Health Care Administration Careers: Paths, Salaries and Job Outlook (2026)

The health care industry’s primary goal is to provide the best patient care possible. But health care is also a business.

Like any business, health care facilities consist of employees whose work is guided by organizational rules and key government regulations. This makes high-quality health care administration especially important.

Administrators help maintain a productive work environment, and they also play a role in improving care delivery. An efficiently run facility with a positive company culture can lead to a happier, better-trained staff and improved patient outcomes.

Health care professionals with a degree like App State Online’s bachelor’s in health care management can pursue a wide range of health care administration career paths. Below, we highlight these careers and how they help facilities operate at their best.

How a Health Care Management Degree Prepares You

The first step toward a career in health care administration begins by pursuing an undergraduate degree. Popular majors include health management, public health, human resources, nursing or a related field.

Typically, a health care management degree covers fundamental aspects of organizational operation such as finance, human resources, marketing and data analytics. Because these degrees emphasize health care, they also focus on clinical operations and health care quality improvement, covering topics such as the following:

Health system organization
Health service research
Health informatics
Health law and policy
Ethics in health care

Exploring these subjects helps aspiring professionals understand the complexities of health care administration. With a health care management degree, graduates can take on a range of administrative and executive roles in different settings, including the following:

Hospitals
Clinics
Long-term care facilities
Public health departments
Government agencies
Insurance companies

Health Care Administration Career Paths and Salaries

Earning an undergraduate degree in health care management can be the first step toward careers in health care management and administration.

1. Medical and Health Services Manager

Medical and health services managers oversee the operational functions of health care facilities, including medical practices, clinics, hospitals and assisted living facilities. They may coordinate medical services through tasks such as staff training, scheduling, creating a facility’s care delivery objectives, ensuring legal compliance and monitoring budgets. Medical and health services managers may also oversee entire facilities or, in larger work environments, manage a specific department or group of professionals.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median annual salary for medical and health services managers was $117,960 as of May 2024.

2. Health Information Manager

Health information managers (HIMs) oversee health care facilities’ patient records. Typical tasks include organizing records into databases, ensuring compliance with patient confidentiality regulations and analyzing insurance provider data to spot payers with a history of audits or denials. Because of the continued integration of tech systems in health care, HIMs also maintain a facility’s electronic medical records and are commonly responsible for electronically stored patient data.

The median annual salary for HIMs was $71,000 as of January 2026, according to Payscale.

3. Hospital Administrator

Hospital administrators oversee the business side of hospitals to ensure optimized patient care. They devise medical services strategies based on hospitals’ budgets, resources and funding. They also develop a hospitals’ patient care goals and evaluate the performance of staff to gauge progress.

The median annual salary for hospital administrators as of March 2026 was $99,000, according to Payscale.

4. Patient Advocate

Also known as health advocates, patient advocates act as liaisons between patients and parties like health care providers and insurance companies. They typically work with patients dealing with chronic or long-term illnesses, guiding them through the health care industry’s complexities and helping them understand available treatment options. People working in this role may also help patients navigate the insurance system by assisting them in making claim denial disputes.

The median annual salary for patient advocates was $53,000 as of August 2025, according to Payscale.

Fastest-Growing Health Care Administration Careers

Medical and health services managers benefit from strong demand. The number of jobs in this field will increase by 23% from 2024 to 2034, according to BLS projections — about 62,100 openings each year. Increased demand for health care services and more complex health care delivery requirements mean a greater need for health care administrators.

Health care administration careers rank among the fastest-growing occupations in any field, according to the BLS. They also report the highest growth rate for management jobs, with projected rates significantly faster than the overall 6% for management careers.

Job titles in the medical and health services management field include:

Nursing home administrator
Health information manager
Health care system director
Mental health program manager
Home health director

Make an Impact on Health Care

Health care administration roles are important for high-quality patient care. These professionals ensure that the business and operational sides of health care facilities run smoothly, allowing physicians, nurses and other clinical professionals to perform their important roles effectively.

App State Online’s Bachelor of Science in Health Care Management program can help you build the knowledge and skills to take on these important roles. Our curriculum is designed to provide you with a comprehensive understanding of the fundamentals of the administrative side of health care, including finance, informatics, systems and health care ethics. Alongside courses in accounting, economics and statistics, health care management students study business communication, marketing and medical terminology to prepare for work in health care.

Learn how App State Online can prepare you for a fulfilling role in a critical field.

Recommended Readings

6 Essential Health Care Administration Skills

Health Care Management Technology: Tools and Tips

Health Care Management vs. Health Care Administration

Sources:

Indeed, Health Care Management vs. Health Care Administration

Indeed, How to Become a Health Information Manager (With Skills)

Indeed, 6 Reasons to Become a Healthcare Administrator

Indeed, “What Does a Hospital Administrator Do? (Duties and Salary)”

Indeed, “What Does a Patient Advocate Do? (Duties and Salary)”

O-Net OnLine, Medical and Health Services Managers