Concentration · Verified September 2026

Community Health and Health Promotion MPH Programs

228verified programs

190at CEPH-accredited schools

109offered online

$730median tuition per credit

What Are the Best Masters in Health Education and Community Health Programs?

A masters in health education usually means an MPH in community health, health promotion or health education, and 199 of the 228 programs in this set are MPH degrees at 182 schools. The lowest estimated tuition is $12,915 at UTHealth Houston for Texas residents, the median is $32,079, and 109 programs can be taken online. If you want the CHES credential, check that the coursework covers the 25 health education credits NCHEC asks for.

Researched and edited by Taylor Rupe · Updated September 28, 2026

A community health worker with a lanyard takes notes on a sofa while an older woman describes her health during a home visit — Photo: Antoni Shkraba / Pexels

A masters in health education, a masters in community health and an MPH in health promotion are mostly the same degree under different names. You learn why people make the health choices they do, then design, run and evaluate programs that change those choices. This set holds 228 programs at 182 schools in 45 states, and 199 of them are MPH degrees.

What a Masters in Health Education Trains You to Do

The work splits into three skills. First, assessment: finding out what a community needs before you build anything. Second, program planning: turning behavior theory into a workshop, a campaign or a clinic outreach plan. Third, evaluation: proving whether it worked.

You can see that sequence in real course lists. UCLA’s MPH in Community Health Sciences builds its core around CHS 200A (Community Health Sciences), CHS 200B (Program Planning) and CHS 200C (Program Evaluation), then adds a 400-hour field experience and a comprehensive exam over six quarters. The University of Alabama’s MPH in Health Education and Promotion pairs HHE 520 Theories of Health Behavior with HHE 565 Planning Health Promotion Programs inside a 42-credit plan.

Program names vary more than the content does. The concentration names in this set include Community Health, Community Health Education, Health Promotion, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Health Education and Promotion and Health Behavior. If the courses cover behavior theory, program planning and evaluation, you’re looking at the same field.

MPH, MS, MA or MHS in Community Health

Most programs here are MPH degrees, but not all. The set breaks down like this:

Degree	Programs	What it usually signals
MPH	199	Professional degree with CEPH-required practice experience
MS	19	Often research-focused; check for a thesis or a practicum
MA	5	Education-focused; the ones listed below run 30 to 33 credits
Master’s (other titles)	3	Named degrees such as the Master of Health Education
MHS	1	Health science degree, usually shorter
MSPH	1	Public health science degree; can be professional or academic

The MPH carries a built-in field requirement. CEPH’s 2024 criteria require every MPH student to complete applied practice experiences that produce at least two practical, non-academic work products for a real organization. That’s portfolio material an MA may not give you.

The shorter degrees suit people who already work in health and want a credential fast. CUNY Lehman’s MA in Health Education and Promotion lists 33 credits and 12 to 18 months. Idaho State’s Master of Health Education lists 30 credits and as little as 12 months.

What Masters in Health Education Programs Cost

Across the 95 programs that publish a per-credit rate, tuition runs from $287 to $2,824 a credit, with a median of $730. For the 87 programs that publish both a rate and a credit total, estimated tuition (published per-credit rate times credits, before fees) has a median of $32,079.

These are the lowest estimates in the set:

Program	Degree and format	Estimated tuition	School or program CEPH-accredited
UTHealth Houston MPH	MPH, campus, hybrid or online	$12,915 (Texas resident rate)	Yes
Columbia Southern University	MPH in Community Health Education, online	$12,924	No
CUNY Brooklyn College	MA in Community Health, online	$14,100 (New York resident rate)	No
The University of Alabama	MA in Health Studies (Health Promotion), online	$14,400	Yes
CUNY Lehman College	MA in Health Education and Promotion	$15,510 (New York resident rate)	No

Read the fine print on the cheapest options. UTHealth’s $287 rate is for Texas residents, non-residents pay $1,124 a credit, and there’s an $85 per-credit resource fee on top. At the other end, the NYU MPH in Community Health Science and Practice comes to $115,322 and Baylor’s campus MPH to $118,608. For more budget options across all concentrations, see affordable MPH programs.

Online Masters in Health Education and Health Promotion

This is one of the most online-friendly concentrations. Of the 228 programs, 109 offer an online format, and 59 are online only. Online delivery differs a lot from school to school:

CSUN’s online MPH in Community Health Education runs 2.5 years over seven terms, fully asynchronous, with a cohort capped at 37 students. It lists $857 a unit for the fall 2027 cohort and no GRE.
CSU San Marcos runs a 16-month cohort with 8-week courses two evenings a week, at $650 a unit.
San Jose State’s online MPH is 24 months, but the cohort meets once a year for 4 to 5 days in San Jose.
Loma Linda’s online MPH in Health Education and Wellness Coaching takes five academic quarters full time.

