Best Online Master’s Programs in Hawaii 2024

Badge for BEST ONLINE MASTER'S IN HAWAII

By Dr. James Barham
Reviewed By Academic Influence Staff

Updated: Nov 22, 2023

Find the best online colleges in Hawaii ranked by the academic success of faculty and alumni associated with the colleges and universities and their online degree programs. Faculty and alumni with influential ideas are the foundation of respectable online degree programs employers can trust.

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Hawaii Pacific University
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo
Chaminade University of Honolulu

Chaminade University of Honolulu 93%
Hawaii Pacific University 87%
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo 84%
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa 73%

Hawaii Pacific University 16 to 1
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa 14 to 1
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo 12 to 1
Chaminade University of Honolulu 11 to 1

Hawaii Pacific University $31,940
Chaminade University of Honolulu $28,544
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa $11,304
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo $7,344

Chaminade University of Honolulu $25,200
Hawaii Pacific University $20,306
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa $15,600
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo $11,736

University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo
Chaminade University of Honolulu
Hawaii Pacific University
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

Chaminade University of Honolulu
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo
Hawaii Pacific University
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa 73%
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo 84%
Hawaii Pacific University 87%
Chaminade University of Honolulu 93%

Chaminade University of Honolulu 11 to 1
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo 12 to 1
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa 14 to 1
Hawaii Pacific University 16 to 1

University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo $7,344
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa $11,304
Chaminade University of Honolulu $28,544
Hawaii Pacific University $31,940

University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo $11,736
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa $15,600
Hawaii Pacific University $20,306
Chaminade University of Honolulu $25,200

Table of Contents

Featured Programs

Colleges and Universities in Hawaiʻi

The majority of the universities and colleges in The Aloha State are public institutions, including Hawaiʻi’s largest school, the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. The nearly 15,000 students who attend this school pay tuition fees around $12,000. Students attending public colleges can choose between a wide range of on campus and online degree programs.

It’s also worth noting that you can receive in-state tuition discount rates for attending a public college in Hawaii, whether you enroll through a traditional or online degree program.

Hawaiʻi also offers several private school options, including two which have religious affiliations. While tuition at these private schools varies, from $6,000 at Brigham Young University Hawaiʻi to $26,000 at Hawaiʻi Pacific University, each serves between 2,000-3,000 students.

Find college admissions consultants in your state.

Students who attend both brick-and-mortar and online colleges in Hawaii have the option to major in fields like biology, education, history, criminal justice, physics, and many others. However, students who graduate with degrees in the health care field have an extra advantage. Hawaiʻi offers a student loan forgiveness-based financial aid program for health care workers who work at designated, high-need locations within the state for at least two years.

So, even though Hawaiʻi comes in just above the national average for tuition costs, if you are considering a career in health care, this may be the place for you.

Some dream of vacationing in paradise - but why not take it a step further and live there? Students attending school in Hawaiʻi won’t have to say aloha, or goodbye, to the beautiful white sand beaches, perfect waves, and tropical drinks. Both traditional and online students can enroll in one of Hawaiʻi’s 15 higher education institutes and live their best life in these picturesque island communities.

For more information on obtaining your degree in Hawaiʻi, explore some of the top programs and schools this state has to offer.

What are Hawaiʻi’s Colleges & Universities?

Hawaiʻi’s Best Overall

Online master’s degrees offered by respected colleges and universities are generally respected by employers. The main thing to consider about your online master’s choices is whether the school name is well known and respected. In many cases, employers won’t know your degree was earned online. But even if they do, a degree from a respected college is automatically to your benefit.

We rank the colleges and universities in this list by the influence of their alumni and faculty. For master’s degree students, including online master’s degree students, having faculty who are influential in your field matters a lot. It’s a big indicator that you have the chance to get a quality education. And, knowing that you will join an alumni association with some impressive people is nice, too.

