Health Services Policy and Management (HSPM) is an interdisciplinary field concerned with the promotion of personal and public health through planning, organizing, directing, controlling, coordinating and evaluating health services.
Career opportunities exist in hospitals and clinics, state and federal health care agencies, physician practices, long-term care facilities, professional organizations, consulting firms, insurance companies, health departments, and hospital and medical associations. Individuals from a wide range of undergraduate majors can expect to succeed in health administration, given the many career opportunities the field offers.
The MPH program emphasizes the management of public health agencies and public sector health services. Graduates from the MHA program find jobs in finance and business development, operations management, information technology management, human resources, patient and community relations and other fields. The Ph.D. prepares students to conduct health services research and/or teach at a university level.
The Department of Health Services Policy and Management’s mission is to be actively involved in improving quality, safety, efficiency and effectiveness of health services and health systems locally and globally. (Adopted Fall 2021).
We offer seven advanced degrees related to health services policy and management. Each graduate degree has specific application deadlines and requirements.
When long-time health promotion, education, and behavior professor Daniela Friedman officially took on the Arnold School's Associate Dean for Research position in 2025, the role came with an extended title and a pioneering charge rarely seen in academic units.
The Department of Health Services Policy and Management is proud to announce the recipients of their 2026 Student Awards. These students were selected for their outstanding performance both academically and outside the classroom.
The SC Center for Excellence in Addiction is making statewide advances in the fight against the opioid epidemic. The state's three major research institutions and partners have been working together tirelessly to lay the groundwork for prevention and treatment for decades to come.
The Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management and Education has selected the HSPM's MHA program to receive the Canon Award for Excellence in Sustainability in Healthcare Management Education and Practice.
Olivia Hinds is working on her third degree from USC, but she can trace her interest in substance use disorder (SUD) treatment to high school when she worked on a two-year research project examining SUD treatment options for pregnant women in the state.
SCBiz recently recognized the state's highest achieving women from across South Carolina and an array of fields for their impact in the areas of leadership, community service and mentorship.