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MPH
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This information was
updated on September 3, 2008.
Message
from the
Chair
MPH
Degree
MPH
Curriculum
MPH
Faculty
Applying
for the MPH
Other
Education
Office of
Community
Health
This information was
updated on September 3, 2008.
The Master of Public Health
Degree Program
Degree Program
The mission of the University of Cincinnati's Master of Public Health (MPH) program is to prepare
students to provide leadership in public health practice and research through generating, evaluating,
and applying evidence to improve the public's health. This education will be provided from a
multidisciplinary perspective, employing active-learning strategies, and in collaboration with the
full array of community institutions and organizations involved in the health of the public.
What is Evidence-Based Public Health (EBPH)?
The MPH degree program at the University of Cincinnati is one of the first public health training programs in the nation to emphasize an evidence-based approach to safeguarding and improving the public’s health. Similar to the more established and more familiar evidence-based medicine, EBPH relies on evidence of effectiveness as its foundation. The UC MPH program will provide graduates with knowledge of the first principles of an evidence-based approach as well as the ability to generate, evaluate and apply evidence regarding solutions to public health problems.
EBPH is an emerging field. In response to the post 9/11 discovery that the nation's public health infrastructure was not prepared to deal with real and potential crises, an offshoot from existing health services research began to develop called public health systems research. At a meeting sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2002, a new Public Health Systems Research Affiliate of the Academy for Health Services Research and Policy was initiated to advance knowledge in public health practice. Subsequent meetings and additional funding for investigation into this area have led to the burgeoning of this new field.
With the publication in 2005 of the CDC's 'Guide to Community Preventive Services: What Works to Promote Health?', the knowledge being generated through public health systems research began to be applied to community health improvement. The Guide analyzes existing evidence and applies it in a focused way to some of the many problems public health scholars and practitioners have faced for decades, and then evaluated its efficacy in addressing the problem. Similar to the Cochrane Collaboration which provides much of the evidentiary infrastructure for improvement in the practice of medicine, the Guide was conceived of as an organic, growing body of knowledge which can best be accessed not through its 'hard copy' publication, but rather through its home on the world wide web: www.thecommunityguide.org.
The Cincinnati MPH will build upon the success of these developing fields to carry out its mission to train leaders in public health practice and research through the development of students' abilities to generate, evaluate, and apply evidence to safeguard and improve the health of the public. We anticipate not only that our MPH faculty will be major contributors to this broad field, which includes the full range of quantitative and qualitative approaches, but that the 'capstone' investigative efforts of our MPH students, based on real-world community health improvement problems, will add to this effort as well.
Why Earn a Public Health Degree?
The MPH is a professional degree, similar to the MBA in management. It is designed to prepare professionals for the 'real world' of practice, with a focus on health improvement. Specifically, the MPH will provide you with skills to:
• understand and utilize the factors which influence local, national and global
legislative and social polices;
• apply state-of-the-art analytical (both quantitative and qualitative) techniques
needed for problem solving;
• develop multidisciplinary and collaborative strategies for solving health-related
problems;
• approach health as a population-based concern rather than an individual one;
• develop and implement health programs in limited resource settings that are tailored
to the specific needs of the community and in partnership with that community;
• travel or experience health from an international perspective;
• advocate for change in your community on a policy level;
• communicate more effectively with diverse populations; and,
• be positioned for a leadership role.
For more information on how a public health degree may or may not be the right choice for you, we recommend you visit www.whatispublichealth.org or contact any of the individuals named at the bottom of this page.
Admissions to the University of Cincinnati MPH Program
In recruiting students, the Cincinnati MPH program will focus upon several target populations:
• health professionals who are currently practicing or in training for medicine, nursing,
pharmacy, allied health, and similar clinical fields who are interested in public health
practice and research;
• practicing public health professionals who seek additional education; and
• individuals who are interested in developing skills in population-based health,
including graduates with degrees in relevant fields such as health education/health
promotion, medical anthropology, medical sociology, psychology, social work, and
those with undergraduate degrees who wish to enter the public health workforce.
The MPH Program leadership and faculty are committed to enhancing the diversity of health professionals involved in public health-related practice and research. Toward that end, they have begun to coordinate with current University of Cincinnati programs that have this objective as their mission, such as the Student National Medical Association, the Office of Diversity and Community Affairs at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, and the academic health center’s Graduate Student Recruitment Office.
The evidence-based approach of our curriculum is modeled in the way our degree will be developed — our goal is continuous improvement in our program, based upon ongoing assessment. The spirit and intent of this decision is to develop the highest quality program in these initial years. Accordingly, for our early classes we are seeking a relatively small number of individuals who possess a pioneering spirit and the ambition to provide informed leadership on the frontier of public health. We do not anticipate enrolling full-sized classes until after the program is fully accredited. The Council for Education in Public Health (CEPH) will not consider a program for accreditation until after it has graduated its first cohort of students.