Frequently Asked Questions About Online Master’s Degrees

An online master’s degree costs about $40,000 for the average grad student. However, the cost of your online master’s degree will depend on the type of grad school you attend. In 2018-2019, the average cost for a year of tuition in a public grad school was $12,171. The average cost for a year of tuition in private, non-profit grad school was $27,776. An online master’s degree will usually cost about the same as a traditional master’s degree. Some schools will charge 5-10% more for online courses. This added cost pays for the technology and specialized training needed for online instruction. But getting a master’s degree online can also help you save money. The costs above don’t include expenses like housing, transportation, or certain campus fees. As an online grad student, you can save a lot of money by avoiding these added expenses. Many online master’s degree programs are also accelerated. Most master’s degree programs are designed to be completed in two years. But you may be able to earn your online master’s degree in as little as 12-18 months. Earning an accelerated online master’s degree can save you money on tuition.

If this is your first time taking an online course, the experience may require some adjustment. While you’ll generally learn the same content and take the same exams as your on-campus peers, the medium will likely require you to manage much of this experience independently. You’ll be accountable for your own time management, your ability to harness the technology at your fingertips, and your ability to focus on the lectures, lessons, and assignments at hand. This means you’ll need to create a suitable workspace for yourself, maintain a realistic schedule, and take it upon yourself to build relationships with your instructors and classmates. With online college, your goal is to find a balance between independence and engagement.

In most cases, as long you graduate from a well-regarded, regionally-accredited online college, prospective employers won’t look sideways at your degree. In fact, unless you attend an exclusively online college or university, there will likely be no specific indicator on your degree, transcript or resume differentiating your school from its brick-and-mortar counterpart. This means that your employer will likely only differentiate between an online and in-person degree if you mention this distinction.

While some employers may express concern about making the adjustment from online education to in-person workplace collaboration, many other employers will view your online degree as evidence of valuable 21st Century professional skills such as independence, self-motivation, time management, and tech savvy.

The advantages of online classes are many. First and foremost, online courses give you the freedom and flexibility to attend class from anywhere that works for you, whether you’re at home, in a coffee shop, or in a quiet conference room at work. In many cases, you’ll also enjoy the convenience of asynchronous learning opportunities-educational experiences that you can complete on your own schedule. This may include pre-taped lectures, ongoing chat-board discussions, and 24/7 access to digital materials. And of course, just as there are some learners who prefer the energy of a live classroom, there are those who learn best when working in their own personal space, free from distractions. If this sounds like you, you might find the solitude of online learning to be a major advantage.

If you are a student who thrives on the dynamic energy of in-person discussion, who requires the physical surroundings of a classroom to feel engaged, or who considers the social aspects of education to be of equal importance to the actual content of your courses, online education will require some adjustment.

While there is much that can be supplanted or simulated through the online medium, some students may find that there is nothing which can replace the conversation, collaboration, and motivation that occur in an actual classroom setting. As you make the adjustment to online education, one of the biggest challenges you will likely face is overcoming this difference in order to the get the most out of your classes. Fortunately, we’ve got some great Tips for Online Education Beginners.

How do we determine Hawaii's best online master's degree programs?

Methodology

The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great! If you are serious about finding the best colleges and universities for a bachelor’s degree, you should be asking where the most influential professors are teaching and whether their graduates are themselves advancing the school’s reputation for academic excellence in their fields of study.

Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and arbitrary performance metrics. Concentrated Influence provides a ranking that is freer from bias, insulated from manipulation, and reflective of real-world educational outcomes.

To rank the influence of schools, we first determine the influence of scholars and professionals based on the number of citations and publications they have had over the past 10 years. In addition to publications and citations, we consider the web links to and from these sources, and the page views of those sources. We then match the influential people to their alma maters and institutions of employment, so that their influence is attributed to those schools. Our machine-learning Influence Ranking algorithm produces a numerical score of academic achievements, merits, and citations across Wikipedia, wikidata, Crossref, Semantic Scholar and an ever-growing body of data. If you are interested in exploring how and why we rank by influence, explore our methodology in more depth.

Best Online Master’s Program in Hawaii 2023

#1
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Honolulu , HI
#1 Best Research Universities in Hawaii 2025 #1 Best Public Colleges in Hawaii 2024 #1 Best Grad Schools in Hawaii 2025 #1 Most Affordable Colleges in Hawaii 2025
Tuition + fees
$12K
Acceptance
73%
Graduation
62%
Student body
22K
Median SAT/ACT
1180/21
Career Outlook for degree at University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Cost of Degree: $16,502
Expenses: $20,145
Starting Salary: $51,800
Cost Recoup Time: 8 years
Paid back at 15% of annual salary
Online Master’s Degrees
Executive Master of Business Administration (MBA)

