Health-care degree to be offered on line

New England College is launching a new degree completion program designed for people who want to advance their careers in health care.

The program, which begins in January, will offer working health-care professionals an opportunity to obtain a bachelor of science degree in health care administration in as little as 18 months, completely online.

The program, which was approved by the NEC board of trustees on Nov. 6, is run by the School of Graduate and Professional Studies.

“Over the past few years, we have been running very successful master’s-level programs on site in hospitals and health-care facilities across New Hampshire,” said Richard Keating, dean of NEC’s School of Graduate and Professional Studies. “We observed that many staff in this profession either held an associate degree or completed some college, and wanted to have a flexible opportunity to earn a bachelor’s degree. We created this flexible program to serve this audience both locally and nationwide.”

The on-line component of the program features courses specifically structured for ease-of-use on the Internet. The courses use an on-your-own-time Web-based learning platform that creates a virtual classroom with student and instructor interaction, discussion boards and assignment venues, said Keating.

The on-line component is complemented with an optional summer session that will meet in July at NEC’s Henniker campus. This component provides students with an opportunity to accelerate their degree completion process.

Classes will run in eight-week terms beginning in January. Course offerings include Organization and Management in Healthcare; Introduction to Healthcare in the U.S.; Case Management; Economics of Healthcare; Financial Management for Healthcare; Marketing for Healthcare; and Cultural Diversity in Healthcare.

For more information, call 428-2252.