PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
The dual degree (MHA/JD) in law and health administration combines the 3-year Juris Doctorate at the OU College of Law and the 2-year Master of Health Administration at the OU Hudson College of Public Health into 4 years of study.
The Master of Health Administration (MHA) is a professional graduate degree that prepares the graduate for a career as a senior administrator of a health service organization. Students will gain an understanding of the following competency areas:
• the U.S. healthcare system;
• communication;
• executive leadership and ethical decision-making;
• critical thinking;
• quantitative analysis;
• patient outcome improvement; and
• professionalism.
There are interprofessional experiences included in the MHA program. All MHA students complete a 400-hour internship in health administration to gain hands-on experience, as well as one health administration & policy case competition. Students have recently served as interns in hospitals, multi-specialty physician practices, long-term care facilities, university medical centers and with the Veterans Administration. The internship provides an opportunity to integrate the student’s understanding of the practical day-to-day functions of management, planning or policy analysis with the traditional basic skills learned during the didactic portion of the program.
Following graduation, MHA/JD graduates go on to legal careers, administrative fellowships, and/or directly into the healthcare or public health workforce.
ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS
The following are required for the OU Hudson College of Public Health:
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Must be in good standing with the college or university where currently enrolled or last attended.
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Bachelor’s degree or entry-level first professional degree from an accredited institution.
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Grade point average of 3.0 or above using the upper-division coursework of the bachelor's degree.
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Submission of the SOPHAS application and the supplemental OUHSC Hudson College of Public Health application.
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Career goal statement uploaded through SOPHAS.
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Current CV/Resume uploaded through SOPHAS.
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Three letters of academic or professional recommendation uploaded through SOPHAS by the recommender. Applicants must list recommenders’ contact information on the application and then upon submission, SOPHAS will send instructions to each recommender on how to submit their letter electronically through the online portal.
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Transcripts:
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U.S. Applicants: SOPHAS requires a separate official transcript from every U.S. and Canadian institution attended be submitted by utilizing the instructions here. Applicants will enter the information in coursework section of the application utilizing the data from their transcript(s). Do not enter foreign courses taken at Universities outside the U.S. or Canada into the coursework section of the application.
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International Applicants: Submit transcripts/mark sheets to the World Education Services (www.wes.org) for a course-by-course evaluation. Applicants must designate SOPHAS to receive the evaluation.
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International applicants are required to demonstrate English proficiency by submitting TOEFL (score of 100 or above) or IELTS scores (7.0 or above) that meet the minimum required score. TOEFL scores must be submitted to SOPHAS using the designation code #5688.
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Interview with Admissions Committee (in-person or via web-conferencing).
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APPLICATION DEADLINES
Hudson College of Public Health applications are reviewed on a rolling basis and applications will be reviewed as they are complete. All materials must be submitted by the deadlines listed below for full consideration.
Master of Health Administration and Policy/Juris Doctorate
- Spring: December 15
- Fall: August 1
- Summer: May 1
APPLICATION PROCEDURE
CURRENT OU STUDENTS OR ALUMNI APPLICATION PROCESS
Application Instructions for Current OU Students and OU Alumni can be found here. In addition, students must complete the OU College of Law application below if not already an OU Law student.
Click here for the application procedure for the OU College of Law (if not already an OU College of Law student).
NON-OU STUDENTS OR ALUMNI APPLICATION PROCESS
STEP 1: SOPHAS APPLICATION
Submit a SOPHAS application (www.sophas.org) and required fee (click here to review information regarding SOPHAS fees and fee waivers). The documentation identified in the ‘Admission Requirements’ section must be submitted in SOPHAS.
STEP 2: SUPPLEMENTAL APPLICATION
Applicants to the OU Hudson College of Public Health are required to submit a supplemental application and fee. The supplemental application is available via the OU Health Sciences Center website at: https://apps.ouhsc.edu/admissions/. Applicants must select the same program(s) in the supplemental application as they did in the SOPHAS application.
PLEASE NOTE: Fee waivers are not available for the supplemental application.
Fee structure for the supplemental application is as follows:
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$100 for one or two professional programs (Certificate / MPH / MHA programs). One professional program = $100. Two professional programs = $100.
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$75 for one or two graduate program(s) (MS / PhD programs).
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$175 for one professional program AND one graduate program (i.e. applicant applies to both the MPH in Biostatistics and the MS in Biostatistics).
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CURRICULUM
The dual degree in law and health administration combines the 3-year Juris Doctorate at the College of Law and the 2-year Master of Health Administration at the College of Public Health into 4 years of study.
The JD requires a minimum of 90 credit hours, and the MHA requires a minimum of 52 credit hours. A dual-degree student will complete 81 credit hours at the College of Law and receive 9 credit hours towards the law degree from coursework completed at the College of Public Health. The 81 hours at the College of Law must include Health Law. Likewise, the student will complete 49 credit hours at the College of Public Health and receive 3 credit hours towards the master's degree from coursework completed at the College of Law.
What does the curriculum look like?
The curricular sequence is highly dependent on when and where a student initially matriculates and on that student’s preferences for law school courses. The student will work closely with the dual degree advisor at the College of Public Health to ensure all curricular requirements are met.
A sample of the curricular requirements has been provided at the link below. This is representative of the curricular choices, however all students should consult both colleges for their current requirements.
Sample Curriculum for Dual Degree - JD-MHA
STEM DESIGNATION
The Master of Health Administration and Policy program is NOT considered a STEM-designated degree program.
A STEM-designated program is an academic program that falls under at least one of the approved categories from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). These categories are recognized by the government for their focus on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) topics. DHS's updated STEM-designated degree list can be found here: https://www.ice.gov/doclib/sevis/pdf/stemList2022.pdf.