If you need a fully remote degree, rule out programs with on-campus intensives before you apply. The online MPH programs page covers every concentration.

Field Hours and the MPH in Community Health

The practicum is where this concentration earns its value, because employers hire health educators on evidence of programs they’ve actually run. Hours vary widely. Alabama’s MPH requires at least 75 hands-on hours at a public health site plus two approved products. UCLA requires 400 hours. CEPH itself sets competencies and work products rather than an hour count, so compare hours program by program.

Ask what counts as a work product. CEPH lists project plans, grant proposals, training manuals, surveys and presentations as suitable examples. For a future health educator, a finished lesson plan or evaluation report from your placement is exactly what an interviewer wants to see.

Plan Your Credits Now if You Want the CHES Credential

The Certified Health Education Specialist credential is the one most tied to this degree. You qualify for the exam with a degree whose transcript shows either a Health Education major or at least 25 semester credits of health education coursework, graded C or better. At least 12 of those credits must be process courses (planning, implementation, evaluation), no more than 9 can be topic courses and no more than 6 can be other related courses.

Some programs design for this. Alabama’s catalog states that graduates of its MPH in Health Education and Promotion can sit for both the CHES and CPH exams. With a generalist MPH, you may fall short of the 12 process credits. You can apply within 90 days of finishing your degree with faculty verification, and NCHEC offers a $40 prescreen if you’re unsure. The CHES certification guide covers fees and exam dates.

Pay and Jobs After a Masters in Community Health

Job	Median pay (May 2025)	Top 10% earn above	Employed
Health education specialist	$64,070	$118,200	65,690
Community health worker	$51,850	$77,180	61,660

Where you work matters as much as the title. The BLS reports hospitals paying health education specialists a median of $83,040, government $69,740 and social assistance $50,230. By state, Maryland ($104,470), the District of Columbia ($103,330) and Georgia ($99,400) had the highest medians.

The BLS expects health education specialist jobs to grow 6% from 2025 to 2035, about 6,900 openings a year. Community health worker jobs are projected to grow 13%, with about 7,000 openings a year. Community health workers typically start with a high school diploma, so the master’s is what moves you from delivering programs to designing and managing them.

Where Most Community Health Graduates Train

Size tells you something about a school’s alumni network and the range of practicum sites it can offer. These schools in this set award the most public health master’s degrees (IPEDS 2022-23, all public health master’s degrees at the school, not only community health):

School	Public health master’s degrees awarded
George Washington University	1,100
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	1,028
Johns Hopkins University	954
Columbia University	858
Emory University	848
University of Alabama at Birmingham	554
Liberty University	502

Large isn’t automatically better for this concentration. A small cohort, like CSUN’s 37-student online group, can mean closer faculty contact during your practicum. But a big school usually has more community partners to place you with.

How to Shortlist Programs

Accreditation. 190 of the 228 programs sit at CEPH-accredited schools or programs, and 4 more are CEPH applicants. Some employers, including the US Public Health Service, require a CEPH-accredited degree. The CEPH accreditation guide shows how to check.
CHES fit. Count the health education process credits in the curriculum.
Field hours. Compare the practicum size, from 75 hours at Alabama to 400 at UCLA.
Total cost. Multiply the per-credit rate by the credits, then add fees and check your residency rate.
Application route. 106 programs use SOPHAS and 100 take applications directly. The SOPHAS guide explains fees. For the GRE, 83 programs say it’s not required; see no-GRE MPH programs.

If your interest is a specific population, compare maternal and child health or public health nutrition programs, which use many of the same behavior-change skills.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I Get a Masters in Health Education Without a Health Background?

Yes. Most MPH programs admit graduates from any major. For the CHES exam, though, NCHEC needs either a health education major or at least 25 semester credits of health education coursework, so check the curriculum before you enroll.

How Long Is a Masters in Community Health?

Most MPH versions run about two years full time. The median program in this set requires 42 credits, and CEPH sets 42 semester credits as the MPH minimum. Shorter MA and MS degrees exist: CUNY Lehman's MA in Health Education and Promotion lists 33 credits and 12 to 18 months.

Do Health Educators Need a Master's Degree?

Not always. The BLS says health education specialists typically need at least a bachelor's degree, and some positions require a master's or doctoral degree in community or public health education. Community health workers typically enter with a high school diploma.

Is an Online Masters in Health Promotion Accredited?

Many are. Of the 228 programs here, 190 sit at CEPH-accredited schools or programs, and CEPH says many accredited units offer online degrees. Check each program's own status: Columbia Southern's online MPH in Community Health Education is not on the CEPH list.

What Does a Health Education Specialist Earn?

The BLS median for health education specialists was $64,070 in May 2025, with the top 10% above $118,200. Hospitals paid the highest industry median, $83,040, followed by government at $69,740.