Strategic Marketing and Recruitment Summary

74 Pages·2010·10.23 MB·English

2006-10

Strategic Marketing and Recruitment Summary

THE UCLA EMPH Program in Healthcare
Management and Policy
Department of
An Executive-Style Master of Public
Health Services
Health Degree
5/2/2010
THE HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT & POLICY EXECUTIVE-STYLE MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH MARKETING AND RECRUITMENT SUMMARY – 2006-10

Contents

Overview.................................................................... 3
Marketing & Recruitment Strategy .......................... 9
2009-10 Summary ................................................... 20
2008-09 Summary ................................................... 29
2007-08 Summary ................................................... 36
APPENDIX ................................................................ 42

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THE HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT & POLICY EXECUTIVE-STYLE MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH MARKETING AND RECRUITMENT SUMMARY – 2006-10
Overview

The business of healthcare is a multi-trillion dollar industry, spanning international
borders and growing faster than almost any other segment of the world economy. As the
national economy struggles to recover from some of the worst unemployment statistics in
decades, the healthcare field is frequently cited as one of the anticipated bright spots for
potential employment growth. Healthcare spending, which already accounts for about one-
sixth of the nation’s GDP, is expected to rise sharply in the coming years as the baby boom
generation retires. The stresses of rapid growth are already evident in some sectors of the
healthcare workforce, with the current acute shortage of nurses being a prime example.
Moreover, the sheer growth and rate of innovation in the healthcare industry is driving the
demand for a workforce with increasingly specialized skills, not only on the front lines of
healthcare delivery, but also in the ancillary fields including biotechnology and pharmacology.
The growth and diversification of the healthcare enterprise is also sparking a critical shortage of
adequately trained individuals in business enterprise, management and leadership of
healthcare organizations. The rapid changes in the organization and financing of healthcare are
dramatically transforming the understanding and skill sets required of people who manage and
lead these institutions.
Executive training in healthcare management is no longer just an adjunct to a traditional
business degree, but a comprehensive approach to understanding, and mastering, the dynamic
industry that healthcare has become. At UCLA, the Executive Master of Public Health (EMPH) in
Healthcare Management and Policy program has grown into one of the most far-reaching
training and leadership programs of its kind. It offers a rigorous, fully-accredited competency-
based curriculum that exceeds that of a full-time Masters degree program, in a bi-weekly
weekend format that is designed to meet the needs and time constraints of working
professionals. The EMPH Program provides and extraordinary environment in which students
join with world-class faculty, an accomplished and extensive alumni network, and some of the
most bold and innovative healthcare enterprises, both public and private, right outside UCLA’s
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THE HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT & POLICY EXECUTIVE-STYLE MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH MARKETING AND RECRUITMENT SUMMARY – 2006-10
doorstep. Coupled with abundant opportunities for close collaboration across UCLA’s other
world-renowned professional schools, including the David Geffen School of Medicine and the
Anderson School of Management, the EMPH Program offers the ability to craft a uniquely
tailored educational and professional experience that is unrivaled anywhere else in the world.
The UCLA Executive-Style Master of Public Health Program in Healthcare Management and
Policy has been a part of the UCLA curriculum offerings for graduate programs since 1997. The
program complements the full time Master of Public Health Program by offering a part-time
option for working professionals. The program is uniquely designed for today's complex
healthcare and competitive business environment, and offers a real life, comprehensive
graduate business education tailored to the needs of healthcare professionals without the
necessity of giving up full-time responsibilities Key goals of the program are to continue to
offer relevant and meaningful courses in order to offer superior academic preparation, build its
Global Health program which allows students to apply the theory, knowledge, skills, and
techniques obtained in the classroom in a global setting, and connect with the community
through outreach events and alumni engagement.
Professionals in the expanding healthcare industry face an environment that is changing
dramatically and rapidly. In this competitive workplace, professionals seek ways to manage
their organizations more effectively. The recent economic downturn has added additional
challenges to both organizations, and individuals looking to respond effectively in this volatile
climate. The UCLA Executive-Style Master of Public Health Program in Healthcare Management
and Policy, offers mid-career managers, clinicians, and professionals affiliated with the
healthcare industry with the tools needed to meet these challenges, whether in the private or
public sectors of the healthcare community. Classes are conveniently scheduled on alternate
weekends (Friday afternoons and evenings, and all day Saturdays) over two academic years. An
applied field project and a comprehensive business plan are completed during the course of
study, along with several other course related projects. The students (approximately 35) in each
cohort follow the same rigorous course of study in management and healthcare. The curriculum
is filled with current, applied information and cases relevant to real life situations. Professionals
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THE HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT & POLICY EXECUTIVE-STYLE MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH MARKETING AND RECRUITMENT SUMMARY – 2006-10
learn from world-class faculty in the UCLA School of Public Health and leading practitioners in
the field.
The EMPH program is housed within the UCLA School of Public Health, which has 200
faculty members (80 full-time), 700 students (500 masters level and 200 doctoral level), and
200 staff. Students at the UCLA School of Public Health receive state-of-the art public health
training from distinguished experts in the field of public health (including nine members of the
Institute of Medicine and three past presidents of the American Public Health Association)
combined with practical, hands-on experience. The School's classrooms and laboratories are
under the same roof as UCLA's world-renowned hospital and medical, dental, and nursing
schools, and just steps away from the rest of the University providing abundant opportunities
for multidisciplinary collaboration. In addition, the School's location in the most diverse county
in the country provides a unique setting with unparalleled opportunities for research, teaching,
and service. Below is the Executive Education Programs in Healthcare Management & Policy
model, which includes the EMPH Program, Short Courses, Seminars, Distance Learning and the
Healthcare Collaborative (HCC).

