Health Informatics major
Health Informatics: courses, careers, and where to study
Health informatics is the study of capturing, storing, and analyzing clinical data so care teams can make better-informed decisions at the point of care.
Health informatics sits at the intersection of healthcare delivery and information technology, focusing on how patient and clinical data are recorded, organized, secured, and turned into usable knowledge. Students learn to design and manage electronic health record systems, structure medical terminology and coding so information moves cleanly between providers, and build the databases and decision-support tools that clinicians use at the point of care. Coursework blends computing fundamentals with healthcare context: students study how hospitals and clinics operate, the rules that govern patient privacy, and how to model medical decisions quantitatively. The major differs from a general computer science degree, which emphasizes theory and algorithms broadly; here the computing is always anchored in real clinical workflows, regulatory requirements, and the imaging, records, and research systems specific to medicine.
Programs are offered across the associate, bachelor's, and master's levels, with bachelor's and graduate study common for analyst, systems-design, and management roles in informatics. Curricula usually pair classroom study with applied components such as a database or systems project, a supervised practicum in a clinical or health information setting, and a capstone that ties the work together. Some roles connect to professional credentialing exams, and certain positions may call for credentials in health information management or medical coding, so prospective students should verify any programmatic accreditation and credentialing expectations for the path they intend to follow. Graduates work in hospitals, clinics and physician practices, insurance and managed-care organizations, public health agencies, health information technology vendors, and consulting firms, where they keep clinical data accurate, accessible, and protected.
In federal data for the closely related occupation of health information technologists and medical registrars, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a 2024 median wage of $67,310 and projects employment to grow about 14.7% from 2024 to 2034; an associate's degree is the typical entry-level education for that occupation. National figures are occupation-wide medians across all experience levels, not starting wages or graduate outcomes.
Academic classification (CIP)
In the federal Classification of Instructional Programs, Health Informatics maps to CIP 51.2706, Medical Informatics, within the HEALTH PROFESSIONS AND RELATED PROGRAMS family. The official definition:
A program that focuses on the application of computer science and software engineering to medical research and clinical information technology support, and the development of advanced imaging, database, and decision systems. Includes instruction in computer science, health information systems architecture, medical knowledge structures, medical language and image processing, quantitative medical decision modeling, imaging techniques, electronic medical records, medical research systems, clinical decision support, and informatics aspects of specific research and practice problems.
Source: U.S. Department of Education (NCES), Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) 2020. View on nces.ed.gov
What credential Health Informatics is awarded as
Of the 3,054 Health Informatics credentials U.S. colleges reported conferring in 2023-24:
- Certificate2%54
- Associate1%34
- Bachelor's6%168
- Graduate92%2,798
CampusPin does not have enough states reporting this field to say whether the mix changes from state to state. See the full study.
Credentials conferred in 2023-24, U.S. Department of Education IPEDS completions. A certificate is a different credential from a degree, not a lesser one, and this counts what was awarded rather than what a college currently offers.
What you'll study
- Electronic health record systems and clinical workflow design
- Medical terminology, classification, and diagnostic coding
- Healthcare database design and clinical data management
- Health data privacy, security, and regulatory compliance
- Clinical decision support and quantitative decision modeling
- Health information systems architecture and interoperability standards
- Healthcare data analytics and reporting for quality improvement
- Supervised practicum in a clinical or health information setting
- Informatics implementation capstone and project coordination
Typical careers
- Health Informatics Specialist
- Clinical Informatics Analyst
- Health Information Manager
- Medical Coder
- EHR Analyst
- Healthcare Data Analyst
Typical salary range: Early-career wages vary by employer, region, and experience (BLS, 2024 health information technologists and medical registrars median $67,310).Ranges are early-career estimates. Any BLS figure shown is the occupation-wide median across all experience levels, not a starting wage, and is informational only.
Related occupations
Occupations the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk associates with Health Informatics, with what each one pays and how many openings it is projected to average each year. Ordered by projected annual openings, largest first. Linked titles open the full CampusPin career page.
| Occupation | Median pay | Openings / yr | Projected change | Most entrants hold |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Computer Occupations, All Other | $108,970 | 31,300 | +8.2% | Bachelor's degree |
| Postsecondary Teachers, All Other | $78,490 | 13,500 | +1.8% | Doctoral or professional degree |
| Computer and Information Research Scientists | $140,910 | 3,200 | +19.7% | Master's degree |
| Health Information Technologists and Medical Registrars | $67,310 | 3,200 | +14.7% | Associate's degree |
Crosswalk: U.S. Department of Education (NCES), CIP 2020 to SOC 2018. Pay, openings and projections: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2024 wages, Employment Projections). 4 of these 4 occupations report a median wage.
