GRADUATE STUDY IN HEALTH PHYSICS
Colorado School of Public Health
Colorado State University's Health Physics M.S. and Ph.D. program
is only the 5th in the U.S. to receive full and unconditional accreditation from
ABET/Applied Sciences Accreditation Commission.
The Environmental & Radiological Health Sciences department offers a comprehensive program leading toward the
M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in the field of radiation protection or health physics. Required course work is
structured to provide a sound foundation in the basic skills essential to the health physics profession.
The student may concentrate on specific areas of interest through a wide selection of elective courses.
Formal course work is supplemented by extensive laboratory exercises, field trips, and research.
Graduate research assistantships are available on a competitive basis to qualified
students. Additionally, the department participates in DOE Health Physics Fellowship programs.
Department Admission Requirements
1. A bachelor's degree from an accredited institution
2. Minimum GPA of 3.0/4.0 in all prior college-level work for regular admission
3. GRE scores in the general examination (verbal, quantitative, and analytical writing) within 5 years
4. Three letters of recommendation from academic or professional sources
5. Statement of academic interest and career plans
6.
TOEFL scores (minimum 213-Computer; 550-Paper) & proof of support (international students only)
Typical M.S. programs take two years to
complete and require 30 semester credit-hours and a thesis (plan A).
Some additional course requirements may apply to certain programs.
Additional Requirements for the Health Physics Section (click here for a PDF file)
The Health Physics Profession
Health Physics is a profession associated with using radiation for the benefit of society. Sources of radiation
range from naturally occurring radioactivity to reactors.
Successful persons in health physics have broad backgrounds
in physics, biology, instrumentation and understanding of risks and risk analysis.
Today, the health physicist is called upon to help society make judgments
concerning the balance of risks and benefits from new technologies that depend on radiation. This
spans many diverse fields including basic research, medicine, environmental restoration, industrial
applications and space exploration.
Health Physics and Medical Physics are similar but different
Medical physicists apply physical principles of radiation (ionizing and non-ionizing) to treat and
diagnose disease.
Health physicists apply the same physical principles to ensure a safe working
and/or public environment.
Thus, the coursework for the closely related disciplines is usually quite
similar. Most medical physics programs will add a few specialized courses in radiotherapy and
diagnostic imaging physics to the typical health physics core sequence. Additionally, the medical
physics MS project is usually more clinically oriented.
Introduction of a Medical-Health Physics Track
Our department has just introduced a medical-health physics track by adding diagnostic imaging
physics and a radiotherapy physics courses to our ABET accredited HP program while providing the
opportunity for a more clinical oriented project utilizing the outstanding resources in our
veterinary teaching hospital.
A health physics degree with a medical physics emphasis prepares you
for health physics opportunities in a clinical setting (e.g. hospital RSO) and opens the door to a
medical physics residency or entry level medical physics position (radiotherapy clinic or radiology
department).
For additional information about the Health Physics program, inquiries should be addressed to:
Health Physics Section Faculty:
Mailing Address
Environmental & Radiological Health Sciences
1618 Campus Delivery
Colorado State University
Fort Collins, CO 80523
Phone: (970) 491-5222
Fax: (970) 491-0623
Email: ERHSDepartment
