A new report from Validated Insights states that non-nursing healthcare training programs are growing faster than the institutions that are marketing them are treating them. The greatest potential is in credential programs targeted to geographic markets where no programs exist.

According to the newly updated report from higher education marketing and research firm Validated Insights, demand for non-nursing positions like medical assistants and dental assistants are in a period of significant growth with too few programs available to train the number of people needed to fill those roles.

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In its latest report, The Enrollment Opportunity in Allied Health, Validated Insights states that the overwhelming majority of opportunity in allied health education is not in nursing. There is a significant labor force there that requires post-secondary education, but the employment there is AI-secure and growing.

“There is a massive market opportunity in entry-level allied healthcare training that much of the higher education ecosystem often overlooks,” said Brady Colby, Head of Market Research at Validated Insights. “Higher education-adjacent providers are proving different training models are effective there, and while Workforce Pell grants may only provide a modest boost initially, it's a growing public funding source that institutions can tap into while many other funding sources are declining,” he added.

U.S. healthcare education increased to $44B in 2025, up from $39.24B in 2023 and projected to reach $61.4B by 2028. Nursing tuition alone is $8.58B — about 19% — leaving a ~$35B non-nursing residual that receives a fraction of the marketing attention.

The report states, “Within the non-nursing total, the sized segments are meaningful on their own: physician (MD/DO) tuition at an estimated $7B, healthcare e-learning at $5.5B, continuing medical education at $3.35B, and medical simulation at roughly $1.05B. Each is growing — and none of them recruits with anything close to nursing's share of voice.” It continues, “the large majority of healthcare-education dollars will continue to sit in the non-nursing programs.”

Sixteen non-nursing roles show growth above the 3% all-occupation average:

• Occupational therapy assistant leads (+18%)
• Behavioral/mental-health counselor (+17%)
• Physical therapist assistant (+16%)
• Diagnostic medical sonographer (+13%)
• Medical assistant (+12%)
• Respiratory therapist (+12%)

Numbers for job openings, relatively high wages, and short time to credential fuel the optimism. Medical assistant positions are projected to have 112,300 openings per year, which is more than double any other. Dental assistants are projected at 52,900 openings per year, followed by pharmacy tech (49,000), and behavioral/mental health counselor (48,300).

“Medical assistant and medical assisting roles are growing rapidly inside and outside of the higher education ecosystem in terms of student demand. Therapeutic roles are also a standout. PT and OT, in particular,” added Colby.

According to the report:

• The demand is durable and can weather downturns. Healthcare positions show stability despite being a higher paying role.
• Enrollment and completions have risen fastest in two-year programs and certificate pathways.

College-bound high school graduates are not indicating interest in healthcare majors. It is the adult learners who are expressing intent to study healthcare. CollegeAPP data report that “28.6% of the 38.05M prospective adult learners with active intent to enroll plan to study healthcare.”

Enrollment numbers round out the picture of what is happening in higher education. Community colleges enroll 752,000 students in certificate programs, a 28.3% increase since Fall 2021. Undergraduate enrollment in health professions overall topped 2.0M students in Spring 2026. The fastest growth, however, is at two-year colleges (+7.1%) and in certificates (+10.2%).

This report is from Validated Insights’ recurring series on higher education and training. It is a deeper study into the June 2026 report on skilled trades and allied health, which stated that trade school revenue and job postings had doubled recent estimates. The April 2025 report on the nursing education market predicted 11% annual growth in the nursing market over the next five years.

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About Validated Insights

Validated Insights is an agile marketing agency specializing in helping higher education institutions achieve and exceed their goals. With a comprehensive suite of services, including digital marketing, paid search, paid social, and web strategy, Validated Insights delivers data-driven strategies and measurable results. The agency's agile testing approach enables short- and long-term growth through better creative, strategy, media execution and continuous brand building. Validated Insights is the only agency in the higher education space to offer a performance guarantee in KPIs in the first 60 days - and continuous growth beyond that.

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“There is a massive market opportunity in entry-level allied healthcare training that much of the higher education ecosystem often overlooks”