Health Psychology Ph.D. Program
What is Health Psychology?
Health psychology is dedicated to conducting basic and applied research examining the contribution of biological, psychological, behavioral, social, cultural, and environmental factors to health and illness. Health Psychology builds from principles and theories of other areas of psychology, biology, health, and social sciences. Health psychologists are concerned with promotion and maintenance of health, the prevention and treatment of illness across the lifespan, and improvement of systems that promote and maintain health.
Program Description
The Doctoral Program in Health Psychology at UNC Charlotte offers training in one of the following concentration areas:
- Clinical Health Psychology program
- Community Health Psychology program
- Behavioral Science Health Psychology program
An emphasis of our program is on the development, implementation, and evaluation of prevention and treatment interventions that involve multiple disciplines. The program has links with other colleges, departments and programs in the university that allows students to select health courses across disciplines. Please see our 2025–2026 Student Handbook for detailed information about our program curriculum and procedures for more information.
The Health Psychology PhD Program does not offer training at the MA level. Please visit the Department of Psychology for more information about their MA Program in Psychology.
Important Information for Applicants
Application Deadline
All materials must be submitted to The Graduate School by December 2, 2026 to be fully considered for admission for the Fall Semester in 2027. Students with master’s degrees in psychology or health related fields (biology, gerontology, nursing and allied health, public policy, and other health disciplines) as well as highly disciplined and competent undergraduates are encouraged to apply. For more information, please visit the “Application Information” tab.
Note: The GRE general test requirement will NOT be required for the upcoming admission cycle!
- For more information on the Clinical concentration please visit: http://healthpsych.charlotte.edu/concentration-areas/clinical
- For more information on the Behavioral Science concentration please visit: https://healthpsych.charlotte.edu/concentration-areas/behavioralscience
- For more information on the Community concentration please visit: https://healthpsych.charlotte.edu/concentration-areas/community
- For additional information about the Health Psychology Ph.D. program, please contact: Dr. Doug Markant at dmarkant@charlotte.edu.
APA Accreditation
The Clinical Psychology program at UNC Charlotte has been APA-accredited since 2012 and has re-accreditation until 2027. The program is undergoing the next re-accreditation process during the 2026–2027 academic year. For any questions about the program’s accreditation status or about APA accreditation in general, please contact:
Office of Program Consultation and Accreditation / American Psychological Association
750 First Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002-4242
Phone: (202) 336-5979 / E-mail: apaaccred@apa.org / Web: https://accreditation.apa.org/