AI Master's Degrees in Healthcare, Medicine, and Biomedical Science

An AI master’s degree in healthcare is a technical program that’s designed for professionals with tech/data or healthcare backgrounds who wish to apply artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science to clinical and biomedical challenges. Healthcare AI has become an integral part of clinical care. In 2026, Eliciting Insights’s annual AI Adoption in U.S. Health Systems survey of healthcare executives found that 75% of U.S. health systems were using at least one AI application, up from 59% in the previous years. These executives need AI-savvy employees with a deep understanding of healthcare challenges.

MS programs in healthcare AI go by many names (e.g. health data science, biomedical AI, AI drug discovery, etc.), but they’re all focused on the mastery of technical skill sets in AI and machine learning. Use this guide to learn about different types of healthcare AI master’s degrees—what each one covers, who it’s designed for, and the careers it leads to. Or skip ahead to our comprehensive directory of AI master’s programs in healthcare from regionally accredited universities!

What is an AI Master’s Degree in Healthcare?

Master’s programs in healthcare AI train professionals from tech, data, and healthcare arenas to solve complex health problems using artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science techniques. In the USA, these qualifications are most frequently offered as a Master of Science (MS) degree.

The best MS programs in healthcare AI train students to:

• Apply AI to domain-specific clinical & biomedical challenges (e.g. medicine, nursing, biomedical engineering, drug discovery, genomics, etc.).
• Explore AI’s role in areas such as diagnostic AI & medical imaging, clinical documentation & AI scribes, EHR interoperability & NLP for medical records, and clinical decision support.
• Assume the role of AI advisors, digital health consultants, and C-level executives who can lead AI implementation & strategy in health organizations.

Master’s programs that integrate AI into healthcare, medicine, or biomedical science studies began emerging around 2020–2022. This is when Mount Sinai’s MS in Biomedical Data Science and AI, Washington University in St. Louis’s MS in Biomedical Data Science and AI (BDS-AI), and the University of Rochester’s Online MS in Healthcare Data Science and AI first appeared. Since then, offerings in healthcare AI have accelerated sharply.

To help you understand your choices, this guide explores the following types of AI master’s degrees in healthcare: MS in Healthcare Data Science/Informatics & AI, MS in AI in Medicine (MS AIM), MS in AI for Drug Discovery & Development, MS in AI in Biomedicine/Biomedical Science, MS in AI in Biomedical Engineering, Dual MD/MSAI, and an MSN in AI Healthcare.

Be sure to read the “Offered By” bullet point—the School or Department offering the healthcare AI program will have a dramatic impact on the degree’s curriculum (e.g. School of Engineering and MS in Healthcare Data Science). You want to find a master’s degree that matches your background and level of technical expertise.

AI Master’s Degrees in Healthcare: Program Types Explained

Master’s in AI in Healthcare Data Science/Informatics & AI

• What It Is: A Master’s in Healthcare Data Science & AI or Healthcare Informatics & AI trains students to apply AI tools & techniques to healthcare data and optimize healthcare workflows.
• AI Skills, Tools & Techniques: Machine learning for health data; predictive analytics and data visualization; EHR systems and interoperability (HL7, FHIR); applied machine learning & healthcare data mining; deep learning for healthcare; Python, R, SQL
• Offered By: School of Engineering or Data Science
• Undergraduate Major: Computer Science; IT; Public Health
• Job Roles: Health data scientist; clinical informatics analyst; healthcare AI product manager; population health analyst; EHR implementation specialist; digital health consultant; Chief Health Informatics Officer
• Program Examples: University of Rochester’s Online MS in Healthcare Data Science and AI; Bryant University’s MS in Healthcare Informatics and AI; University of San Diego’s On-Campus/Online MS in Health Care Informatics – Healthcare Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence

