Graduate Programs in the Biomedical Sciences and Public Health Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Biomedical Sciences & Public Health

The School of Biomedical Sciences and Public Health at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences offers students the chance to pursue a wide range of graduate degrees in a highly unique environment focused on a mission to keep people, particularly those in the military, healthy.

Students are trained for careers in service to the nation, and while the university is open to military and civilian applicants alike, a large number of graduates are military officers who serve the federal biomedical enterprise.

Key areas of strength in Biomedical Sciences and Public Health include infectious disease, neuroscience, and preventive medicine research, and students join distinguished faculty in groundbreaking research pertaining to areas specific to the Department of Defense, such as combat casualty care or radiation biology.

The "West Point of Medicine," Located Just Outside of Nation's Capitol

Dubbed the "West Point of Medicine," Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences was established by Congress in 1972 to provide medical and public health degrees with a focus on protecting those in the military.

The university is located just outside of Washington, D.C., in Bethesda, Maryland, in a park-like setting that is across the street from the National Institutes of Health and adjacent to the National Naval Medical Center.

Medical School with a Military Mission

The Biomedical Sciences and Public Health Program is part of the F. Edward Hebert School of Medicine, which follows a 4-year curriculum that includes all content required to maintain status as an LCME-accredited medical school, in addition to integrating an additional 500 hours of uniquely military content.

Because their education is funded entirely by the Department of Defense, students enrolled in the F. Edward Hebert School of Medicine incur none of the heavy financial debt commonly associated with traditional medical school education.

Degree Programs

Masters degree programs offered through the Biomedical Sciences and Public Health at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences cover a broad range of specialties, with degrees including a Master of Science in Public Health, Masters in Healthcare Administration and Policy, Masters in Molecular and Cell Biology, Master of Military Medical History, Master of Public Health, and Master of Tropical Health and Hygiene.

Doctor of Philosophy degrees (Ph.D.) are offered in Clinical Psychology, Emerging Infectious Diseases, Molecular and Cell Biology, Neuroscience, Medical and Clinical Biology, Physician/Scientist, and Preventive Medicine and Biometrics.

Graduate Program in Infectious Disease

A central program at the school is the Graduate Program in Emerging Infectious Diseases, where primary areas of research include pathogenesis, host response, and epidemiology of infectious diseases. Students work with an interdisciplinary team of distinguished faculty on key disease challenges in regions around the world.

The research lab of Professor John W. Huggins, Ph.D., for instance, focuses on antiviral drug development for viruses of military and bioterrorism concern, including smallpox and monkeypox, and several faculty research labs are dedicated to HIV infection, while others focus on pressing infectious disease topics such as gastric pathogens and the transmission of dengue viruses.

Graduate Program in Neuroscience

Faculty research areas in the Graduate Program in Neuroscience are diverse, and include a strong emphasis on issues that affect the military population and traumatic events in the civilian sector, including post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, and subsequent posttraumatic epilepsy.

In the research lab of Dennis V. Agoston, M.D., for instance, the focus is on neurogenesis and regeneration in the developing and injured adult brain. And in the lab of Patricia A. Deuster, Ph.D., M.P.H., research focuses on neuroendocrine and immune responses to stress, including exercise and mental stress.

Department of Preventive Medicine and Biometrics

The Department of Preventive Medicine and Biometrics is dedicated to protecting the health of members of the Uniformed Services through the promotion of evidence-based policy making, research, and service initiatives.

Divisions within the department include the Division of Tropical Public Health, offering training in tropical medicine and traveler's health, the Health Services Administration, focusing on the provision of public health and the care of populations, and the Division of Occupational and Environmental Health Sciences.

World-Class Research Facilities

Students in Uniformed Services University graduate programs enjoy access to state-of-the-art research facilities, either within each department or affiliated with the university.

In the Human Performance Laboratory, located in the Department of Military and Emergency Medicine, interdisciplinary research focuses on issues such as exercise physiology, sports psychology, and other aspects of human performance.

In the Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress, students and faculty probe the consequences of trauma and disaster, and ways to cope after such events, and the Department of Defense's Center for Prostate Disease Research is the nation's only free-standing prostate cancer research center in the U.S.

