Health Infrastructures & Learning Systems (HILS) Online

Applications for the Fall of 2024 are now open.

Become a Transformational Leader in Health Care Improvement

Apply to the HILS-Online Master's Program

Explore Part-Time and Full-Time Options

Today’s challenging health care problems require innovative, systematic solutions. Combining the fields of informatics, implementation science, analytics and related fields will help to decrease the yearslong gap that exists between discovery of new knowledge and its widespread implementation into health systems, community organizations and policies. 

If you’re an innovative thinker who is passionate about improving health care and systems, earning a Health Infrastructures and Learning Systems (HILS) online master’s degree from the University of Michigan Medical School is the next step to supercharge your career. 

We offer free online information sessions hosted by our program leaders so you can learn more and ask questions about the field of learning health systems.

Watch this space for notification of the next virtual information session.

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Be at the Forefront of Health Care Quality and Improvement

HILS-Online is a first-of-its-kind program and part of an international movement to promote an integrated learning health system model. The master's degree program's 8 required courses provide you with foundational knowledge of adaptive change, which you can immediately apply to existing problems in your workplace. You will learn how to solve some of the most complex health problems in the U.S. and abroad through a flexible part-time or full-time, 100% online curriculum that works with your schedule.

Through the HILS-Online program you will: 

  • Study at a top-tier research institution with faculty who are leading experts in the field
  • Design and evaluate health care systems improvement initiatives using the latest research findings
  • Hone your skills through a hands-on learning health systems project
  • Earn a University of Michigan M.S. on either a part-time or full-time schedule
  • Become a leader in data-driven health care improvement

Why Choose HILS-Online

Part-Time or Full-Time Online Master's Program

This online program is designed for admitted United States citizens and residents who are employed in jobs that they wish to advance in, without having to leave their position and move to Michigan. Students are able to incorporate their classes into their daily life schedules and complete assignments from anywhere via laptop, tablet, or mobile device.

The 27-credit MS program, which includes a hands-on learning health systems project, is designed to be completed in 2-3 years for part-time students or 3 semesters over 12 months for full-time students.

All courses are online versions of courses that have been offered in the HILS residential (MS and PhD) program since 2016. The required courses include:
• Exploratory Data Analysis for Health
• Knowledge Representation and Management in Health
• Implementation Science in Health
• Learning Cycle Capstone
• Health Infrastructures Program Seminar
• Evaluation and Research Methods for Health Informatics and Learning Systems
• Ethics and Policy Issues for Learning Health Systems
• Learning Cycle Informatics

Students also visit the University of Michigan campus 3 times during the program, for orientation and other collaborative sessions.

Expanded Careers Opportunities

As a graduate of HILS-Online, you will be prepared to address the social and technical challenges of making continuous health care improvement routine in real-world settings in roles such as:

  • Health Informatics Consultant
  • Health Care Operations Manager
  • Social and Community Services Director
  • Quality Improvement Designer
  • Hospital Data Developer

As a practitioner in learning health systems, you will:

  • Implement solutions across systems with varying degrees of complexity and scale
  • Translate research evidence into practice
  • Improve health care quality and safety at scale
  • Reduce medical errors and health care costs

Prestigious Academic Home

HILS-Online is housed in the Department of Learning Health Sciences, a basic science department in the University of Michigan Medical School. The HILS program and its faculty have close affiliations with the University of Michigan’s highly regarded schools of Information, Public Health, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Nursing and others.

Innovative Curriculum and Faculty

The HILS-Online program is a full-fledged University of Michigan master’s degree. A unique combination of courses, offered by the program’s own interdisciplinary faculty, includes study of infrastructure, health informatics, data science, knowledge management, implementation science, statistical and evaluation methods, and ethics—all applied to health system change and improvement. The program is directed by Dr. Caren Stalburg, and the program’s home department is chaired by Dr. Charles Friedman, an international leader in the field of learning health systems.

Collaborative Community

HILS-Online attracts students from a wide range of health care and professional experiences who are passionate about transforming health systems. These may include professionals in health sciences/health professions, information, computing, engineering, behavioral and social sciences, and organizational and policy sciences.

Special emphasis is placed on creating a vibrant community for our online students. High quality education includes strategies to engage students with faculty, each other and the learning process, and includes three in-person campus experiences as well as numerous online activities. Opportunities for face-to-face mentoring augments the already existing relationship that is created in the online space.

Robust Advising and Student Services

HILS-Online students are paired with a faculty advisor and have access to faculty through live office hours and email. Students can also connect with the program manager through email, Zoom video conferencing, Slack and other online channels of communication. HILS-Online students have the same access to student support services, student organizations and student activities as are available to residential students, such as those services provided through Rackham Graduate School, the Office of Graduate Postdoctoral Studies, and the university libraries, including the Taubman Health Sciences Library. Through these platforms, students can find information on diversity resources, counseling services, health and wellness, and career services just to name a few.

Why Learning Health Systems are Key to Health Care Improvement

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Online master’s degree focuses on improving health care quality and safety (link is external)
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