The UTMB School of Public and Population Health (SPPH) climbed 27 spots in U.S. News & World Report's 2026 Best Public Health Schools rankings, rising from No. 116 to No. 89 among 224 accredited schools and programs of public health. The gain is tied for the largest single-cycle improvement among all programs currently ranked in the top 100.
The rankings are based entirely on peer assessment surveys sent to deans, administrators, and faculty at programs accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). Respondents rate the academic quality of each school or program on a scale of 1 to 5. SPPH earned a peer assessment score of 2.6, up from its previous cycle, placing the school alongside institutions including Syracuse University, the University of Cincinnati, and the University of Kansas.
"Public health has been part of UTMB's identity since 1891, when our earliest faculty were already teaching that preventing disease was the physician's highest obligation. The department the Board of Regents established in 1912 was built on the conviction that health is shaped by the communities people live in and the conditions they face every day. That same conviction runs through everything we do at SPPH. This school was shaped from the start by faculty, staff, students, and community partners who all had a hand in its programs, its priorities, and its culture. We are a young school with deep roots, and this ranking reflects a trajectory we intend to sustain."
Dr. Kristen Peek, Dean of the School of Public and Population Health
Deep Roots in Preventive Medicine and Community Health
SPPH was formally established in 2021, when the UT System Board of Regents approved the transition of the Department of Preventive Medicine and Population Health into a school of public health. It received full CEPH accreditation as a school in 2023. But public health education at UTMB predates the school by more than a century.
Hygiene was part of UTMB's curriculum from its first academic year in 1891. In 1912, the Board of Regents created one of the earliest chairs of preventive medicine in the state, appointing James Person Simonds, MD, as its first occupant. In his opening address to the 1913 session, Dr. Simonds laid out a vision that still resonates: "The problems of preventive medicine are social problems and their final solution must be by social remedies." Over the decades that followed, the department grew to encompass epidemiology, biostatistics, environmental health, sociomedical sciences, and human nutrition, and it played a direct role in Galveston's public health infrastructure, from assisting with disease outbreaks to establishing free clinics in underserved neighborhoods.
The graduate program admitted its first students in 2000, earned CEPH accreditation in 2002, and expanded steadily over the next two decades, adding an MD/MPH pathway in 2019 and opening enrollment to students outside UTMB in 2017. By the time the school was established, public health enrollment had grown by 385 percent in six years.
Shaped by the Health Needs of Communities
SPPH's academic programs span four departments: Bioethics and Health Humanities, Biostatistics and Data Science, Epidemiology, and Population Health and Health Disparities, plus the Aerospace Medicine division. Recent research has examined troubling trends in U.S. life expectancy, the link between wellness visits and fall prevention in dementia patients, and the ethical dimensions of emerging technologies in medicine. Students have presented at national conferences, won the Audience Choice Award at the ASPPH Innovation Lab, and completed practicum rotations at sites including the Galveston County Health District.
The school also houses the Area Health Education Center and the AIDS Education and Training Center, and its Department of Population Health and Health Disparities recently launched an inaugural pilot award to invest in faculty-led research. UTMB's recent launch of a community well-being initiative in Galveston, developed with dozens of local organizations, has created additional opportunities for SPPH faculty and students to contribute to population-level health work on the island.
"SPPH continues to be shaped by the real health experiences of the communities around us. When we train students here, we are preparing them for work that is grounded in the places where people actually live their lives. Our partnerships with community organizations, local government, faith institutions, and the business community all feed back into what and how we teach. This school sits at the intersection of purpose and passion, and I believe the best of what we will become is still ahead of us."
Dr. Kristen Peek
What Faculty Say Prospective Students Should Look For
Rankings offer one lens for evaluating a program, but the people who teach in graduate public health programs consistently point to a different set of factors when advising prospective students on where to apply.
"The things that truly shape a graduate public health experience are finding a program where the training aligns with your goals, you receive strong mentorship, and you have meaningful opportunities to apply what you're learning. Look for a community that supports your growth and prepares you to make a real impact. The mentorship and experiences will stay with you throughout your career."
Dr. Cara Pennel, Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs
"You'll be supported by faculty who are deeply invested in your success, guiding you to graduation and helping you take the next step in your career with confidence. Our carefully selected practicum placements provide real-world experience and help you build your professional network. And with low student-to-faculty ratios, you benefit from close interaction with professors who know you, support you, and challenge you to grow."
Dr. Denny Fe Agana, Director of MPH Program
"Choosing a graduate program is about finding a place that connects you to real-world experience, supportive mentors, and a community that shares your passion for improving health outcomes. What matters most is the impact you make, and SPPH gives students the tools, knowledge, and confidence to enter the workforce prepared to do exactly that."
Leslie Stalnaker, Director of Public Health Practice
SPPH offers master's, doctoral, and certificate programs in public health, biostatistics, epidemiology, bioethics, aerospace medicine, and more. Learn how a UTMB public health education can prepare you to make an impact in the communities that need it most.