmitted by this clause will not be considered for dismissal due to the course failures in other WCU programs.  Any failures that occur after the student has reentered the university into the BSHA program would be subject to the university dismissal policy.  

Health Administration Curriculum

General Education Requirements

Category and Requirements 

WCU Course Requirements Transferable / Options  

A1- Written
Communication 

(5 Semester Credits and 2 Courses Minimum) 

Written communication courses cover the use of writing as a means of conveying information.  In these courses, students will utilize discussions, papers, essays, research, etc. to examine, analyze, and transmit information in an appropriate academic or professional manner.  (Transferable courses will generally have ENG, JRN, or COM prefix)
Any course that meets the General Education category and requirements. 

A2. Oral Communication

(2.5 Semester Credits
Minimum)

Oral communication courses cover the use of language and speech as a means of conveying information.  In these courses, students will utilize language and speech to disseminate information to audiences as appropriate. 

 

(Transferable courses will generally have SPE, COM, JRN, ENG, or BUS prefix) 
Any course that meets the General Education category and requirements. 

A3. Critical Thinking

(5.0 Semester Credits 2
Minimum)

Critical thinking courses provide the skills necessary to make complex decisions.  In these courses, students will utilize complex thinking, logic, and other skills to analyze decision making processes.  (Transferable courses will generally have PHI, LOG, or COM prefixes)  Any course that meets the General Education category and requirements.

A4. Quantitative 
Reasoning

(5 Semester Credits and 2 Courses Minimum)

Quantitative reasoning courses provide the skills to process, analyze, and interpret data.  In these courses students will utilize math to solve problems.  (Transferable courses generally have MAT or STAT prefixes)
Any course that meets the General Education category and requirements.

B1– Social and Behavioral Sciences / Cultural
Diversity, Tradition

(8 Semester Credits and 3 Courses Minimum)

Social and behavioral science, cultural diversity, and tradition courses cover a broad range of humanities disciplines.  Courses in this competency may cover social interactions, human behavior, cultural diversity, aesthetic awareness, art appreciation and creation, history, civic duty, and other areas in the field.  (Transferable courses generally have SOC, SSC, PSY, ART, HIS, LIB, ENG, ANT, REL, POL, LNG, CRJ, or related prefixes)
Any course that meets the General Education category and requirements. 

B2. Life and Physical
Sciences

(2.5 Semester Credits and 1 Courses Minimum)

Life and Physical Science courses cover vary disciplines within the scientific field.  Courses in this field may cover any scientific discipline within life and physical sciences.  (Transferable courses generally have BIO, CHEM, PHYS, ENV, NRM, or SCI prefixes)
Any course that meets the General Education category and requirements.

B3. General Education Capstone

(3 Semester Credits)

 CAPS 401 (3):  General Education Capstone Non-transferable

In addition to the courses above, all students must complete FYS 002 (3): Foundations of Success (Non-transferable). A minimum of 39 credits is required for graduation

 

Elective Requirements:

To achieve the graduation requirement of 120 credits, all students must complete 30 credits of electives. Students may request to satisfy all or a portion of the elective credit requirements through transfer credit for previous education. Only college-level coursework will be considered for transfer credit. Additionally, students may complete available 3 credit online course offered by the university to satisfy elective credit (some restrictions apply).  Unless otherwise requested, students will take the following university courses to meet the elective requirements

 

ACC 125: Fundamentals of Accounting

ACC 150:  Principles of Finance

BUS 135: Survey of Economics

BUS 220: Introduction to Marketing

BUS 250: Project Management

COMM 200:  Interpersonal Communication

ENGL 250: Technical Writing

HA 100: Medical Terminology

HIST 100: US History

PHIL 435: Methods of Conflict Resolution

 

Students who have completed at least thirty-nine (39) credits of coursework with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 may also satisfy up to nine (9) credits of elective coursework through the completion of three (3) credit graduate level courses in-residence.  All in-residence three (3) credit graduate level courses completed as part of an undergraduate program may be used to satisfy graduate requirements.

Health Administration Core Courses

A minimum grade of a "C" will be required to receive course credit in the BSHA program.  Should a student receive a "C-" grade or lower, it will not be considered a passing grade for the BSHA program and the student will be required to retake the course.  The earned grade will be counted into the student's CGPA and will be replaced once the course is repeated with a passing grade.  The student will be placed on an academic action plan to repeat the course and meet with the program Dean.  

Total Credit Hours:  120 hours


HA 110Introduction to Healthcare Management

3

PHIL 350Organizational Law and Ethics

3

BUS 225Information Systems Operations and Analysis

3

PH 100Introduction to Public Health

3

HA 400Principles of Epidemiology

3

HA 410Research Methods in Healthcare

3

HA 320Healthcare Policy and Economics

3

HA 330Healthcare Regulatory Compliance and Accreditation

3

HA 340Healthcare Payment Systems

3

HA 420Quality Performance Management in Healthcare

3

HA 430Risk Management in Healthcare

3

HA 440Introduction to Strategic Planning and Organizational Management in Healthcare Organizations

3

LDR 450Leadership in Healthcare

3

BUS 290Microeconomics

3

BUS 350Corporate Finance

3

ACC 225Financial Accounting

3

BUS 400Financial Statement Analysis and Management

3

Total Credit Hours:42
BSHA Program Costs

For program costs, please see the Distance Education Tuition and Fees section.