Best Behavioral Health Science Schools Near Houston, TX (2026)

Houston, Texas has 5 accredited schools offering behavioral health science programs, with tuition ranging from $2,490 to $21,293 per year for indexed programs. Houston has a population of about 2,300,419. Median household income is $62,894 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 36.0% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area, the top-earning behavioral health science-related role is Social and Community Service Manager at a median $76,780 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).


Closest Behavioral Health Science Schools to Houston

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer behavioral health science programs near Houston, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Houston city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

  • Graduation rate 30%
  • Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
  • Average net price (lower is better) 20%
  • Retention rate 15%
  • Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Houston. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

Ranked by BOC Score โ€” U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.

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#1

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Houston, TX 5.5 miles from Houston
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
95.6 BOC Score
Graduation rate 89%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $90,232
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 9

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

Houston, TX 5.8 miles from Houston
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
96.9 BOC Score
Graduation rate 93%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $88,757
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 35

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#3

Houston Christian University

Houston, TX 9.8 miles from Houston
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
47.2 BOC Score
Graduation rate 49%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $55,933
Avg net price $20,629/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 69%
  • Programs offered: 78

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#4

University of Houston-Clear Lake

Houston, TX 22.7 miles from Houston
  • 4 year
  • Offers a fully online program
65.9 BOC Score
Graduation rate 64%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $59,004
Avg net price $15,563/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 75%
  • Programs offered: 60

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Texas schools on the Texas behavioral health science page.


Behavioral Health Science Wages Near Houston

Houston is part of the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area (BLS area code 26420). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Texas statewide.

OccupationMedian WageSourceCOL-Adjusted (US=100)
Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselor$67,370Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX$68,327
Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Worker$48,880Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX$49,574
Social and Community Service Manager$76,780Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX$77,870
Social and Human Service Assistant$46,100Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX$46,755

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.


Houston at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population2,300,419Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$62,894Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+36.0%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)98.6 (below U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024

Other Houston-Area Cities With Behavioral Health Science Programs


Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited behavioral health science schools are near Houston, TX?

Our directory has 5 accredited schools offering behavioral health science programs near Houston. The closest is The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX (5.5 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is University of Houston-Clear Lake (22.7 miles). 5 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying behavioral health science roles near Houston?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying behavioral health science-related roles near Houston are: Social and Community Service Manager ($76,780), Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselor ($67,370), Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Worker ($48,880). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Texas statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Pearland instead of Houston?

Pearland, TX is 16.4 miles from Houston and has its own set of local behavioral health science programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Is Houston an affordable place to study behavioral health science?

Houston’s median household income of $62,894 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Houston while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Texas public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.


Learn More About Behavioral Health Science Programs

Other Programs Available in Houston

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Houston:

Data verified: August 31, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024โ€“2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.