Earning a bachelor of science in public health (BSPH) can improve your career outlook as well as the health of the communities you work in. Attending a traditional four-year, campus-based bachelor’s program may not be feasible for working professionals and parents, however. If this is the case for you, an accelerated online bachelor’s program in public health like the one offered by the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) could be worth looking into.
What Makes UTA’s Online BSPH “Accelerated”?
UTA’s online BSPH is accelerated in a number of ways including program design and course length, all resulting in a potential completion time of 22 months. How is this possible?
First, applicants for this degree program are required to have already completed and earned an associate degree from an accredited institution. The associate degree provides students with most, if not all, of the necessary credit hours and courses outside of those specifically required for the BSPH degree. This will vary somewhat, depending on the applicant’s associate degree and other factors.
Coursework for the BSPH program includes 17 required courses, worth three credit hours each, totaling 51 credit hours (in addition to all the credit hours and courses transferred from an associate degree). Courses also follow an accelerated format. The program’s courses are seven weeks long, compared to the typical 16-week semester-long course. The BSPH program also offers a number of elective courses which can be taken to fulfill further requirements as needed. You can choose electives based on your specific area of interest.
How Much Work and Time Will Each Course Take?
Each online course covers the same scope and amount of material as its campus-based equivalent. Thus, the online courses generally require the same amount of work and time commitment. And they are compressed into less than half the time of a normal semester-format course. This means students should expect to spend 18+ hours a week on each BSPH course.
How Many Courses Will I Need to Take at a Time?
This highlights one of the attractive aspects of the convenience and flexibility of UTA’s online programs: You decide how many courses you take each term, fitting your course load around your own schedule.
As outlined above, courses in UTA’s online BSPH program require disciplined time commitment and effort. But you can focus that effort and time commitment however you want to. If you have kids in school, you can take more online courses during the school year. If you work in the school systems, you might want to take on a heavier class load during the summer months. Whether you take one course at a time or three, you choose what works for you.
UTA’s online BSPH program does require intensive effort and self-discipline from the student. But the flexibility and potentially short completion time of this degree program also makes pursuing a bachelor’s in public health a possibility for those who might otherwise think it out of reach.
Learn more about UTA’s online Bachelor of Science in Public Health program.
Sources:
U.S. News & World Report: Discover the Weekly Number of Hours Online Students Study
MarketWatch: Is an Associate’s Degree the New Bachelor’s Degree?
Study.com: Accelerated vs. Traditional Degree Programs