Of all graduate programs offered in the United States, 75% are accredited. Regarding programs
offered, 57% offer a Master of Health Administration, 13% offer a Master of Public Health, 13%
offer a Master of Business Administration and 17% offer more than one of these degrees. 27
schools offered distance learning and 21 schools offered Executive Education. Only the
University of North Carolina offered both Distance Learning and Executive Education. The top
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THE HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT & POLICY EXECUTIVE-STYLE MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH MARKETING AND RECRUITMENT SUMMARY – 2006-10
three schools in Health Services Administration are: 1) University of Michigan – Ann Arbor,
2) University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, and 3) University of Pennsylvania – Wharton.
Type of Programs
57%
60%
50%
40%
30%
13% 13% 17%
20%
10%
0%
MHA MPH MBA Combination

Local competitors which offer Healthcare Executive Management graduate degree programs
include the University of Southern California and the University of California, Irvine.
Healthcare Executive Management Programs in Southern California
UCLA USC UCI
•EMPH •EMHA •HCEMBA
•School of Public •Policy, Planning, •School of
Health Development Business
•92 units •34 Units (24 req; •92 units
•16 units/quarter 10 elect) •12 units/quarter
•24 courses •8 units/semester + SU
•Biweekly (two •Biweekly (two •Monthly (three
days) days) days)
•Tuition: •Tuition: •Tuition:
$22,000/yr $26,000/yr $47,425/yr

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Marketing & Recruitment Strategy

Since 2006, the UCLA EMPH Program has sought to deliver consistent messaging and
branding to create awareness and support program recruitment goals, and to build its brand
name nationwide. Prior to 2006, the program suffered from inconsistent branding due to the
use of vague nomenclature. The "MPH-HP" moniker that was used to refer to the program in
health management was the same as that used for a similar executive style program in the
School's Department of Community Health Sciences. Moreover, the commonly-used full
program name: the Master of Public Health for Health Professionals and Auxiliaries-did not
accurately represent the market at which the program was aimed, including ancillary fields such
as health law, biotechnology, marketing, human resources, insurance and more.

In 2006, a concerted effort was made to brand the program appropriately, starting with
the adoption of the name "Executive Master of Public Health Program in Healthcare
Management and Policy." The new name differentiated the program from the School's other
MPH-HP offerings, and also brought the program into compliance with the UC Policy on Self-
Supporting Part-Time Graduate Professional Degree Programs. Great care was taken to
emphasize that students would earn the MPH degree, but focused on the management,
financial, business and policy aspects of healthcare. Through its branding, recruitment, and
outreach efforts since 2006, the EMPH Program has created awareness and interest in not only
its own program, but in other UCLA graduate programs as well.

The marketing program includes both print and online media, radio, public relations,
recruitment, community outreach, and alumni engagement. The goal of the marketing
program is to enhance and increase the quality and diversity of students that apply to the
program, with a special focus on reaching out to underrepresented communities. The
advertising strategy targets publications in the Los Angeles and Southern California markets to
create awareness and interest in the UCLA Executive-Style Master of Public Health Program in
THE HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT & POLICY EXECUTIVE-STYLE MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH MARKETING AND RECRUITMENT SUMMARY – 2006-10
Healthcare Management and Policy, in order to increase the early sign up of qualified
applicants to the program. Advertising is intended to create continued awareness and
recognition of the program, to help foster word of mouth advertising, and maintain first in mind
visibility when potential students consider a fully employed master in public health program.
The media strategy utilizes various channels to reach a broader region wide audience to create
brand awareness for the UCLA Executive-Style Master of Public Health Program in Healthcare
Management and Policy. This strategy is intended to improve the perceived value of the school
and its programs by positively impacting the nationwide rankings conducted by organizations
such as the Association of University Programs in Health Administration (AUPHA) and US News
and World Report, as well as through effective media and public relations efforts.
Over the past three years, marketing campaigns have become increasingly aggressive,
necessitated by the competitive market place. There are increased threats for market share
from local programs that offer on-site courses, such as the University of Southern California and
UC Riverside, as well as from programs outside the region which offer distance learning, such as
Columbia and the University of Michigan. UC Berkeley will be rolling out its distance learning
program in 2011. As such, the advertising campaigns are bringing diminishing returns, with the
current year class applications being much lower than in previous years. In order to remain
competitive, the UCLA Executive-Style Master of Public Health Program in Healthcare
Management and Policy program must expand its offerings to include distance learning to meet
market demands for more flexibility in access to courses and a more integrated approach to
curriculum which includes blended learning as part of its value proposition. Although the UCLA
name has exceptional brand value, it is clear that potential students are very savvy at
researching all their education options, and are choosing schools which offer convenient and
accessible course offerings in addition to the brand name. Especially during the current
economic downturn, when consumers are delaying purchases and are reluctant to spend
overall, it is vital that UCLA’s program innovate in order to capture back some of the market
share it has lost. At this point, the program is behind its competitors in terms of its distance
learning, and without building this important piece into the program, prospective student
interest will continue to wane.
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