Building on the Strength of MHCDS, Tuck and Geisel Partner to Offer a Master of Health Administration

The Master of Health Administration (MHA) degree will prepare students to develop, plan, and manage operations and services within health care facilities and across health care systems. While most MHA degrees are delivered through schools of public health, Dartmouth’s will offer a singular experience as the only MHA delivered in partnership between an Ivy League medical school and a top-ranked business school.

The model for MHA will echo MHCDS in its hybrid delivery. The anticipated initial class size will be approximately 50 students with MHA candidates coming to the Dartmouth campus twice for five-day periods, to complement high-quality, high-touch online courses. Students will also have the option of completing the degree on either a two-year, or an accelerated one-year path.

Thanks to the groundwork laid by MHCDS, along with continued innovation in teaching modalities and investment in technology by Tuck and Geisel, Dartmouth will be able to offer students an unparalleled MHA program experience, says Joseph Gerakos D’90, professor of business administration and senior associate dean for innovation and growth. Students will be able to expand their skillsets by learning from world-class Tuck and Geisel professors while also growing their careers thanks to the flexibility of the program’s hybrid model.

The College is piloting a new venture between Tuck and Geisel, to be known as Health Care Management Education at Dartmouth, to oversee the administration of the two joint degree programs. The venture, which resides within the organizational structure of the Tuck School as of July 1, will be led by Katherine Milligan D’90, T’07, who will serve as associate dean for Health Care Management Education.

Milligan brings a wealth of higher education leadership experience and deep industry knowledge to her new role as associate dean. In addition to her Tuck MBA, Milligan holds a PhD and Master of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania. She has directed the MHCDS program since its founding in 2010 and has also taught the action-learning project course within the program. While leading Health Care Management Education at Dartmouth, Milligan will report to Gerakos with a dotted line to a new Associate Dean for Health Professions at Geisel.

Combining the extensive expertise, superior resources, and thought leadership of two renowned schools in Tuck and Geisel offers a distinct advantage for students, and one that no other MHA program can offer, says Milligan. The student experience will be further bolstered thanks to broader connections within the Dartmouth community—through partners like Dartmouth Health, Tuck’s Center for Health Care, and the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice—and will build on the College’s longstanding commitment to transforming health care, as evidenced by projects like Dartmouth Atlas.

Dartmouth’s MHA program comes at a time of great need as employment of medical and health services managers is projected to grow over the next decade due to myriad factors. Chief among them: higher demand for health care services as baby boomers age; heightened insurance coverage due to federal and state health care reform laws; and need for managers with health care IT experience as electronic health records rise in importance and more care moves virtual.

Health care administration can’t continue on business as usual, Milligan says. It’s time for innovation, and we’re thrilled to be at the forefront.