The USU's Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute collaborates with laboratories around the world in an effort to research the biological effects of ionizing radiation and better protect soldiers and civilians alike from the effects.

Centers for Preventive Medicine and Public Health

The Centers for Preventive Medicine and Public Health combine research, education, training, and clinical preventive medicine in developing databases and analytic methodologies.

Centers within the division include the Center for Application of Remote Sensing and GIS in Public Health, The Center for Oral Health Studies, and the Center for Ergonomics and Workplace Health.

• Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology
• Department of Medical History
• Department of Microbiology and Immunology
• Department of Pathology
• Graduate Program in Emerging Infectious Diseases
• Graduate Program in Molecular and Cell Biology
• Graduate Program in Neuroscience
• Program in Environmental Health Sciences
• Program in Healthcare Administration and Policy
• Program in Medical Zoology
• Program in Public Health
• Program in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

• Degrees Offered
• Major Degree Levels Offered
• Molecular And Cell Biology Master of Science (MS)
  Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
• Preventive Medicine And Biometrics Master of Science (MS) [healthcare administration and policy]
  Doctor of Public Health (Dr PH) [public health]
  Master of Science in Public Health (MSPH) [public health]
  Master of Public Health (MPH) [public health]
  Master of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (MTMH) [tropical medicine and hygiene]
  Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) [environmental health sciences]
  Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) [medical zoology]
• Medical And Clinical Psychology Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) [medical and clinical psychology]
  Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) [medical psychology]
  Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) [clinical psychology]
• Neuroscience Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
• Emerging Infectious Diseases Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

• Degrees Awarded
• Master's Degrees 36
• Doctoral Degrees 17
• First Professional Degrees Not reported
• Other Advanced Degrees Not reported
• * Shows the number of degrees awarded for the last academic year that data was reported.

• Earning Your Degree
• Part-time study available? No
• Evening/weekend programs available? No
• Distance learning programs available? No
• Terminal master's degree available? Yes

• Degree Requirements
• Master's Degrees Required and Alternate accepted
• Doctoral Degrees Required, Required and qualifying exam
• First Professional Degrees Not reported
• Other Advanced Degrees Not reported

• Acceptance Rate
• Applied278
• Accepted55
• Acceptance Rate19%
• Enrolled47
• Applying
• Application Fee - Domestic $
• Application Fee - International $
• Electronic applications accepted? Yes
• Applications processed on a rolling basis? Yes
• Application Deadlines
• Type Domestic International Priority Date
• Fall deadline January 1st January 1st Yes
• Winter deadline Not Reported Not Reported Not Reported
• Spring deadline Not Reported Not Reported Not Reported
• Entrance Requirements
• Master's DegreesGRE General Test
• Doctoral's DegreesGRE General Test, minimum GPA of 3.0
• First-Professional's DegreesNot Reported
• Other Advanced DegreesNot Reported
• International DegreesTOEFL required

• Tuition & Fees
• In-state tuition *Not Reported
• Out-of-state tuition *Not Reported
• International student tuitionNot Reported
• * Tuition for full-time graduate student per academic year
• Fees
• Per-academic year feesNot Reported
• Per-term feesNot Reported
• One-time feeNot Reported
• * Fees for full-time graduate students
• Financial Support
• Financial award applicants must submitNot Reported
• Application deadlines for financial awardsNot Reported
• Types of financial support availableTuition Waivers, Career or Field-Related Internships, Health Care Benefits, Scholarship and/or loans

• Gender
• Total Graduate Students176
• Female Percentage55%
• Male Percentage45%
• Participation
• Total Graduate Students176
• Part-time Percentage0%
• Full-time Percentage100%
• Ethnicity
• Hispanic / Latino4%
• Black / African American4%
• White / Caucasian75%
• American Indian / Alaskan Native2%
• Asian8%
• Native Hawaiian / Other Pacific Islander0%
• Two or more races0%
• Unknown7%

• Faculty Breakout
• Total Faculty4,416
• Full-time Percentage8%
• Part-time Percentage92%
• Female Percentage23%
• Male Percentage77%