Earn Your Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Compliance Online
Elevate patient security, healthcare operations, and your career with Kent State's Online Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Compliance. This focused program, accredited by the Compliance Certification Board (CCB)® and designed by leading compliance experts, prepares you to navigate the complex landscape of healthcare regulation with confidence. Study with Kent State faculty who hold healthcare compliance certifications and are actively engaged in the field. Complete the certificate in as few as two and a half semesters and position yourself at the forefront of this fast-growing healthcare administration specialty.
Program Snapshot
- 100% online course delivery
- Total credits: 15
- Approximate cost per credit: $695 in state, $705 out of state
- Earn your certificate in as few as 2½ semesters
Build the Career You Want
Take your career to a higher level with Kent State’s affordable, flexible undergraduate and graduate public health programs. Our 100% online programs allow you to keep up with your current responsibilities while you study. Find out how these programs can help you create the career and positive public health impact you want to have.
Download our guide to learn more about:
- Career Opportunities
- Customizing Your Degree
- The Student Experience
- Admission Requirements
- Tuition and Financial Aid
Download Program Brochure
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Confidently Manage Compliance
Since its establishment in 2009, Kent State University’s College of Public Health (CPH) has consistently led with innovative and high-quality online education. Continuing its drive to pioneer new pathways in health education, Kent State proudly offers the online Healthcare Compliance Certificate program.
Designed for working professionals aiming to excel in a crucial new area of healthcare management, this program equips participants with the knowledge and skills to devise, manage and evaluate compliance frameworks in various healthcare settings.
CCB®-Accredited Education That Works for You
The Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Compliance, offered by the Kent State University College of Public Health, has received accreditation from the prestigious Compliance Certification Board (CCB) starting August 1, 2024. Students who successfully complete the 100% online certificate, while meeting all CCB criteria, can apply to take the CCB’s healthcare examinations.
These exams include:
- Certified in Healthcare Compliance (CHC)®
- Certified in Healthcare Privacy Compliance (CHPC)®
- Certified in Healthcare Research Compliance (CHRC)®
The curriculum and content have been developed by top Kent State University faculty and industry experts, who all hold the Certified in Healthcare Compliance (CHC) designation. Online courses have been created using Quality Matters standards to offer students meticulously planned, authentic learning experiences.
For more information about the CCB certifications, email ccb@compliancecertification.org or call: 888-580-8373 or +1 952-933-4977
The certificate is available as a standalone credential or, if you decide to earn a master’s degree, your certificate credits will transfer to the Master of Public Health with a specialization in Health Policy and Management. The flexible program’s asynchronous course delivery helps you, as a working professional, maintain your other commitments and responsibilities while pursuing your professional education goals.
Kent State University is also proud to be accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) and recognized for outstanding service to the extended military community, and all students, with the Military Friendly Gold Designation.
Healthcare Compliance Graduate Certificate Program Overview
The Healthcare Compliance graduate certificate provides the training necessary to enter this growing field where compliance professionals design and implement comprehensive programs to identify potential risk areas, develop policies, train staff, evaluate effectiveness and conduct investigations.
Healthcare spending accounts for approximately 19 percent of the entire U.S. economy. Unfortunately, some of that money is misspent in the form of fraud, waste and abuse. Federal and state governments continue to increase their scrutiny of healthcare organizations through a maze of complex law and regulations touching every part of the organization. The field of healthcare compliance is emerging as a response to these challenges.
Online for Convenience, On-Site for Impact
Kent State’s Healthcare Compliance Certificate program offers the potential of combining an applied practice experience with your online coursework to help you stand out with real-world compliance experience.
Build Your Career as You Go and Apply Your Certificate Courses to Your MPH
Deepen your healthcare expertise and enhance your resume with the Kent State online Master of Public Health (MPH) program. Created for working professionals with a passion for advancing healthcare, this rigorous and respected 46-credit-hour program also offers asynchronous coursework, enabling you to manage your coursework and other commitments seamlessly.
Use your healthcare compliance knowledge immediately in the workplace and apply your credits directly to your Master of Public Health with a Health Policy and Management specialization. With this innovative program design, you can earn two high-quality credentials for the same price, solidifying your expertise and positioning you for leadership roles in the evolving healthcare landscape.
