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Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor

Types of Degrees Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor may pursue degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Associate’s Degree	38

What Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor Majors Need to Know

Programs in Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

According to O*NET, a major in Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Administration and Management — Importance 4.7 / 5; level 5.5 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.5 / 7.
• Personnel and Human Resources — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 5.5 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set developed in a Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Critical Thinking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Management of Personnel Resources — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Judgment and Decision Making — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Complex Problem Solving — Importance 4 / 5; level 3.5 / 7.

Abilities

The cognitive and physical abilities most relevant to Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.
• Oral Expression — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Problem Sensitivity — Importance 4 / 5; level 4 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.6 / 7
Working with Computers	4.6 / 7
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards	4.5 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	4.5 / 7
Getting Information	4.5 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.4 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.4 / 7
Analyzing Data or Information	4.4 / 7
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others	4.3 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.3 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
TeleTracking PreAdmit-Tracking	Materials requirements planning logistics and supply chain software	—
Misys Healthcare Systems Misys Tiger	Medical software	—
Sage 50 Accounting	Accounting software	—
Yost Engineering ClaimScrub	Categorization or classification software	—
Geographic information system GIS software	Geographic information system	—
ColorSoft AutoMatch	Categorization or classification software	—
e-MDs Schedule	Calendar and scheduling software	—
Social media sites	Web page creation and editing software	—
SmugMug Flickr	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
eClinicalWorks EHR software	Medical software	—
Microsoft Teams	Project management software	—
Intuit QuickBooks	Accounting software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor graduates include:

• Nurse Administrator
• Health Manager
• Hospital Director
• Health Administrator
• Public Health Program Manager
• Health Information Services Manager
• Community Health Nursing Director
• Nursing Home Manager
• Medical Manager
• Laboratory Director (Lab Director)
• Patient Services Coordinator
• Hospice Director
• Healthcare Administrator
• Client Services Director
• Medical Office Manager

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	46.4%
Master’s degree	21.4%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	10.7%
Postsecondary certificate	7.1%
Some college courses	3.6%
Post-doctoral training	3.6%
First professional degree	3.6%
High school diploma or equivalent	3.6%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 97.4% of Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	37	97.4%
Men	1	2.6%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	5	13.2%
Hispanic or Latino	4	10.5%
Black or African American	20	52.6%
Two or More Races	6	15.8%
Race Unknown	3	7.9%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Wages typically rise steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$36,041
4 years	$36,054
5 years	$40,847

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $40,847 — roughly 13% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor Programs

Fully online options are documented by IPEDS for Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Associate’s	1	0

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Health Unit Manager/Ward Supervisor graduates earn a median of $36,054 four years after completion — about 5% below the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000). On earnings alone, this program does not show an income premium over the baseline; non-financial outcomes (career interests, certification requirements, advancement potential) are typically the stronger argument for fields in this range.

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Health and Medical Administrative Services	51.07
Clinical Research Coordinator	51.0719
Disease Registry Data Management	51.0721
Health and Medical Administrative Services, Other	51.0799
Health Information/Medical Records Administration/Administrator	51.0706
Health Information/Medical Records Technology/Technician	51.0707
Health Unit Coordinator/Ward Clerk	51.0703
Health/Health Care Administration/Management	51.0701
Health/Medical Claims Examiner	51.0715
Healthcare Information Privacy Assurance and Security	51.0723
Healthcare Innovation	51.0722
Hospital and Health Care Facilities Administration/Management	51.0702

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.