BestOnlineCollege.org is an advertising-supported website. Many of the school and program listings that appear on this site are from partners who compensate us, and this compensation may affect how, where, and in what order listings appear (such as featured placements). This compensation does not influence our editorial content, evaluations, or rankings, which are determined independently using publicly available data. We do not review or feature every school or program available in the marketplace. Our goal is to provide accurate, unbiased information so you can make informed decisions. Read our full Advertiser Disclosure.
Affordable online health science programs are less about finding the lowest advertised rate and more about lowering your total cost to complete the degree. The levers that actually move the number are the per-credit price you pay, how many credits you pay it on, and which fees get added afterward. Health science students have one lever that most fields do not, and it is the largest one available: most online bachelor’s programs in this field are degree-completion formats that award a block of credit for a clinical allied-health credential, and the size of that block varies so much between schools that it routinely outweighs every other cost difference combined.
The largest levers are block credit for an existing clinical credential, transferring in prior college credit, in-state or flat online tuition rates, and credit-by-exam options such as CLEP or DSST for general education. Reducing the number of credits you take at full price has more effect than chasing a single low advertised rate, and in health science the block-credit policy is where the biggest differences between schools live.
It varies widely, and there is no standard. Some degree-completion programs award a large block for a clinical associate degree plus a current registry or license; others evaluate course by course and award much less. The amount can also depend on whether the credential is current and whether your original program was programmatically accredited. Ask each school for a written evaluation before enrolling.
Many public universities charge a flat online tuition rate regardless of state residency, but not all do. Some still apply out-of-state rates to online students living outside the state. Confirm the specific policy with each school before enrolling.
Yes. If a school accepts your prior college credit or standardized exam credit toward degree requirements, you take fewer courses at that school’s tuition rate. General education and lower-division science transfer most readily; upper-division health science and track courses transfer less readily.
Health science programs commonly bill technology fees, proctoring charges for online exams, lab kit or virtual lab fees for science courses, course materials, and in some cases a background check, drug screen, or placement fee tied to an internship or capstone site. Ask each school for an itemized fee schedule at your degree level.
For a full overview of program options, start with the Health Science Program Guide.
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard
Source:Accreditor: Middle States Commission on Higher EducationIPEDSCollege Scorecard
This is the lever most specific to health science, and the one that matters most for allied-health professionals. Degree-completion programs award credit for a completed clinical associate degree or certificate – radiologic technology, respiratory therapy, dental hygiene, sonography, surgical technology, paramedicine, medical laboratory technology, and similar – and often additional credit for holding a current registry or license. Because policies differ so much, the same credential can leave you with very different numbers of remaining credits at two schools with similar per-credit rates. Ask each school:
Many public universities set a single online tuition rate for all students regardless of home state, which can be substantially lower than an out-of-state campus rate. Some schools still distinguish between in-state and out-of-state online tuition, so confirm the specific policy before applying. If you are eligible, also check regional tuition reciprocity agreements, which several state systems participate in.
Bringing in transfer credit from a prior degree, community college coursework, or standardized exams such as CLEP or DSST reduces the number of courses you need to complete. This lever is largest at the bachelor’s level for students without a clinical credential, where general education and lower-division science make up a substantial share of the 120 credits. Ask each school:
Two programs with the same per-credit rate can bill very differently once fees are added. Ask each school for an itemized schedule covering:
The comparison that matters is per-credit rate multiplied by the credits you must actually complete, plus fees across the whole program. For a degree-completion student, the number of remaining credits after block credit is the variable that dominates. A school with a higher per-credit rate that awards a larger block can cost less overall than a cheaper-looking school that awards a small one. Ask each school to confirm total remaining credits in writing alongside the rate before you commit.
Finishing coursework faster through an accelerated format does not usually reduce the tuition rate, but it can reduce total cost by shortening how long you are enrolled and by reducing exposure to tuition increases in later terms. Weigh that against the risk of needing to repeat a compressed course after a stretch of mandatory overtime, which costs more than taking it once at standard pace.
At the associate level, the cost question is mostly about per-credit rate and whether the credits will transfer cleanly into the bachelor’s you intend to pursue – a cheap associate whose science courses must be repeated is not cheap. At the bachelor’s level, the dominant lever for allied-health professionals is block credit, and for students without a credential it is transfer and credit-by-exam, because roughly 120 credits gives a lot of surface area to reduce. At the master’s level, roughly 30 to 36 credits leaves little to transfer, so the comparison shifts toward per-credit rate, total required credits, and fees. See Online Associate in Health Science, Online Bachelor’s in Health Science, and Online Master’s in Health Science for what each level involves.
Data verified: August 25, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.
Back to Online Health Science Degrees: Programs & Careers (2026)