“Most entrants hold” is what BLS observes about people already working in the occupation. It is not a legal requirement, not an admission rule, and not a guarantee of entry. Studying Health Informatics does not guarantee any specific occupation, and many of these roles are entered from several different fields. Projected openings are a projection, not jobs promised.
Before you commit to a Health Informatics major
CampusPin does not rank programs. Use these prompts to pressure-test whether a specific Health Informatics program fits your goals, they are decision questions, not claims about any school.
Ask the Health Informatics department
- Which concentrations or specializations are offered, and which faculty lead them?
- What does the typical course sequence look like, and how much is required vs. elective?
- What labs, studios, clinical placements, or research opportunities are available to undergraduates?
- Is there a capstone, thesis, internship, or co-op requirement?
Ask current students & check the curriculum
- How heavy is the workload, and how accessible is the faculty?
- What internships or co-ops did you do, and where do recent graduates end up?
- Does the required curriculum actually match the careers listed above?
- How easy is it to add a minor, double major, or switch tracks later?
Find a Health Informatics program
CampusPin lists U.S. universities and community colleges by state, tuition, school size, acceptance rate, and campus setting, no account required.
Colleges that awarded the most Health Informatics credentials
Largest by credentials conferred in 2023-24. This measures the size of the graduating class, not quality, and it is not a ranking.
- Sacred Heart UniversityCT · 285
- Capella UniversityMN · 220
- Indiana University-IndianapolisIN · 158
- The University of FindlayOH · 104
- The University of Texas Health Science Center at HoustonTX · 91
- George Mason UniversityVA · 90
- Michigan Technological UniversityMI · 68
- New England CollegeNH · 67
- University of Wisconsin-MilwaukeeWI · 64
- University of DenverCO · 60
- University of South FloridaFL · 60
- University of San DiegoCA · 56
Based on credentials this institution reported conferring in the federal IPEDS completions collection for 2023-24. It confirms the field was awarded that year, not that the program currently accepts students, and it covers only the fields CampusPin tracks. Confirm current offerings with the institution.
Where Health Informatics credentials were awarded
11 states have a distinct enough set of Health Informatics colleges to be worth its own page.
Search Health Informatics schools by state
- Health Informatics in California
- Health Informatics in Florida
- Health Informatics in Georgia
- Health Informatics in Illinois
- Health Informatics in Maryland
- Health Informatics in Massachusetts
- Health Informatics in New York
- Health Informatics in North Carolina
- Health Informatics in Pennsylvania
- Health Informatics in Texas
Related majors
Healthcare Administration
Healthcare Administration prepares graduates to manage the business side of hospitals, clinics, and health systems, combining health-policy knowledge with management, finance, and operations.
Information Systems
Information Systems bridges business and technology, teaching students to design, analyze, and manage the systems organizations run on, suiting those drawn to both computing and how companies operate.
Data Science
Data Science combines statistics, programming, and domain expertise to turn raw data into decisions, drawing on machine learning, visualization, and data engineering.
Public Health
Public Health studies how to prevent disease and protect population health, suiting students who want to improve community well-being through data, policy, and programs rather than treating patients.
Health Sciences
Health Sciences is a broad pre-professional major for students preparing for medical, dental, PA, PT, or pharmacy school, combining biology, chemistry, and patient-care exposure.
Put this major in context
The salary above is an occupation-wide median from federal data, not a starting wage or a guarantee. These CampusPin guides and reports help you read it well, see where a Health Informatics degree can lead, and weigh it against cost and program quality.
Explore Computing & Math careers
Median pay, job outlook, and the occupations this field covers.
Explore Education & Library careers
Median pay, job outlook, and the occupations this field covers.
How one major leads to many careers
Why a single Health Informatics degree can open more than one path, and how to read the occupations above.
Why a median wage is not a starting salary
How to read a BLS median, and why early-career pay usually sits below it.
When accreditation and licensure matter
How program accreditation and state licensure can shape a Health Informatics path before you enroll.
Does a pricier college pay off?
How college cost lines up with graduation and earnings, an association, not a ranking.
Does picking a major narrow your college list?
Across the federal completions data, most fields barely change which colleges are on the table. Which ones genuinely do.
Certificate or degree?
What credential a field is usually awarded as is mostly set by the field itself, not by the state, with a short list of exceptions.
How this guide is sourced
This is an editorial guide from the CampusPin Editorial Team. Career and wage figures are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, occupation-wide medians across all experience levels, not starting wages, and link to each career page. Program availability comes from CampusPin's free institution search; CampusPin does not assert that any specific school offers this exact major until that program data is verified. Last reviewed 2026-06-15. How CampusPin sources data · Report a correction.