Program Structure and Organization
The 15-credit-hour online Healthcare Compliance graduate certificate comprises five courses, and you have the potential to choose between an online course and an on-site applied practice experience as one of them. Focusing on one course at a time, you can complete two seven-week courses each semester while keeping up your other commitments.
If you choose to pursue the applied practice experience, you will be responsible for finding your own placement site, which must be approved by the program coordinator.
The Flexibility and Support You Need to Succeed
- Six rolling start dates throughout the year so you can begin the program when it fits your schedule
- No GRE requirement
- Asynchronous courses and a powerful, user-friendly learning management system
- Five focused seven-week courses, with the potential to complete an applied practice experience in your community
- Includes one-year HCCA membership, with discounted exam fees and a free CHC certification test preparation guide
Because the courses in Kent State’s healthcare industry compliance certification program are focused and fast-paced, you can earn your graduate certificate in as few as two and a half semesters. Let Kent State help you achieve your professional public health goals.
Rising Demand for Healthcare Compliance Professionals
Healthcare and healthcare regulations constantly evolve, so the demand for healthcare compliance professionals is skyrocketing. Compliance roles are a fast-growing part of the burgeoning medical and health services management field. From 2024-2034, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasts a 23% growth rate for medical and health services management jobs: much higher than the average job growth rate. Specialists who can confidently navigate the complexities of healthcare regulations will be in demand.1
What’s Driving the Demand
Technological innovations such as artificial intelligence, telemedicine and health data analytics are transforming patient care. While beneficial, these advancements create new challenges in ethics, privacy and security, while spurring the creation of more regulation at different levels of government. Compliance professionals step into this evolving landscape to create frameworks to ensure these technologies are used responsibly and ethically.2
The Role of Healthcare Compliance Officers
Healthcare compliance officers are the backbone of a safe and ethical healthcare environment. The qualities essential for success in this vital role include ethical judgment, clear communication, unwavering attention to detail, leadership and a comprehensive understanding of healthcare laws. The wide-ranging duties for these professionals include:3
- Conducting internal audits
- Developing policies
- Training staff to ensure regulatory compliance
Opportunities in Diverse Organizations
The field of healthcare compliance offers many career opportunities across various settings, from hospitals and health plans to medical equipment companies and pharmaceutical industries. These diverse roles allow you to choose your unique path to making a positive difference in the healthcare industry.2
For a top-level career, master regulatory compliance.
With a Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Compliance, you'll be prepared for specialized positions that reward regulatory expertise:
Healthcare Compliance Graduate Certificate Program Outcomes
Move toward mastery of the crucial field of healthcare compliance with Kent State's online healthcare compliance training courses. This graduate program is tailor-made to fuel your career with focused expertise:
- Decoding healthcare laws and regulations: Arm yourself with knowledge to navigate skillfully through the legal maze of one of the most regulated sectors in the U.S.
- Championing privacy and security: Learn the ins and outs of safeguarding patient health information, grounded in the core principles of the HIPAA and HITECH Acts
- Specialized proficiency: Forge your own path by choosing an elective that expands your understanding of the U.S. healthcare system or offers practical experience in a local healthcare setting
The Certificate in Healthcare Compliance Can Boost Your Career
Your Graduate Certificate in Healthcare Compliance will help you provide valuable service to healthcare organizations, their patients and stakeholders. Leading organizations in these areas will welcome your expertise.
- Hospitals
- Health systems
- Medical groups/physician practices
- Long-term/palliative/eldercare organizations
- Behavioral health organizations
- Pharmaceutical companies
- Consulting firms
Courses
Certificate Requirements
HPM 62017 HEALTHCARE LAW AND REGULATION (3 credits)
Healthcare is one of the most heavily regulated industries in the United States. In order to contain spiraling costs, the federal and state governments are focusing on individual provider conduct in the context of fraud, waste and abuse scrutiny. This course covers the underlying theories behind healthcare law and regulation as well as specific provisions affecting the organization, delivery and payment of primary health services. Administrators and clinicians gain a basic understanding of the regulatory environment and provisions impacting their practice.
Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
Schedule Type: Lecture
Contact Hours: 3 lecture
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
HPM 63008 HEALTHCARE PRIVACY AND SECURITY (3 credits)
Introduces students to the fundamental concerns addressed by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA).
Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
Schedule Type: Lecture
Contact Hours: 3 lecture
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
HPM 63009 HEALTHCARE COMPLIANCE I (3 credits)
This course provides an overview of the creation and composition of typical compliance programs as laid out in the Federal Sentencing Guidelines and other federal guidance. Students also learn about functions and roles in an organization that supports the compliance function such as senior leadership, the board of directors and compliance committee.
Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
Schedule Type: Lecture
Contact Hours: 3 lecture
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
HPM 63010 HEALTHCARE COMPLIANCE II (3 credits)
This course focuses on the compliance functions within a healthcare operation that implements, operates and evaluates the existing compliance program.
Prerequisite: HPM 63009; and graduate standing.
Schedule Type: Lecture
Contact Hours: 3 lecture
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Certificate Electives
Choose from the following (3 credits):
ECON 52086 ECONOMICS OF HEALTH CARE
(Slashed with ECON 42086) This is a one-semester course on a topic of major policy interest, particularly given the current health care reform debate. It is impossible to turn on the news today and not hear a story about the health care industry. Health care accounts for almost 20 percent of all that is produced in the United States. In addition, it has been a major political issue in recent years. The overall objective of the course is to use concepts and tools of economics to understand and evaluate what has and is happening in the health care profession and current policies under consideration.
Prerequisite: ECON 22060; and graduate standing.
Schedule Type: Lecture
Contact Hours: 3 lecture
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
HPM 60392 APPLIED PRACTICE EXPERIENCE IN HEALTH POLICY AND MANAGEMENT 1
(Repeatable for credit) Observation and participation in public health activities of a public health agency, hospital or other approved organization. The student completes the field experience with joint supervision from the university and approved organization or agency.
Prerequisite: Graduate standing; and special approval.
Schedule Type: Practical Experience
Contact Hours: 9-18 other
Grade Mode: Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory-IP
HPM 63003 HEALTH CARE SYSTEMS
Provides a systems approach to delivering health care and public health services in the US. Includes an overview of public health, outpatient, inpatient, managed care, long term care and health services for special populations.
Prerequisite: Graduate standing.
Schedule Type: Lecture
Contact Hours: 3 lecture
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
LTCA 54032 LONG-TERM CARE ADMINISTRATION I
(Slashed with LTCA 44032) Presents an overview and introduction to the principles of long-term care (LTC) administration and other administration options.
Prerequisite: Graduate standing; and special approval.
Schedule Type: Lecture
Contact Hours: 3 lecture
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Minimum Total Credit Hours: 15
1 Students who select HPM 60392 must undertake the practicum in the area of healthcare compliance.
Graduation Requirements
| Minimum Certificate GPA | Minimum Overall GPA |
|---|---|
| 3.000 | 3.000 |
Have questions? We have answers.
Choosing the right online program comes with lots of questions, and our admissions outreach advisor is here to help you sort through them all. Connect with this friendly, knowledgeable advisor for personalized guidance. Taylor will make sure you have everything you need to feel confident about your next steps at Kent State.
- Retrieved on August 28, 2025, from bls.gov/ooh/management/medical-and-health-services-managers.htm#tab-1
- Retrieved on August 28, 2025, from compliancecosmos.org/navigating-successful-career-healthcare-compliance
- Retrieved on August 28, 2025, from indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/how-to-become-compliance-officer-in-healthcare
- Retrieved on August 28, 2025, from glassdoor.com/Salaries/us-director-of-compliance-salary-SRCH_IL.0,2_IN1_KO3,25.htm
- Retrieved on August 28, 2025, from glassdoor.com/Salaries/us-privacy-specialist-health-salary-SRCH_IL.0,2_IN1_KO3,21_KE22,28.htm
- Retrieved on August 28, 2025, from glassdoor.com/Salaries/us-compliance-program-manager-salary-SRCH_IL.0,2_IN1_KO3,29.htm
- Retrieved on August 28, 2025, from glassdoor.com/Salaries/us-privacy-officer-salary-SRCH_IL.0,2_IN1_KO3,18.htm