Medical Physics (M.S.) Program Details
Degree Requirements
❱ Required coursework
❱ Graduate School writing proficiency requirement
❱ Graduate School Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) requirement
❱ Research paper
❱ Final oral examination
Research Specializations
❱ Radiological dosimetry
❱ Intensity-modulated radiotherapy
❱ Radiopharmaceutical therapy
❱ Charged particle therapy
❱ Radiobiological-guided treatment
Career and Industry Outlook
Job openings for physicists, including medical physicists, are expected to grow faster than average (8 percent from 2020 to 2030), according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, especially in health care.
Medical physicists are healthcare professionals with specialized training in the medical applications of physics. They enjoy many job opportunities, including academic, research, and clinical practice, and practice therapeutic medical physics, diagnostic medical physics, nuclear medical physics, medical health physics, and magnetic resonance imaging.
Medical physicists use their knowledge of physics to research and develop new and safer medical technologies and new treatment therapies for patients with cancer and heart disease, for example. For more general information, we recommend the AAPM Career Services Website.
Program of Study*
FALL YEAR 1 (10 CR)
MPHS 501 Radiological Physics & Dosimetry
MPHS 502 Medical Imaging Technology
MPHS 503 Health Physics and Radiation Safety
MPHS 504 Current Topics in Medical Physics
SPRING YEAR 1 (10 CR)
MPHS 511 Radiation Therapy Physics
MPHS 505 Ethics/Professional Issues in Academia & Clinical Practice
MPHS 613 Anatomy and Physiology for Physicists
MPHS 500 Graduate Research
SUMMER YEAR 1 (3 CR)
MPHS 517 Clinical Medical Physics Laboratory
MPHS 500 Graduate Research
FALL YEAR 2 (10 CR)
MPHS 601 Radiation Biology
BIOG 430 Biostatistics
Elective ** MPHS 605 ST: Nuclear Medicine Imaging
MPHS 602 Technical Documents Review
SPRING YEAR 2 (9 CR)
Elective ** MPHS 605 ST: Radiopharmaceutical Dosimetry
Elective *
MPHS 500 Graduate Research
ELECTIVES
* Electives currently include the following approved courses within Howard University, subject to the availability of the courses and approval by the Director of Medical Physics:
BIOL 420 Cancer Biology (3 Cr)
CSCI 660 Introduction to Artificial Intelligence (3 Cr)
CSCI 675 Introduction to Machine Learning (3 Cr)
MPHS 606 ST: Special Topics in Medical Physics -II (2-3 Cr)
MPHS 607 ST: Special Topics in Medical Physics -III (2-3 Cr)
Courses included in the sample program of study are subject to change. Students should consult with their programs regarding their required program of study.
Admission to Candidacy
Students are admitted to formal candidacy by the Graduate School when they have completed the required coursework, submitted an approved topic for research, and been recommended by the Department. Candidates must also have satisfied the Graduate School writing proficiency requirement and Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) requirement.