Master’s in AI in Medicine

• What It Is: A Master’s in AI in Medicine teaches students how to apply AI tools & techniques to clinical medicine procedures, including diagnostics, medical imaging, and patient care decision support.
• AI Skills, Tools & Techniques: Machine learning & deep learning in medicine; AI in medical imaging; LLM development for medical data; advanced NLP for medical texts & records; AI ethics & regulatory compliance in clinical settings; Python, TensorFlow
• Offered By: School of Medicine; Department of Bioengineering/Department of Bioinformatics & Biostatistics
• Undergraduate Major: Biology; Pre-Med or Health Sciences; Biomedical Science
• Job Roles: Clinical AI specialist; medical imaging AI engineer; AI clinical decision support developer; healthcare technology consultant; physician AI advisor; health technology company product lead
• Program Examples: University of Alabama at Birmingham’s MS in AI in Medicine; University of Louisville’s Online MS in Artificial Intelligence in Medicine (MS AIM);

Master’s in AI for Drug Discovery & Development

• What It Is: A Master’s in AI for Drug Discovery & Development trains students to use AI and computational methods to accelerate drug identification, molecular design, and the pharmaceutical development pipeline.
• AI Skills, Tools & Techniques: Molecular modeling and computational chemistry; machine learning for drug-target interaction; generative AI for molecular design; DeepChem, AlphaFold, RDKit
• Offered By: School of Pharmacy
• Undergraduate Major: Chemistry; Biochemistry; Pharmacology; Biology; Pharmacy; Bioinformatics
• Job Roles: Computational chemist; AI drug discovery scientist; pharma R&D data scientist; bioinformatics researcher; clinical trial modeling analyst; biotech AI researcher
• Program Examples: University of California San Francisco’s MS in Artificial Intelligence and Computational Drug Discovery and Development (MS in AICD3); University of Maryland School of Pharmacy’s Online MS in Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Drug Development 

Master’s in AI in Biomedicine/Biomedical Science

• What It Is: A Master’s in AI in Biomedicine or Biomedical Science helps students apply AI tools & techniques to biological research and translational science, from genomics and disease modeling to clinical data analysis.
• AI Skills, Tools & Techniques: Machine learning for genomics and biological data; bioinformatics pipelines; disease progression modeling; Python, R
• Offered By: School of Natural Sciences and Mathematics; School of Medicine; School of Public Health
• Undergraduate Major: Biology; Chemistry; Biochemistry; Pre-Med; Biomedical Science
• Job Roles: Biomedical data scientist; bioinformatics analyst; translational research scientist; precision medicine researcher; computational biologist; AI scientist at a biotech or pharma company; health informatics researcher
• Program Examples: University of Texas at Dallas’s MS in Artificial Intelligence for Biomedical Sciences; Washington University in St. Louis’s MS in Biomedical Data Science and AI (BDS-AI); Mount Sinai’s MS in Biomedical Data Science and AI

Master’s in AI in Biomedical Engineering

• What It Is: A Master’s in AI in Biomedical Engineering is a hands-on program that trains engineers to design and build AI-powered medical devices, imaging systems, and clinical technologies.
• AI Skills, Tools & Techniques: Deep learning for biomedical signals and imaging; medical device design and systems integration; signal processing (EEG, ECG, MRI); MATLAB, Python
• Offered By: School of Engineering
• Undergraduate Major: Mechanical Engineering; Electrical Engineering; Biomedical Engineering; Computer Engineering; Physics
• Job Roles: Biomedical AI engineer; medical device AI developer; medical imaging algorithm engineer; clinical AI systems researcher; robotics and surgical systems engineer; regulatory engineer for AI-enabled devices
• Program Examples: Carnegie Mellon University’s MS in Artificial Intelligence Engineering – Biomedical Engineering (MSAIE-BME); Arizona State University’s MS in Artificial Intelligence Engineering (Intelligent Biomedical Systems Engineering)

