HPE, FAQs

The Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS) is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE). Currently, there are no specialized accreditation standards for HPE programs. 

No. The research programs of the faculty in the HPE program are diverse and multidisciplinary. For example, we have faculty who research pre-medical education, undergraduate education in diverse health professions (e.g., medicine, nursing, allied health), postgraduate education (e.g., GME), continuing medical education (CME), as well research in patient safety and health care systems analysis.

We also have faculty who conduct research in,

• instructional design,
• curriculum design,
• simulation-based learning, and
• online learning

We encourage you to review our faculty pages to learn more about what types of research we conduct.

The specific requirements for the PhD in HPE depend on the incoming experience and prior training of each prospective student. In most cases, however, students must earn the MHPE degree or a MEd-HPE, prior to enrolling in the PhD program.

A Masters in Health Professions Education (MHPE) is a multidisciplinary degree that prepares health professions with a foundation in educational practice, teaching, assessment, and leadership in health professions education. At USUHS, students can complete a generalist track in HPE, or focus their efforts in,

• Teaching, Learning, and Assessment
• Leadership
• Scholarship and Research

In contrast, a Master’s in Public Health (MPH) is also a multidisciplinary degree, but this program focuses on preparing students for public health practice, in areas such as epidemiology, statistics, or infectious diseases, as opposed to research or teaching.

The graduate programs in HPE at USUHS offer three programs to meet the unique needs of our students. They include, a foundations certificate in HPE, a master's degree in HPE, and a PhD in HPE. 

• The IFHPE and FHPE certificates in HPE are comprised of 6 and 13 credits, respectively. 
• The MHPE program is comprised of 39 credits, of which 9 credits are dedicated to completion of a master's thesis project.
• The MEd-HPE program is comprised of 40 credits of which 10 credits are dedicated to completion of a culminating project.
• The PhD in HPE is comprised of 108 credits, of which 20 credits are dedicated to completion of a dissertation.

*Please note that USUHS graduate courses are based on semester hours. 

All three programs are designed with the working professional in mind and are mostly completed on a part-time basis. Furthermore, most courses are offered in a distance learning format with mostly asynchronous sessions accompanied by a few scheduled synchronous sessions.

Full time applicants will need to apply through the joint GME selection board. Once selected by the joint GME selection board, applicants then need to apply to the HPE program through USU admissions. If the applicant is currently a board certified health professional (e.g., physician, nurse, dentist), GRE scores are not required and a waiver should be requested. By contrast, part time students can apply directly to the HPE programs by applying to the HPE program through USU admissions. 

A Master’s or Doctoral degree in Health Professions Education (HPE) is a multidisciplinary degree that prepares health professionals with a foundation in educational practice, teaching, assessment, and leadership in health professions education. Our program prepares our students to:

• Address the growing need for innovative educational reform,
• Serve as academic leaders (e.g., deans, program directors, department heads), and
• Contribute to the continuous advancement of health professions education and research.

HPE degree learners may apply starting the first week of September and no later than Nov. 1 to begin courses in the Summer Term of the following year (mid-May). Late applications will not be accepted. Visit the HPE Admissions Page for more information. 

Our Graduate Programs in Health Professions Education (HPE) are designed to train

• physicians
• nurses
• dentists
• pharmacists
• physician assistants
• physical therapists
• optometrists
• program directors
• department heads
• institutional leaders
• and those who are committed to working with health professionals as a career (e.g., public health, executive administrators).

To be eligible to enroll in the HPE programs, you must:

• Have previously earned a bachelor degree; and
• Be Active Duty Military Personnel or a Civilian Federal Employee (*Exceptions to this rule can occasionally be established through an official MOU between USU and an organization that wishes to enroll students in our program.)

In both the military health system and the civilian sector there is a growing demand for educators who are formally trained in HPE. Some of the most common reasons for this growing demand include:

• Health professionals who want to make education their professional focus.
• Institutions who desire high quality instruction and thus prefer or require teaching faculty to hold a degree beyond their professional degree.
• Accreditation bodies that have increasingly stringent requirements for demonstration of faculty expertise and excellence in curriculum design, instruction, assessment, and program evaluation. 

