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Students working on project for masters degree in health, community and policy

Why Pursue an MS in Health, Community and Policy?

The Health, Community and Policy graduate program provides a strong focus on training individuals to move into community health, population health, and health policy-related fields. Program graduates will enter a job market with opportunities in areas with growing demand, up to 31% anticipated job growth in the next 10 years.

Program Highlights

This program is 30-semester hours, giving students the opportunity to complete the degree at a more rapid pace than most MPH programs.  Not only will the program require less time to complete, but it also has a lower total cost for completion. This program is ideal for students who want to work in community-based health programs, affect health policy, engage in population health research, and have a strong desire to serve the community while contributing to expanding health equity.

What You'll Study

Students in the MS in Health, Community and Policy program will gain knowledge in the following areas:

  • Program Planning, Implementation and Evaluation
  • Health and Public Policy
  • Research Methods
  • Data Management and Analytical Methods
  • Community Health
  • Population Health
  • Nutrition and Health

Degree Concentrations

This program offers a unique interdisciplinary experience with four specializations to choose from:

Admission & Application Requirements

Applications are submitted through the UTSA Graduate Application. Please upload all required documents (listed below) on your UTSA Graduate Application. It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure completion and submission of the application, a nonrefundable application fee, and all required supporting documents are on file with UTSA by the appropriate application deadline.

Health, Community and Policy (MS)
  Required Degree Bachelor's Degree from an accredited college or university in the United States or have proof of equivalent training at a foreign institution.
  Minimum GPA 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) Departments may consider GPA of last 60 semester credit hours
  Coursework 18 credit hours in an area related to this graduate degree and at least 12 hours must be at the upper-division level.
  Transcripts* Required from all institutions attended; international transcripts must be recorded/translated to English
  Credential Evaluation Required if you have earned university-level credit from foreign institutions. Submit an evaluation of your transcripts from Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE) directly from the graduate admission application platform
  English Language Proficiency 550 TOEFL Paper / 79 TOEFL Internet / 6.5 IELTS / Duolingo 100
  Purpose Statement Required
  Resume Required
  Letters of Recommendation 2 academic or professional reference(s) demonstrating your attributes for successful completion of this program (you will request these through the Graduate Admissions Application; let your recommenders know of your deadline to ensure submissions are on time). Professional references for this program are preferred.
*Unofficial transcripts will be taken into consideration for admissions; however, if admitted into the program, you must submit official transcripts to the University.
Apply 2023-24 Application Apply 2024-25 Application

Application Deadlines

Applicants are encouraged to have their admission file completed as early as possible. All applications, required documents and letters of recommendation, if applicable, must be submitted by 5:00 PM U.S. Central Time on the day of the deadline. Deadlines are subject to change.

Health, Community and Policy (MS)
Timing on Admission Decision: Completed applications will be reviewed for admission on a rolling basis. Decisions generally will be made and sent to applicants within 4 to 6 weeks of receiving the application.
Application Deadlines for: Priority International Domestic
Summer 2024 April 1 May 1
Fall 2024 June 1 June 1
Spring 2025 October 1 October 1
Summer 2025 March 1 March 1

Funding Opportunities

UTSA Scholarship Hub

Career Options

UTSA prepares you for future careers that are in demand. The possible careers below is data pulled by a third-party tool called Emsi, which pulls information from sources like the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Census Bureau, online job postings, other government databases and more to give you regional and national career outlook related to this academic program.


Graduate Advisor of Record

Jeffrey Howard, PhD

jeffrey.howard@utsa.edu