As the healthcare sector undergoes a major digital transformation, organizations are generating large and increasingly complex sets of health, environment and spatial data that can be leveraged to address health disparities and emerging threats.
To help prepare students for the increasingly in-demand roles that these data opportunities create, the University of Maryland will launch a new, online Master of Professional Studies (MPS) program in geospatial artificial intelligence and healthcare during the Spring 2027 semester.
The interdisciplinary program is offered jointly by the Department of Health Policy and Management in the School of Public Health (SPH) and the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences’ Department of Geographical Sciences (GEOG). The 30-credit, fully virtual program will prepare students to help solve complex health challenges—from identifying how and where diseases are spreading, to which communities and individuals may need greater resources—by having them take a deep dive into the intersection of AI, geospatial analytics and public health.
This technology helps health systems anticipate where crises will happen and allocate resources exactly where they are most needed.
“GeoAI and healthcare fuses patient location data with machine learning to map disease outbreaks, predict environmental health risks, address access and health disparities by identifying neighborhoods lacking medical services, and promote preventive care by flagging patients who are at high risk for hospital readmissions,” said Clinical Professor Negin Fouladi of the School of Public Health who co-led the program's development and serves as co-director.
“This technology helps health systems anticipate where crises will happen and allocate resources exactly where they are most needed.”
Students in the program will gain expertise in geospatial sensing, machine learning and deep learning, with a curriculum that includes courses like “Spatial Analysis for Public Health,” “Web GIS for Public Health,” and “Deep Learning for Geospatial Health Data.” The interdisciplinary partnership between SPH’s Department of Health Policy and Management and GEOG ensures that graduates gain a comprehensive understanding of both technical tools, and the healthcare systems in which they are applied.
“Most graduate programs focus on either healthcare analytics, public health, geospatial science, or artificial intelligence independently,” said Mengxue Li, a principal faculty specialist in GEOG, who also co-led the program's development and serves as co-director.
“This program is unique because it intentionally integrates all three disciplines into a single professional degree, enabling students to apply advanced technologies to solve real-world challenges. It is a strong example of cross-college collaboration, distinguished by its interdisciplinary focus and integration of AI into the classroom.”
Graduates will be prepared for a variety of roles, including health data scientists, spatial epidemiologists and GeoAI analysts. Given the university’s proximity to Washington, D.C., students in the MPS program will also benefit from increased access to federal agencies, and nearby healthcare organizations and technology partners.
The program is currently open for applications for the Spring 2027 semester. Find more information on the program’s website
This article is adapted from Renata Johnson’s original article.