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2025 Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies Degree Guide

Do you want to work closely with patients or clients in a home or hospital setting helping them perform basic tasks? This is where a major as a health aide comes in. Health aides, home health aides, and orderlies work with their clients to perform basic life tasks. While orderlies and health aides typically work in a clinic or hospital setting, home health aides primarily work one on one with clients in their homes.

Health aides work under the direction of nurses and perform basic tasks like helping take care of patients who are unable to perform these tasks themselves. This may involve assisting patients to get out of bed, taking care of personal hygiene, cleaning the patient area and changing bedding. Aides may also assist in taking vital signs and reporting these back to the assigned nurse.

Home health aides typically perform many of the same services as a health aide but may extend out of the home by running errands for their client in addition to the in-house tasks. They will also help their clients perform basic housekeeping duties like cleaning, vacuuming and doing laundry.

Some states require aides to become certified, while others only require a high school diploma. Many community and vocational schools offer training to become a health aide. Courses may include housekeeping, record keeping, and safety in addition to basic health and medicine management.

#360 Most Popular Major
1.8k Degrees Awarded
239 Schools Offering Degrees

In 2021-2022, health aids/attendants/orderlies was the 360th most popular major nationwide with 1,818 degrees awarded. This year's Best Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies Schools ranking compares 1 of them to identify the best overall programs in the country. Explore this or one of our many other custom health aids rankings further below.

2025 Best Colleges for Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies
2025 Overall Best Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies Colleges >

Best Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies Schools by Degree

Associate Degrees in Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies

What Are The Requirements For a Degree in Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies

In order to be a successful aide, you must have excellent interpersonal skills - you will be working directly with clients or patients and you must be able to effectively communicate with them and make them feel comfortable. You should also have a good set of knowledge about basic housekeeping tasks such as cooking and cleaning. Because aides may be required to lift or assist their clients into sitting or standing positions, they should have good physical stamina. Lastly, aides need to have good attention to detail. You may be responsible for administering or reminding your clients about medications, so you must be able to accurately dose and record when medications were given.

Health Aids Degree Program Entry Requirements

health aids/attendants/orderlies degree applicants generally need have finished high school or their GED. Many schools may also have GPA and SAT/ACT score minimums that must be met. Once you obtain your degree, additional health aids certifications required to pursue a career in this field.

Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies Degree Types

There are many different health aids degree levels. You can get anything from a in health aids/attendants/orderlies to the highest health aids degree, a . How long it takes to complete some common health aids degree levels is shown below.

Degree Credit Requirements Typical Program Length
Associate Degree 60-70 credits 2 years
Bachelor’s Degree 120 credits 4 years
Master’s Degree 50-70 credits 1-3 years
Doctorate Program required coursework including thesis or dissertation At least 4 years

An associate degree is the most common level of education achieved by those in careers related to health aids, with approximately 10.9% of workers getting one. Find out other typical degree levels for health aids workers below.

Level of Education Percentage of Workers
High School Diploma 53.7%
Some College Courses 12.9%
Post-Secondary Certificate 12.5%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) 8.8%
Less than a High School Diploma 5.8%

View the chart below to get an idea of what degree level most of those in health aids/attendants/orderlies careers have.

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This of course varies depending on which health aids career you choose.

Career Opportunities for A Degree In Health Aids Graduate

Above Average Number of Jobs
$20.7k Average Starting Salary
30% Growth Job Outlook 2016-26

High Growth Projected for Health Aids Careers

Want a job when you graduate with your health aids degree? Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies careers are expected to grow 30.3% between 2016 and 2026.

The following options are some of the most in-demand careers related to health aids/attendants/orderlies.

Occupation Name Projected Jobs Expected Growth
Personal Care Aides 2,793,800 38.6%
Nursing Assistants 1,683,700 11.5%
Home Health Aides 1,342,700 47.3%
Healthcare Support Workers 108,700 11.7%
Psychiatric Aides 77,700 5.6%

How Much Money Do People With a Health Aids Degree Make?

Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies graduates between <nil> reported earning an average of $20,704 in the <nil> timeframe. Earnings can range from as low as $9,072 to as high as $33,802. As you might expect, salaries for health aids graduates vary depending on the level of education that was acquired.

Highest Paid Health Aids Careers

Salaries for health aids/attendants/orderlies graduates can vary widely by the occupation you choose as well. The following table shows the top highest paying careers health aids grads often go into.

Occupation Name Median Average Salary
Healthcare Support Workers $39,110
Occupational Therapy Aides $32,580
Psychiatric Aides $31,090
Nursing Assistants $29,580
Physical Therapist Aides $28,500

Getting Your Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies Degree

With over 167 different health aids degree programs to choose from, finding the best fit for you can be a challenge. Fortunately you have come to the right place. We have analyzed all of these schools to come up with hundreds of unbiased health aids school rankings to help you with this.

Study Areas in Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies

One of 34 majors within the Health Professions area of study, Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies has other similar majors worth exploring.

Health Aids Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Home Health Aide/Home Attendant 700
Medication Aide 694
Health Aide 231
Rehabilitation Aide 157
Physical Therapy Technician/Aide 26

View All Health Aids Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Health Aids

Related Major Annual Graduates
Nursing 319,502
Health & Medical Administrative Services 88,600
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants 85,339
Allied Health Professions 83,905
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services 83,587

View All Health Aids Related Majors >

References

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