Master's Degree in Human Services Administration
Why Earn Your Human Services Administration Degree at Saint Leo University?
Our online Master of Science in human services administration degree program prepares graduates with the knowledge, values, and skills they need to administer or start their own human services agency or organization. Students will examine methods of leadership, management, board development, fundraising, ethical issues, community needs assessment, program evaluation, marketing, advocacy, managing volunteers, grantsmanship, and creating a new human services organization. You will learn these executive-level skills:
- Steps for developing a nonprofit organization, including applying for 501(c)(3) status, drafting agency bylaws, crafting and implementing a mission statement, and organizing a board of directors;
- Business principles for creating for-profit organizations and social entrepreneurship ventures;
- Budgeting, fundraising, marketing, and grantsmanship strategies;
- Steps to conduct a community needs assessment, followed by the steps needed to create new services or improve upon existing services to fill gaps;
- Strategies to market human services programs, recruit a volunteer workforce, and manage staff
The education graduates attain prepares them to create their own community service organization, or to take on administrative and program development roles within existing agencies, and can be applied at agencies that address a wide range of needs and social issues, described in more detail below.
Master of Science (MS) in human services administration degree gives you the tools needed to advance your human services career. It prepares you to succeed while also instilling the values and skills necessary to administer or start your own successful human services agency or organization.
Learning Experience:
Education Center Online
Est. Time to Complete:
1 or 2 years
Credit Hours:
36 hours
Master's in Human Services Administration Program Details
Graduates of the human services master's degree will be prepared for administrative jobs in healthcare, child welfare, aging, mental health, counseling, or other human services agencies. They will also be trained in program development if they choose to create their own community service agency.
Learn Your Way:
Online, On Campus, or Near You
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What are the on-campus facilities like?
Students who pursue their degrees at Saint Leo’s main campus near sunny Tampa Bay, Florida, join a community of enthusiastic learners just like them.
Students enjoy plenty of engaging learning opportunities both inside and outside the classroom, as well as exciting departmental events.
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What are the benefits of earning your human services administration degree online?
Saint Leo University’s online learning experience provides a well-rounded education with the flexibility to tailor your course of study to meet your individual needs. We know our students have lives outside school, and we seek to meet them where they are. Online students can count on receiving excellent academics as well as opportunities for hands-on learning.
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Taking online classes has afforded me the opportunity to learn while maintaining a job. They give me some flexibility to study at times that work more cohesively with my schedule and allow me to utilize resources such as the library 24 hours a day.
Bentley Streat | Hayes, VA
Are education centers near you offering human services administration degree programs?
You may also choose to pursue your degree through one of our education centers, which merge a traditional in-person education with the flexibility to match your lifestyle. Education centers offer eight-week academic terms as well as evening and weekend classes.
Career Outlook
No matter which learning experience you choose, you will receive plenty of professional development opportunities, industry knowledge from expert professors, and support from the Saint Leo community. All this together means that you will be ready for a successful career or continued studies upon graduation.
What skills you will learn?
- Develop a strategy and fundraising plan for a human services organization.
- Identify fundraising tools that include people, skills, equipment, and technology.
- Locate websites and organizations that are sources for public and private grants, foundations, and contracts.
- Develop a grant application for use in a human services organization.
- Determine action steps to address organizational legal and ethical issues.
- Recognize and understand the National Organization for Human Services Code of Ethics.
- Discuss the history and the need for past and present human services and the vulnerable populations they serve such as children, the aged, mentally and physically challenged, victims of crime and abuse, those living in poverty, substance abusers, and those who are chronically ill.
- Describe new models of human services organizations including private for profit, private non-profit, and social entrepreneurship.
- Create a marketing plan for a human services organization.
- Apply human resource management concepts to a human services organization.
- Identify ethical issues that challenge human services professionals and administrators.
- Analyze the administrative policies and procedures of a human services agency.
- Develop an annual budget for a human services agency.
- Construct job descriptions for a human services organization.
- Describe the concept of a needs assessment and how they are conducted
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How will you gain real experience?
Through direct community involvement that includes service learning and an elected internship, you will learn how to put theories into practice in your community. This gives you the opportunity to create a community assessment to determine where gaps in service exist. From there, you’ll discover how to develop a 501(c)(3) organization with agency bylaws, a mission statement, and a board of trustees. Students also receive hands-on experience with planning, managing, and leading in the human services field.
What can you do with a master's in human services administration degree?
The master's in human services administration prepares graduates for a wide variety of management and administrative positions in companies, government, and nonprofit organizations. The program teaches students best-practice skills in managing and administering existing human services agencies. Such organizations include those that serve children, adolescents, adults, veterans, homeless, and the elderly. The program provides students the tools to start their own agency.
What are the top human services administration degree jobs?
| Career | Growth | Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Social Service and Community Manager | 15% (Faster than average) | $69,600 ($74,000) per year |
| Community Outreach Advocate | 13% (Faster than average) | $46,910 per year |
| Social and Community Service Managers | 15% (Faster than average) | $74,000 per year |
From the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2020.
Where are Saint Leo human services administration graduates now?
Specific positions held by Saint Leo's human services administration graduates have included: Executive Director, CEO, Agency Director, Associate Director, Program Manager, Program Director, Disaster Program Manager, Director, Grants Management Specialist, Policy Analyst, Contract Manager, Government Information Specialist, Advocacy Director, Nonprofit Administrator, Community Relations Director, Fundraising Director, Marketing Director (nonprofit setting), Donor Relations Manager, Coordinator of Planned Giving, Director of Special Initiatives, Compliance Director, Volunteer Director, Special Events Director, Public Relations Manager, Housing Program Manager, Director of Support Services, Teen Center Director, Homeless Services Director, Director of Human Services, Human Services Business Analyst, Human Services Consultant, Human Services Supervisor or Director, Human Services Policy Analyst, Director of Diversion and Re-Entry Services, Community Connections Manager, Community Engagement Advocate, Community Outreach and Advocacy Manager, Hospice Administrator, Family Services Supervisor, Deputy Project Director, Director of Data Analytics, Director Rape Crisis Center, Health and Advocacy Program Manager, Grant Management Director, Department of Human Services Director, Director of Institute of Coordinated Community Response, Department of Health and Human Services Program Specialists, Deputy Human Services Director, Director of Community Intervention and Support Services, Human Services Executive Strategist
College of Education & Social Services
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Saint Leo University’s College of Education and Social Services couples a transformative liberal arts tradition with highly specialized training in the education and social services fields. Through close faculty mentorships, practical field internships, and applied learning experiences, we prepare students for careers in education, social work, criminal justice, and human services. Our faculty remain active in their respective fields as researchers and practitioners, giving students close access to a wealth of real-world knowledge and experience.
With the ever-changing needs of today's students, we provide flexible degree programs. These include programs at University Campus and education centers with evening and weekend options, as well as online offerings. These degree programs are grooming the next generation of educators and social service specialists—a new breed of professionals with the talent and resolve to make a difference in the world.
