Healthcare Innovation or Healthcare Management: Which Is Right for You?

Cedarville University offers a distinctly Christian Master of Arts in Innovation (MAI) with a Healthcare Innovation track and Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a Healthcare Management track. The MAI focuses on the #1 soft skill employers are looking for: creative problem-solving. The MBA is the most recognizable master’s degree in the marketplace. You want to make an impact as a healthcare professional, so which is the right degree for you? The answer depends on your career goals, personality traits, and desired learning outcomes.

Career Goals

The MAI in Healthcare Innovation will equip you with practical knowledge and skills to develop creative solutions to solve problems in the current healthcare system. Imagine opening an innovative new pharmacy, creating a program to provide free health screenings for underserved children, or using technology to enact change at your workplace – the possibilities are nearly endless. If you want to be a part of fixing a broken healthcare system, this is the program for you!

The MBA in Healthcare Management will provide broad business training with a focus on organizational structure, healthcare policy and systems, and quality management. If you aspire to hold management or leadership positions in a healthcare setting, such as hospitals, nursing homes, or treatment centers, this program will help you get there.

Personality Traits

The MAI in Healthcare Innovation is ideal for people who:

• Are creative
• Like to think outside the box
• Enjoy problem-solving
• Want to improve processes
• Seek to make things better

The MBA in Healthcare Management is better suited for people who:

• Are analytical
• Thrive on order and organization
• Like data-driven approaches
• Desire comprehensive business training
• Are seeking management opportunities

Desired Learning Outcomes

The MAI in Healthcare Innovation is a good fit for you if you want to:

• Learn by doing, blending knowledge and skills, theoretical ideas and practice
• Learn how to ask the right questions to understand your user, consider challenges and obstacles, and discover how to think creatively to meet a real-world need innovatively and uniquely
• Gain knowledge through practical business coursework in leadership, marketing, and business creation that will equip you as a valuable asset to an organizational setting

The MBA in Healthcare Management is better for you if you desire to:

• Gain foundational knowledge in core business functions of accounting, economics, finance, information technology, management, marketing, and corporate strategy
• Gain critical thinking skills for data-driven decision making
• Develop leadership and management strategies for designing organizations and managing change

The MAI in Healthcare Innovation and MBA in Healthcare Management will both prepare you for vocational success and Kingdom impact, but with very different emphases. Determine your career goals, personality traits, and desired learning outcomes, and you’ll discover the program that is right for you.