4+1 Healthcare Administration and Leadership Accelerated Program

The Master of Science in Healthcare Administration and Leadership Accelerated Program, or 4+1 program, is designed for undergraduate students at the University of Michigan–Dearborn in any major who are interested in earning both a bachelor’s degree and the Master of Science in Healthcare Administration and Leadership in an accelerated pathway by combining a portion of undergraduate and graduate coursework as described below.

To be eligible for the program, a student must:

• Be enrolled in an undergraduate program at the University of Michigan-Dearborn.
• Have a 3.25 cumulative GPA or better.
• Have earned at least 60 credits at the undergraduate level.

1. The 4+1 Masters program allows current UM-Dearborn undergraduate students to complete both their BA/BS and MS in Healthcare Administration and Leadership degrees in an accelerated format. 4+1 students can double-count up to 15 credits of 500-level or above courses. Double-counting these 15 credits between the BA/BS and MS in Healthcare Administration and Leadership saves students a total of 5 classes.  In addition, in accordance with the campus Course Level Assessment Policy, undergraduate students are charged undergraduate tuition rates for graduate level courses. As a result, the cost of completing the Master's degree is reduced by more than $12,000, assuming part-time enrollment at resident tuition rates.

The courses eligible to be double-counted include:

• HHS 501 HHS Internship
• HHS 503 Medical Information Systems
• HHS 504 Financing Health & Medical Systems
• HHS 507 Fundraising & Grantwriting
• HHS 515 Healthcare Administration
• HHS 548 Comparative Health Care Systems
• HHS 556 Healthcare and the Law
• HIT 500 Economics of Healthcare
• HIT 510 Management of Healthcare Data

2. Students enrolled in undergraduate programs that require the 400-level equivalent of the courses listed above can count the 500-level version of those courses towards the completion of their undergraduate requirements. If the 400-level version of the classes listed above are not part of the student's undergraduate requirements then these courses can count as electives towards the undergraduate degree.  Students who do not have room for any more elective credit in their plan of study can still complete this program, but may end up with more than the minimum number of undergraduate credits required for their program.
3. At least one additional year of graduate work (at least 15 credits) would be needed to complete the Master's program.
4. The double-counted classes appear on both the undergraduate and graduate transcripts.  Students are graded based on the graduate grading scheme for all graduate courses elected. Only graduate level courses can be double counted towards both the undergraduate and graduate degree.  Students are not allowed to count undergraduate coursework towards a graduate degree.

Applying to the 4+1/Accelerated option is a two-stage process coordinated with both your undergraduate and graduate advising teams. For detailed instructions and application links, please visit the central 4+1 programs webpage.

1. Participation in the 4+1 program is limited to students who have:
   1. completed at least 60 undergraduate credit hours
   2. earned a cumulative GPA of at least 3.25
2. Admission to the 4+1 program is at the discretion of the CEHHS Director of Master’s Degree Programs.
3. Students must submit a letter of recommendation from an UM-Dearborn faculty member or instructor.
4. 4+1 students must enroll in the MS in Healthcare Administration and Leadership program for a minimum of two full terms, paying full tuition. 4+1 students do not dual register and should utilize their graduate registration, not their undergraduate registration, to complete the remaining credits of the graduate program.
5. Students must attain a grade of B or better in each 500 level class double-counted or transferred to the graduate program.  Failure to do so may result in removal from the 4+1 program.  Students may be given the opportunity to retake courses once they complete their undergraduate degree.

To complete the 4+1 program in five years students will have to complete any remaining courses in the MS in Healthcare Administration and Leadership plan of study.  In this schedule it is assumed that students take 15 credits of graduate coursework as undergraduates, which leaves them with 21 credits to complete as graduate students.  Students taking less than the full 15 credits as undergraduates may require more than one year to complete the Master’s program.

Program Notes

The undergraduate degree for 4+1 students can be conferred upon completion of the undergraduate degree requirements, rather than after completion of the graduate degree.