Master of Business Administration / Master of Public Health

The Master of Business Administration / Master of Public Health is a double master's degree for people who want to run health organisations, not just work in them. You study two sets of subjects: the MBA core, accounting, marketing, organisational behaviour, economics, strategy, leadership, and the public health core, epidemiology, biostatistics, health promotion, health policy and planning, environmental health, and Indigenous health. The two halves meet in subjects like health economics and health services management, where you cost a programme, argue for it, and then work out how to staff and run it.

How the degree is structured

Australian master's degrees usually run over one to two years full-time and are built from units of study, each worth a set number of credit points. You need a fixed total, commonly 160 credit points for a two-year degree, to graduate. Torrens University Australia teaches across trimesters, so you can spread the load or push through faster depending on how many units you take each trimester. Expect a capstone in the final stage: a research project or industry-based consulting project where you apply both sides of the degree to one real problem. Assessment is a mix of essays, case analyses, data work, group presentations and exams.

Skills you build

You learn to read an epidemiological study and question its methods. You learn to build a budget and defend it to a board. You learn how health systems are funded in Australia, Medicare, private health insurance, state and federal responsibilities, and how policy gets made. You practise managing people, projects and change in organisations where the stakes are high and the resources are tight. By the end you can move between a spreadsheet, a policy document and a community consultation without losing the thread.

Who it suits

This suits clinicians stepping into management, nurses, doctors, allied health professionals, and also people from business, government or NGOs who want to specialise in health. If you already hold an MBA, a public health master's, or a bachelor degree with relevant work experience, you may be eligible for credit, which shortens the degree. Credit is assessed unit by unit and granted as credit points, so ask about Recognition of Prior Learning before you enrol. International students should confirm the exact English requirement for this course on the official page; IELTS Academic 6.0–6.5 overall is the common coursework-postgraduate standard, but some health-related courses ask for more. A Student visa lets you work up to 48 hours per fortnight while you study, and the Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) post-study work stream is available after you finish if you meet the requirements. Tuition is published on the CRICOS register under course code 090242C.

• Health services manager, running a hospital department, community health centre or aged care facility.
• Public health programme manager, designing and delivering disease prevention, health promotion or screening programmes for government or NGOs.
• Health policy analyst, advising on policy at state or federal health departments, or in a think tank.
• Practice manager or operations lead, managing a general practice, specialist clinic or private hospital.
• Health economist or consultant, working for consultancies, insurers or health technology assessment bodies.
• Epidemiology or surveillance officer, tracking disease patterns and outbreaks in public health units.
• Project manager in global health, coordinating programmes for international NGOs or aid agencies.
• Chief operating officer or general manager, in private health, medical technology or health insurance.