Megan Thee Stallion Finishes Health Administration Degree, College Graduation 2021!

Just when you thought the surprises of 2021 were over, rapper Megan Thee Stallion just announced that she’s nearing the end of her education at Texas State University. And what degree will she be walking the stage with? Well, it’s none other than a Bachelor’s in Health Administration. Who had that one on their 2021 bingo card? 

After revealing that she was pursuing her degree part-time and online in June 2020, Stallion has steadily been working towards her goal of graduating with a Bachelor’s in Health Administration. Despite her prowess already as a three-time Grammy winner, the singer told People that she was furthering her education as a tribute to her late mother, Holly Thomas, who passed away in March 2019 from brain cancer. 

"I want to get my degree because I really want my mom to be proud," she told the magazine. "She saw me going to school before she passed."

Unfortunately, the Rapper has witnessed a lot of loss in her life already: her father died when she was only a teenager, and her grandmother also passed away shortly after her mother did.

“I want my big mama to be proud,” Stallion added. “She saw me going to school before she passed. My grandmother that’s still alive used to be a teacher, so she’s on my butt about finishing school. I’m doing it for me, but I’m also doing it for the women in my family who made me who I am today.”

>> Show Me Online Healthcare Administration Programs

Apparently, Stallion’s decision and driving motivation behind graduating with the degree stems from Thomas--who was a rapper herself--making Stallion a deal: she could pursue music on two conditions: 1) if she waited until she was 21 to make a go at her career and 2) if she continued her education. 

And she’s made good on that promise. Stallion even returned to classes months after releasing her mixtape, Tina Snow, which featured the instant-hit, “Hot Girl Summer.” 

Stallion will graduate in December of 2021 and clearly (and rightly so!), the singer is also very proud of her achievements for herself as well. 

“2021 finna graduate collegeeee 😛 taking my graduation pics today 😭I can’t wait for y’all to see,” Stallion posted on her Instagram account.

Stallion’s announcement just goes to show that a career in healthcare is always a smart decision and whether you’re a Grammy-award-winning singer or just looking for a stable and fulfilling educational pathway, healthcare administration offers an opportunity for the future. 

What can you do With a Healthcare Administration Degree?

Just like Stallion plans to use her healthcare administration degree in a hands-off way--she told People she plans to open up an assisted living facility funded by her career as a singer and staff it with her fellow healthcare admin classmates--a career in healthcare administration allows you to be involved in patient care and the healthcare world without being directly at the bedside. 

As Nurse.org’s Healthcare Administration Guide explains, healthcare administrators typically do not deal with patients on a day-to-day basis, but instead, work “behind-the-scenes.” They oversee the daily operations of a medical facility, including staffing, finance, and overall healthcare compliance to all governing bodies. 

Some job titles that you could pursue after getting a degree in healthcare administration include: 

• Hospital CEO
• Hospital department manager
• Hospital CFO
• Nursing home administrator
• Clinic administrator
• Medical office business manager
• Facility operations specialist
• Manager of health care staffing agency
• Health Information Manager
• Healthcare Information Administrator
• Healthcare Policy Specialist
• Healthcare Program Director

Getting a degree in healthcare administration and pursuing medical management at any level is also a smart career move because it’s a field that will only continue to grow. In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) predicts a 32% job growth in healthcare administration over the next decade.

How Much Money Can You Make With a Healthcare Administration Degree?

The BLS also explains that there’s a pretty wide range in pay that you can make with a degree in healthcare administration, but one thing is for certain: it has the potential to be highly lucrative. 

Obviously, pay is commensurate on experience, where you work, and what your exact title is (a hospital CEO, for instance, will make a lot more than a manager at a doctor’s office), but the average annual wage for a medical and health services manager was $104,280 in May 2020, according to the BLS. 

The lowest 10 percent of workers in that category earned less than $59,980, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $195,630. Where you work will also impact how much you make. The BLS noted that the highest earners were medical managers who worked in hospitals and for the government, while the lowest worked in medical care facilities: 

• Government: $116,380
• Hospitals; state, local, and private: $112,870
• Outpatient care centers: $100,690
• Offices of physicians: $94,240
• Nursing and residential care facilities: $89,880

And last but not least, here’s one more convincing point for a healthcare administration degree: it’s entirely possible to continue to work and pursue the degree 100% online. I mean, just look at Stallion for proof: the woman earned a Grammy for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song in 2020, along with a third Grammy that year for Best New Artist, and collaborated with none other than Beyonce herself on the song, “Savage,” which sold over 4 million copies. Oh, and she partnered with major brands like Revlon and Nike too. 

If she can do all that while still taking classes part-time, imagine what you can do too. 

>> Show Me Online Healthcare Administration Programs

How to get a Healthcare Administration Degree

If you’re interested in looking more into a degree in healthcare administration and channeling your inner Stallion, there are many options you can pursue. If you already have an associate’s, talk to a university about transferring credits and working towards your bachelor’s. 

Or, you can enroll directly into a bachelor’s program like Meg. There are also options for master-level and doctoral degrees, but most often, a Bachelor's degree is the first route into the career path. 

A Bachelor’s degree can range in cost, depending on the school, location, whether you take full or part-time classes, and if the degree is online or not, but on average, you can expect the degree to follow the average cost of annual tuition at an in-state school, around $11K per year. 

In your Bachelor’s program, you can expect to take classes such as:

• Communication and Technologies
• Ethical Considerations of Healthcare
• Healthcare Administration
• Healthcare Data Management
• Healthcare Finance
• Healthcare IT Infrastructure and Network Management
• Healthcare Quality Management
• Healthcare Regulatory Compliance and Accreditation
• Healthcare Reimbursement
• Legal Considerations of Healthcare
• Managing and Leading
• Organizational Behavior
• Patient Safety Systems and Strategies
• Performance Improvement Measurement and Methodologies
• Principles of Epidemiology
• Public Health and Safety

If you’re interested in learning more about healthcare administration, how much the degree might cost, what options are available for full, part-time, and online, as well as possible career paths, be sure to visit our complete Healthcare Administration Career Guide.