Master of Arts in Administration

The Master of Arts in Administration program is unique among graduate programs in South Texas in that it provides participants with core competencies in administration as well as essential knowledge, skills and abilities in the specialty areas listed below. The curriculum is designed to develop ethical and accountable administrators who are able to conceptualize and critically analyze complex organizational issues within their specialty areas and who are able to persuasively communicate toward a course of action that is in the best interests of those they serve.

Degree Requirements

The MAA program generally consists of the following 30 semester hours of graduate course work.

Core Curriculum (15 hours)

ADMN 6360 Management Concepts and Issues
ADMN 6375 Strategic Planning and Policy
ORGD 6320 Organizational Behavior and Learning
ORGD 6355 Organizational Change
PMBA 6309 Applied Human Resource Management

Choose a Concentration (12 hours)

The area of concentration can be selected from any discipline, except Business, which has a limit of 4 courses allowed in an MAA program. The graduate advisor and the Dean of the School within which the area of concentration resides must approve student concentrations.

Applied Administration
Healthcare Administration
Industrial and Organizational Psychology

Capstone (3 hours)

ORGD 63CS Capstone

Concentration Overview and Requirements

The MAA in Applied Administration is designed to offer a program of study that allows students to personalize their degrees in order to gain the knowledge and skills required of their career fields. This concentration also allows students to avoid duplication of previous coursework, training or experience by permitting them to select courses from up to two of the MAA related disciplines listed below.

12 hours of required coursework from the MAA disciplines

View Applied Administration Degree Profile

The Healthcare Administration concentration provides you with unique expertise in health services management that will prepare you to serve in a variety of healthcare organizations to include those in hospital, group practice, health insurance and other clinical and administrative settings.

12 hours of required courses:

HCAD 6305 Healthcare Finance I
HCAD 6330 Legal and Ethical Issues in Healthcare (Health Law)
HCAD 6340 Quality and Continuous Improvement in Healthcare Organizations
HCAD 6360 Managing Healthcare Organizations

View Healthcare Administration Degree Profile

Industrial and Organizational Psychology is the science of human behavior as it relates to the well-being of people in organizations. Graduates will apply psychological principles and research methods to the workplace with the goal of improving productivity, health and the quality of work life. Additionally, they may design new ways to increase productivity, improve personnel selection or enhance job satisfaction. They are prepared for positions as human resource specialists, helping organizations with staffing, training, and employee development. They may provide employers with testing and other valid selection methods in their hiring and promotion processes. Some individuals may secure employment as management consultants in areas such as quality management, strategic planning or organizational change.

12 hours of required courses:

PSYC 6335 Personnel Psychology
PSYC 6345 Workplace Motivation
PSYC 6360 Diversity in Organizations
PSYC 6373 Assessment and Testing in the Workplace

View Industrial and Organizational Psychology Degree Profile


Society for Human Resource Management

The Industrial and Organizational Psychology concentration has been acknowledged by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) for its full alignment with SHRM's HR Curriculum Guidebook and Templates. The HR Curriculum Guidebook and Templates were developed by SHRM to define the minimum human resources content areas that should be studied by HR students at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Student Eligibility

Students who are enrolled in their final year of an undergraduate or graduate degree program at a college or university that has been approved by SHRM's Academic Initiatives staff as being aligned to SHRM’s curriculum guidelines are eligible to sit for the SHRM-CP exam. Students must also have accumulated at least 500 hours of an internship or practical HR experience and must be in good standing with their school. See a current listing of approved schools at shrm.org/academics/programdirectory. The SPS Office of Professional Development has also been SHRM certified to offer the SHRM Essentials course and the SHRM Exam Prep course.

Accreditation Note

The MAA is an Administration degree and is accredited under the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission (SACS) accreditation guidelines for the University. It is not a business degree as defined by Association of Collegiate Business School Programs (ACBSP) accreditation criteria and therefore does not require ACBSP accreditation.

Compare the MAA in Health Administration with the MHA

View differences between the Master of Arts in Administration (MAA) in Healthcare Administration and the Master of Health Administration (MHA).

Differences between Master of Arts in Administration-Healthcare Administration and Master of Health Administration
Program Program Summary and Accreditation Length of Commitment Tuition Features/Benefits
MAA in Healthcare Administration Designed to offer a program of study that allows students to gain the knowledge and skills required of their career fields. Prepares working professionals for a position in a variety of organizations including hospitals, insurance and administrative settings.
Accreditation: Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges
10 courses
(30 hours)
UIW Graduate tuition rates
  • 100% online
  • 8-week courses
  • No academic fees
  • Faculty are scholar-practitioners with real-world experience
MHA Designed for those seeking early career positions within the healthcare industry. Built upon a foundation of 24 competencies critical to the managerial success of healthcare administration professionals. Accreditation: Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges and CAHME accredited 21 months
(45 hours)
UIW Graduate tuition rates
  • Evening in classroom
  • 8-week courses
  • Cohort-based
  • Full-time faculty
  • View MHA webpage