• Artino, A. R., Cervero R.M, DeZee K.J., Holmboe E, Durning S.J. Graduate programs in health professions education: Preparing academic leaders for future challenges. Journal of graduate medical education. 2018 Apr;10(2):119-22.
• Cervero R.M., Artino, A. R., Daley B.J., Durning S.J. Health professions education graduate programs are a pathway to strengthening continuing professional development. Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions. 2017 Apr 1;37(2):147-51.
• Greiner, A. C., & Knebel, E. (Eds.). (2003). Health professions education: A bridge to quality. National Academies Press.
• Tekian, A., & Artino, A. R. (2013). AM Last Page: Master’s degree in health professions education programs. Academic Medicine, 88, 1399.
• Tekian, A., & Harris, I. (2012). Preparing health professions education leaders worldwide: A description of master's-level programs. Medical teacher, 34(1), 52-58.

Tuition and fees are waived for students; however, in some cases, students may be required to purchase a textbook for a course and/or to cover the author processing charges for their peer-reviewed publication. Master and PhD students are expected to cover the costs for the annual week-long In-Residence meeting, which occurs in late July. Civilian students do not incur service obligation to the United States government after the completion of their graduate studies. Part-time active duty learners do not incur a service obligation; full-time active duty learners do incur a service obligation and are encouraged to speak with their service leadership regarding this service requirement. 

All MHPE and MEd-HPE graduates demonstrate proficiency in three competency domains: Education, Leadership, and Research. A key difference between these degrees is that the MEd-HPE program emphasizes the scholarship of teaching and learning (Education and/or Leadership competencies), while the MHPE curriculum requires more extensive mentored preparation in the scholarship of discovery and/or integration (Research competencies), resulting in a peer-reviewed publication (alternate thesis format). 

Learners who wish to primarily grow in Leadership and/or Education competencies should consider the MEd-HPE while those primarily interested in pursuing educational research competencies should consider the MHPE.  The MEd-HPE requires 10-credit hours of more extensive mentored preparation in the scholarship of teaching and learning, resulting in a MEd-HPE Culminating Project that is applied and will be disseminated through a peer reviewed process.

Each year has become more and more competitive for our degree programs as HPE continues to grow. Recognizing the skill and talent that qualified learners may bring to HPE, the Admissions Committee often recommends degree applicants for the FHPE. The FHPE certificate coursework is the same for the MHPE and MEd-HPE, and learners are able to learn more about the difference between the two degrees to make a more informed decision should they choose to reapply.

For applicants interested in the PhD in HPE, learners should either apply to the MHPE first (usual route) or complete and submit the dissertation proposal form included in this handbook (see appendix, atypical route) to be considered for the PhD in HPE. The typical learner applies for the MHPE and then reapplies for the PhD in HPE after a paper from their thesis has been accepted into a peer reviewed journal. 

All HPE degrees are designed for individuals planning careers in HPE (medicine, dentistry, nursing, and other health professions) and prioritizes building learners' competence in research, education and leadership within HPE.  The MEd-HPE focuses on broad scholarly and practical experience through the dissemination of a culminating project focused on practical application of leadership and/or educational principles.  The MHPE culminates in a published peer-reviewed research paper and the PhD culminates in 4 published research papers. 

You will have 5 years from your graduation date to continue your HPE program requirements and still receive credit for coursework completed in your certificate program.

There is no payback for part time learners. For full time learners there is an active duty commitment depending on which service you are in. For those working at the VA – there is currently only a track for the certificates. We are working on a legislative fix for the degree track. There would be tuition for the degree (no longer on a space available basis), with an estimated cost to be determined.

Typically, there are two synchronous sessions for a course, one at the beginning and one at the end of the course. The rest of the course is typically asynchronous where the learner is answering discussion board questions or completing assignments.

Degree learners are required to attend In-Residence, a week-long in-person learning experience on the USU campus that takes place the 3rd week of July each year. 

Very rarely.  The objectives of our courses are focused on health professions education and do not frequently align with the objectives of courses offered in other master’s programs.  At times, we do offer practicum credit for completed professional development certificates or related courses from other master’s programs.

The courses are designed to give you the skills necessary for research.  Additionally, once core coursework is complete we have designed a series of experiences to help you meet faculty and get started on your research.  In short, while we encourage you to keep thinking about your research and fleshing out details as soon as possible you should not begin your research until you have worked with a research advisor on the design. 

The time a learner can expect to spend on a course will vary, but for a 12-week term a learner can expect to spend 6 – 9 hours of work per week on one course. For a compressed 6-week term, a learner should expect to spend 12-18 hours per week on one course.