MSW / MPH in Health Services Policy and Management
Health is shaped by more than health care. Social conditions, public policy, access to services and the systems that surround people all play a role. USC’s combined Master of Social Work / Master of Public Health in Health Services Policy and Management degree brings these perspectives together to prepare professionals who can improve health at both the individual and systems levels.
Offered jointly by the College of Social Work and the Arnold School of Public Health’s Department of Health Services Policy and Management, (link) the program combines advanced social work practice with public health policy, leadership, management and population health. Students develop the skills to work directly with people and communities while also addressing the organizations, policies and systems that influence their health.
What You’ll Study
Learn to see health from both sides of the equation: the experiences of individuals and communities and the systems that shape their opportunities to thrive.
Your social work coursework builds expertise in human behavior, social justice, direct practice, community practice, social welfare policy, program evaluation and advanced fieldwork. Public health coursework adds training in health policy, health economics, health care financing, public health law, leadership, research methods and program planning.
Together, these disciplines prepare you to understand health challenges, work alongside the people affected by them and change policies and systems.
About the Program
Social workers often encounter the effects of health policy and health systems at the individual and community level. Public health professionals work upstream to understand and improve the policies, organizations and environments influencing those experiences.
The MSW/MPH combines those perspectives so graduates can connect individual and community needs with broader systems change.
Individually, USC’s MSW requires 60 credit hours and the MPH requires 45 credit hours. Through approved shared coursework, students can satisfy the requirements for both degrees with 93 total credit hours.
Two social work electives may be fulfilled through HSPM coursework, a social welfare policy course can satisfy an HSPM policy elective, and coordinated advanced social work field instruction can meet the MPH applied practice experience requirement.
Program Highlights
Complete the requirements for both the Master of Social Work and Master of Public Health in Health Services Policy and Management through one coordinated academic plan.
Shared coursework reduces the combined curriculum from 105 credits if completed independently to 93 credits through the combination degree program.
Develop the skills to support individuals and communities while addressing the policies, organizations and health systems that influence their well-being.
Advanced social work field instruction can also satisfy the MPH applied practice experience when coordinated with the HSPM advisor, creating an integrated professional experience across both disciplines.
Curriculum
The MSW/MPH combines the 60-credit Master of Social Work curriculum with the 45-credit MPH in Health Services Policy and Management curriculum. Through shared coursework, students complete both degree requirements in 93 total credit hours.
A typical full-time plan spans three academic years. View the academic bulletin for the full curriculum.
Hands-On Experience
Practice is built into both sides of the MSW/MPH experience.
Through social work field instruction, students apply what they are learning in real organizations and communities. With advance coordination and a contract with the HSPM advisor, the advanced social work field experience may also satisfy the MPH applied practice experience requirement.
That integration gives students an opportunity to examine challenges from multiple perspectives — working with individuals and communities while considering how policy, management and health systems can create broader change.
I saw the curriculum and content of study for the Master of Public Health in Health Services Policy and Management program and knew it was exactly what I wanted to learn to build my skillset for social work and public service. From health systems science, to policy, to interprofessional practice, I apply what I learned at the Arnold School in my work daily.
Admissions
The MSW/MPH is a coordinated dual-degree program between USC’s College of Social Work and the Arnold School of Public Health.
Students apply for the dual-degree option through the USC Graduate School. The College of Social Work and Arnold School of Public Health independently review applicants and make admission recommendations, with official admission decisions issued by the Graduate School.
Students can begin the dual-degree curriculum through either the MSW or MPH program.
Applicants should plan early. Students who have progressed beyond their first year in either the social work or public health graduate program are not eligible to enter the dual-degree program.
Part-time social work students may participate in the dual-degree program. Advanced-standing social work students must enter by the summer bridge term. Students enrolled in the distance MPH in Health Services Policy and Management are not eligible for the dual MSW/MPH.
Learn About Application Requirements for the MPH program
Where Our Graduates Can Work
The combination of social work and public health training opens opportunities across traditional health care, public health and social service settings.
Graduates are prepared for positions in organizations such as:
- Hospitals and health systems
- Public health agencies
- Government agencies
- Community health organizations
- Behavioral and mental health organizations
- Social service agencies
- Nonprofit organizations
- Health policy organizations
- Community-based organizations
- Health care advocacy organizations
- Research and evaluation organizations
- Managed care and health insurance organizations
The degree can be especially valuable for professionals who want careers connecting direct service, community needs and systems-level change.
Tuition
Tuition and fees are subject to change and may vary based on enrollment and the courses taken in each program. Students enrolled in both social work and public health courses during the same term may be subject to fees associated with both programs.
Students are encouraged to explore available graduate financial aid and funding opportunities. Learn more from our Office of Graduate Student services.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Students may begin the dual-degree program through either the Master of Social Work or Master of Public Health program. Advisors from both programs help students develop a coordinated course of study.
Yes. Advanced social work field instruction may be used to satisfy the MPH applied practice experience when the experience is coordinated in advance and completed under an appropriate agreement with the HSPM advisor.
The MSW prepares students for advanced social work practice with individuals, families, groups, organizations and communities. Adding the MPH expands that training into population health, public health policy, health economics, health care financing, organizational leadership and health systems.
The result is preparation to address health challenges at both the people level and the systems level.
The MPH provides training in population health, policy, management, research and public health practice. The MSW adds intensive preparation in human behavior, social justice, direct and community practice, social welfare systems and field-based professional practice.
Students graduate prepared to understand not only how health systems work, but how those systems affect the people and communities they serve.
No. Students enrolled in USC’s distance MPH in Health Services Policy and Management are not eligible for the MSW/MPH dual-degree program.
Part-time social work students may enroll in the dual-degree program. Students should work closely with advisors in both programs to develop an appropriate course sequence.
Students should decide early. Students who have progressed beyond their first year of graduate study in either social work or public health cannot enter the dual-degree program. Advanced-standing MSW students must apply by the summer bridge term.
Students must complete all requirements for the dual-degree program within six academic years.
Build the skills to serve individuals, strengthen communities and improve the systems that shape health.
With USC’s MSW/MPH in Health Services Policy and Management, you won’t have to choose between helping people today and changing the conditions that affect their health tomorrow.
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