Required Credits: 48
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online
MEd in Curriculum Studies

Concentrations

Place Based Curriculum
Early Childhood Education

Required Credits: 30
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format:Mostly Online
MEd in Educational Foundations

Concentrations

Global Perspectives on Educational Policy and Practice
Private School Leadership
Educational Leadership

Required Credits: 30
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online
MS in Special Education

Concentrations

BCBA Track

Required Credits: 31
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online
MS in Learning Design and Technology

Required Credits: 33
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online
MSW in Social Work

Required Credits: 57
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format:Mostly Online
MS in Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Science

Concentrations

Rehabilitation Counselor Education

Required Credits: 48
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online
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#2
Hawaii Pacific University
Honolulu , HI
#1 Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Hawaii 2025 #1 Best Private Colleges in Hawaii 2025 #2 Best Colleges in Hawaii 2025 #3 The Most Influential Universities and Colleges Ranked by State 2024
Tuition + fees
$32K
Acceptance
87%
Graduation
45%
Student body
6K
Median SAT/ACT
1150/23
Career Outlook for degree at Hawaii Pacific University
Cost of Degree: $21,533
Expenses: $19,492
Starting Salary: $56,400
Cost Recoup Time: 8 years
Paid back at 15% of annual salary
Online Master’s Degrees
MA in Organization Development and Change

Required Credits: 30
Completion time: 1-2 years
Format: Online
Master of Business Administration (MBA)

Required Credits: 32
Completion time: 1-2 years
Format: Online
MEDEL in Educational Leadership

Required Credits: 33
Completion time: 1-2 years
Format: Online
MPA in Public Administration

Required Credits: 36
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online
MPH in Public Health

Required Credits: 42
Completion time: 1-1.5 years
Format: Online
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#3
Chaminade University of Honolulu
Honolulu , HI
#23 The Best Catholic Colleges and Universities Ranked for 2024 #2 Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Hawaii 2025 #2 Best Private Colleges in Hawaii 2025 #4 Best Colleges in Hawaii 2025
Tuition + fees
$29K
Acceptance
93%
Graduation
66%
Student body
3K
Career Outlook for degree at Chaminade University of Honolulu
Cost of Degree: $26,040
Expenses: $20,962
Starting Salary: $41,000
Cost Recoup Time: 11 years
Paid back at 15% of annual salary
Online Master’s Degrees
Master of Business Administration (MBA)

Concentrations

Accounting
Healthcare Administration
Island Business
Science and Technology Innovation

Required Credits: 36
Completion time: 18 months
Format: Online
MAT in Teaching in Elementary Education K-6

Required Credits: 36-39
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online
MAT in Teaching in Secondary Education 6-12

Required Credits: 36-39
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online
MAT in Teaching in Special Education K-12

Required Credits: 36-39
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online
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#2 Best Research Universities in Hawaii 2025 #2 Best Public Colleges in Hawaii 2024 #2 Best Grad Schools in Hawaii 2025 #2 Most Affordable Colleges in Hawaii 2025

Career Outlook for degree at University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo

Cost of Degree: $12,230

Expenses: $13,584

Starting Salary: $41,800

Cost Recoup Time: 7 years

Paid back at 15% of annual salary

Online Master’s Degrees

MEd in Education

Required Credits: 30
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online

MS in Counseling Psychology

Required Credits: 60
Completion time: 2-3 years
Format: Online

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Hawaii’s Best Grad Programs in Your Area Interest

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Best Online Master’s Programs in Hawaii 2024

Top Online Master's Programs in Hawaii

Featured Programs

Colleges and Universities in Hawaiʻi

What are Hawaiʻi’s Colleges & Universities?

Hawaiʻi’s Best Overall

Best Online Master’s Program in Hawaii 2023

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

Career Outlook for degree at University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

Online Master’s Degrees

Concentrations

Concentrations

Concentrations

Concentrations

Hawaii Pacific University

Career Outlook for degree at Hawaii Pacific University

Online Master’s Degrees

Chaminade University of Honolulu

Career Outlook for degree at Chaminade University of Honolulu

Online Master’s Degrees

Concentrations

University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo

Career Outlook for degree at University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo

Online Master’s Degrees

Hawaii’s Best Grad Programs in Your Area Interest