TO DETERMINE THE LEVEL OF EMPATHY ACCORDING TO THE SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC AND ACADEMIC CHARACTERISTICS OF HEALTH STUDENTS AT A PUBLIC UNIVERSITY IN CHILE. METHODS: A DESCRIPTIVE OBSERVATIONAL STUDY WAS CARRIED OUT IN A SAMPLE OF 245 STUDENTS OF NURSING AND NUTRITION AND DIETETICS. THE LEVEL OF EMPATHY WAS MEASURED WITH THE JEFFERSON SCALE OF PHYSICIAN EMPATHY (JSPE) HPS-JSPE VERSION. RESULTS: IT IS WORTH NOTING THAT STUDENTS WHOSE FIRST CHOICE OF CAREER WAS THEIR FIRST CHOICE HAD AN AVERAGE OF 116.2, WHILE THOSE WHO HAD FAILED A SUBJECT HAD AN AVERAGE OF 109.5. CONCLUSIONS: FACTORS SUCH AS THE CHOICE OF UNIVERSITY CAREER EMERGE AS RELEVANT ELEMENTS THAT REQUIRE ATTENTION TO BE STUDIED WITH TESTS THAT VERIFY THAT THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO MODULATE THE LEVELS OF EMPATHY IN HEALTH STUDENTS.