Public Health Programs at New Mexico State University
New Mexico State University appears in our ranking of the Top 10 MPH in Health Policy and Management Degrees Online.
The Department of Public Health Sciences at New Mexico State University offers a Bachelor of Public Health (BPH) that has approval from the Council on Education of Public Health (CEPH). It also offers a Master of Public Health (MPH) that has full accreditation from that same organization. There are also other opportunities available for students, including minors at both the undergraduate and graduate levels and some dual degree programs.
Undergrads must take 48 credits of advanced public health courses at or above the 300-level. Those courses are in addition to the general education courses required and the introduction classes they take in their freshman years. The university’s public health core includes classes such as Health Program Planning, Problems in Health Education, Epidemiology, Methods of Community Health Education and Administration of Health Programs. Undergrads must also take 24 credits of electives and some type of cultural health course. The university requires that all public health majors do a capstone experience in the field also.
The MPH program offered by the university features 42 credits that students must complete before they can graduate. This includes the core, which is worth 15 credits and includes classes such as Biostatistical Applications in Public Health and Environmental Public Health Issues. Students will take 18 credits from their concentrations, which the university offers in community health education and health management, administration and policy. They will also do a field experience. New Mexico State University offers its MPH as a thesis or a non-thesis program. Those in the non-thesis program must take three additional electives, while those in the thesis program will do a final research paper.
New Mexico State University also offers the MPH program online. Online students can use the resources available from the university’s Albuquerque Center, including classroom spaces, conference rooms and library materials. A graduate public health certificate program is also available as both an online or a traditional program. Students only need to take five classes to finish the certificate. New Mexico State University now has a dual program for MPH students who also want to earn a Master of Social Work (MSW).
About New Mexico State University
New Mexico State University is a state university in La Cruces, New Mexico. Established in 1888, it is one of the state’s oldest public colleges and one of the largest in the southwest. Founded as Las Cruces College, it offered educational opportunities for students prior to New Mexico’s foundation as an American state. Its enrollment grew after becoming a new college with the New Mexico College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts. Also called NMSU today, it now ranks as one of the top colleges in the United States, according to Washington Monthly, Forbes and U.S. News and World Report. USNWR and Times also rank NMSU as one of the leading colleges in the world. The university has partnerships with several community colleges in the state that allow students to transition into one of its bachelor’s programs after completing their undergrad studies. Enrollment at NMSU now includes more than 24,000 students.
New Mexico State University Accreditation Details
The CEPH granted accreditation to the NMSU MPH program. This means that the program follows the curriculum and guidelines established by that organization. It also has approval from the organization for its undergrad program, which helps students meet the base requirements for enrolling in a graduate public health program. NMSU has its main/regional accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). Any student who wants to transfer their college credits can do so due to this accreditation, which also allows them to apply for federal grant and loan money.
New Mexico State University Application Requirements
Any incoming undergrad applying to NSMU must have a high school grade point average of at least 2.7. The university will accept those in the top 20% of their high school classes and those who scored 21/1060 on the ACT/SAT. Undergrads only need to meet one of these admissions requirements. A higher GPA is required of any student applying for a scholarship. The Aggie Pathway program allows students with a GPA of 2.5 or higher and at least 20 credits they can transfer enroll in the BPH program. Undergrads must also complete the NMSU application and submit both their high school/college transcripts and test scores.
The university has a separate application for graduate students. Those applying to a dual program must meet the requirements of both programs. Students must also meet the requirements of the university’s graduate school, which includes having a bachelor’s degree. The online application asks for information about the student’s bachelor degree and the college attended as well as the names, phone numbers, and addresses of their references. There is also a credit card required to pay the application fee. NSMU will contact the student’s references, but it may ask for additional information such as a resume, writing sample, test score or transcripts.
Tuition and Financial Aid
Tuition at NMSU starts at $279 per credit hour for undergraduate New Mexico residents. Undergrads who are from states outside of New Mexico pay $336 per credit hour. The university offers flat-rate tuition for full-time students, which allows them to take 15 or more credits for $3,684 to $11,754 per semester. Graduate students pay $301 per credit hour as an NM resident and $365 per credit hour as a nonresident. The flat rate allows full-time students to pay $3,978 to $12,047 per semester as a resident or a nonresident. All students are responsible for covering their individual costs and expenses too, including room and board and textbooks.
Both undergrads and graduate students who need financial aid can use the NMSU school code on the FAFSA, which determines if they qualify for federal and/or state aid. Though graduate students usually only get PLUS and unsubsidized loans, undergrads may get loans, grants, and acceptance into the NSMU work-study program. Financial aid may include one of the scholarships offered by the university too. Its scholarship programs award students a few hundred dollars or more and allow them to renew their scholarships the following year. Some of these programs are renewable for all four undergraduate years too. New Mexico State University designs financial aid packages for any student in one of its public health degree programs.