Dual MD/Master’s in AI

• What It Is: A Dual MD/MSAI is a five-year combined degree that trains physicians to lead AI implementation in clinical practice and research.
• AI Skills, Tools & Techniques: Core AI and machine learning methods; AI applications in diagnostics and clinical decision support; healthcare data science; capstone project with clinical AI application
• Offered By: School of Medicine; College of AI, Cyber, and Computing
• Undergraduate Major: Pre-Med
• Job Roles: Physician AI researcher; clinical AI lead or Chief Clinical AI Officer; physician entrepreneur in health tech; academic medical faculty with AI specialization; clinical AI policy advisor; physician leader in precision medicine or digital health
• Program Example: UT Health San Antonio + UTSA’s Dual MD/MSAI

MSN in AI Healthcare

• What It Is: An MSN in AI Healthcare is a nursing master’s program that equips RNs to evaluate, implement, and lead AI tools and digital health initiatives within clinical environments.
• AI Skills, Tools & Techniques: AI fundamentals for clinical practice; EHR and clinical decision support systems; AI ethics and patient safety; nursing informatics and digital health strategy.
• Offered By: School of Nursing
• Undergraduate Major: BSN & RN Licensure
• Job Roles: Chief Nurse Informatics Officer (CNIO); Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) at a healthcare AI company; clinical AI implementation lead; nursing AI educator; digital health nurse consultant; nurse entrepreneur in health tech; clinical quality and safety officer
• Program Example: Florida State University’s MSN – AI Applications in Health Care

If you are unable to find an AI healthcare degree that aligns with your career goals, you may wish to explore master’s degrees in closely related majors. For instance, the University of Chicago’s MS in Precision Health (MsPH) and the University of Pittsburgh’s MS in Biostatistics – Health Data Science both incorporate AI and machine learning training into their curricula.

If you are interested in a graduate-level qualification in AI and surgical or medical robotics, there are programs available overseas (e.g. University College London’s MSc in Medical Robotics and Artificial Intelligence). However, in the USA, you may need to choose a general master’s degree in robotics and opt for electives or a specialization in surgical or medical robotics.

Healthcare AI vs. Other Master’s Degrees: Key Differences

Healthcare Administration vs. Healthcare AI

Leadership-focused master’s in healthcare administration (MHA) degrees are concerned with the management of healthcare organizations. Master’s degrees in healthcare AI are technical qualifications designed for professionals who want to use AI & data science to solve clinical and operational problems in healthcare.

Healthcare Informatics vs. Healthcare AI

Master’s in healthcare informatics degrees focus on the implementation, management, and optimization of EHR systems and health IT infrastructures. Master’s degrees in healthcare AI teach students to build & apply machine learning models that generate predictions, automate clinical decisions, and surface patterns from large-scale health data.

Public Health vs. Healthcare AI

Master’s in public health (MPH) degrees explore coursework in epidemiology, health policy, behavioral factors, and population-level interventions. Master’s degrees in healthcare AI provide in-depth training in computational and technical methods for analyzing health data.

Data Science vs. Healthcare AI

Master’s in data science degrees train data scientists to work across industries. Master’s degrees in healthcare AI are specifically concerned with applying machine learning and AI methods to clinical, biomedical, and health system data.

Can You Earn a Master’s in AI in Healthcare Online?

Yes — several regionally accredited U.S. universities offer fully online master’s degrees in healthcare AI. Even though healthcare AI is a niche field of interest, well-respected institutions such as the University of Louisville have developed 100% online programs that are designed for busy professionals. Within our database, there are:

• Online AI master’s degrees in healthcare, biomedical science, and related fields.
• Online healthcare AI certificate programs offered at the graduate level.

Professionals who are considering an online master’s degree in healthcare AI should check that the coursework is up-to-date and relevant—tools in active clinical deployment are outpacing academic curriculum cycles. Look for graduate programs with high-level industry advisory boards and strong reviews from recent students.

You’ll also find that online MS in healthcare AI programs may not provide the same exposure to real patient data environments and clinical settings. To combat this, programs such as Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED)’s Online Master of Science in Health Data Science and AI (MS HDSA) ensure students have access to a network of 27+ hospitals & research centers and NEOMED’s Clinical and Translational Research Institute (CTRI).