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Programs News Kevin Storr April 25, 2023

The UAB School of Health Professions has three programs ranked in the Top 11 in the nation according the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings.

The M.S. in Health Administration program remains the top-ranked program for Best Grad Schools in Health Care Management – this marks the fifth consecutive year that the MSHA program holds the No. 1 spot.

In addition, the M.S. in Healthcare Quality and Safety program debuts at No. 11 in the same Best Grad Schools in Health Care Management rankings.

And the Physician Assistant Studies program entered the Top 10 in the USNWR rankings for Best Physician Assistant Programs – their move all the way up to No. 8 marks a 29 spot jump from their previous ranking. - leaping 29 spots from their previous ranking all the way up to No. 8.

“These strong rankings reveal a trend where our peers continue to recognize and value the attributes shared by all our programs – excellence in teaching, ultramodern facilities, high-performing students, and graduates who impact their health professions,” said School of Health Professions Dean Andrew J. Butler, Ph.D.

The MSHA program has been ranked in the Top 5 of the U.S. News & World Report rankings since 2011. They moved up to No. 2 in 2015 and No. 1 in 2019.

The rating scale used ranges from 1 (marginal) to 5 (outstanding). The MSHA program’s score of 4.4 is two-tenths higher than second place.

“The success of our MSHA and MSHQS programs is a testament to the hard work by our faculty and staff day in and day out,” said Jane Banaszak-Holl, Ph.D. chair, Department of Health Services Administration. “They recognize that strong connections between education and practice, as well as between students and alumni, are critical to advancing our programs and they forge these bonds on a daily basis.”

In previous rankings, the PA program ranked as high as No. 16, but this is the first time in the programs history they are in the Top 10. UAB PA is the second oldest Physician Assistant program in the nation – established only two years after the profession was created.

“This is a credit to the commitment of our faculty and staff to the progression of the PA profession itself – their dedication is why UAB PA is a Top 10 destination program,” said Kathy Nugent, Ph.D., chair, Department of Clinical and Diagnostic Sciences. “The UAB PA program has a pioneering spirit that will only take our program and our graduates further in prestige and achievement.”

Every program in the School of Health Professions that is eligible to be ranked is ranked in the Top 25 by USNWR. In previously released rankings, Physical Therapy is No. 13 among Best Physical Therapy Programs and Occupational Therapy is No. 23 for Best Occupational Therapy Programs.

“Rankings are great, especially when they are all so strong, but they are only one indicator of our true stature – our programs are the best because of all the hard work our people put in every single day of the year from recruiting to research, academics to achievement, and beyond,” said Butler.

The U.S. News & World Report rankings are calculated based on 17 academic measures and opinions from other schools, as well as input and output measures from each institution.


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