For more information on MPH admissions, including application processes, click here: Applying for the MPH.
The MPH Curriculum
The Cincinnati MPH degree will include approximately sixty quarter hours of coursework. This will consist of twenty-eight quarter hours of core courses and thirty-two quarter hours in a concentration selected by the student. The core courses will include:
• Introduction to Evidence-Based Public Health
• The Environment and the Public's Health
• Health Systems and Policy
• Introduction to Population Health and Illness
• Social & Behavioral Change in Public Health
• Statistical Analysis for Public Health Practitioners
• Legal & Ethical Issues in Public Health
Additionally, students must select one of three specialty coursework concentrations — one in Caring for Vulnerable Populations, one in Leading and Managing in Public Health, or one in Health Promotion and Education. Each of these concentrations consists of a mixture of required and elective courses, totaling a minimum of thirty-two quarter hours, including the experiential Practicum and Capstone courses detailed below. Students may pre-select their concentration at the time of Program application, or by no later than the end of the second term of the program (in the case of part-time students, after a similar number of credits have been completed). Students will generally be encouraged to complete the core sequence before taking concentration courses but may, based on course availability, schedule, and other circumstances, with advisor's and instructor's permission, register for a limited number of concentration courses before completing the core.
Experiential courses required in all concentrations: Practicum and Capstone
Practicum — The Practicum is an individually-planned, supervised, and evaluated practice experience through which the student will develop an understanding of, and appreciation for, practice in a public health-related environment relevant to their chosen concentration. Experiences gained in the Practicum may well lead directly to the problem or project the student undertakes as his/her Capstone.
Capstone Experience — This culminating experience is the mechanism by which the student demonstrates her/his ability to synthesize and integrate the knowledge and skills gained throughout the program. It allows the student to apply theory and principles in a situation that approximates some aspect of professional problem-solving practice and serves as a means by which faculty judge whether the student has mastered the body of knowledge and can demonstrate proficiency in the required competencies. Many different models are possible, including written or oral comprehensive examinations, supervised practice experiences, a major written paper such as a thesis or an applied research project, development of case studies, capstone seminars, and others. Students will typically register for the Capstone across more than one term.
Additional Information
For more information on the developing MPH Program, including concentrations in 'Leading and Managing for Public Health' and 'Caring for Vulnerable Populations,' contact:
• James Boex, PhD, MBA
Professor of Public Health and MPH Program Director
College of Medicine
513.558.5613
James.Boex@uc.edu
For more information on the MPH concentration in Health Promotion and Health Education, contact:
• Randall Cottrell, PhD
Professor of Health Education and Program Coordinator
College of Education, Criminal Justice and Human Services
513.556.3861
Randall.Cottrell@uc.edu
What is Evidence-Based Public Health (EBPH)?
The MPH degree program at the University of Cincinnati is one of the first public health training programs in the nation to emphasize an evidence-based approach to safeguarding and improving the public’s health. Similar to the more established and more familiar evidence-based medicine, EBPH relies on evidence of effectiveness as its foundation. The UC MPH program will provide graduates with knowledge of the first principles of an evidence-based approach as well as the ability to generate, evaluate and apply evidence regarding solutions to public health problems.
EBPH is an emerging field. In response to the post 9/11 discovery that the nation's public health infrastructure was not prepared to deal with real and potential crises, an offshoot from existing health services research began to develop called public health systems research. At a meeting sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2002, a new Public Health Systems Research Affiliate of the Academy for Health Services Research and Policy was initiated to advance knowledge in public health practice. Subsequent meetings and additional funding for investigation into this area have led to the burgeoning of this new field.
With the publication in 2005 of the CDC's 'Guide to Community Preventive Services: What Works to Promote Health?', the knowledge being generated through public health systems research began to be applied to community health improvement. The Guide analyzes existing evidence and applies it in a focused way to some of the many problems public health scholars and practitioners have faced for decades, and then evaluated its efficacy in addressing the problem. Similar to the Cochrane Collaboration which provides much of the evidentiary infrastructure for improvement in the practice of medicine, the Guide was conceived of as an organic, growing body of knowledge which can best be accessed not through its 'hard copy' publication, but rather through its home on the world wide web: www.thecommunityguide.org.
The Cincinnati MPH will build upon the success of these developing fields to carry out its mission to train leaders in public health practice and research through the development of students' abilities to generate, evaluate, and apply evidence to safeguard and improve the health of the public. We anticipate not only that our MPH faculty will be major contributors to this broad field, which includes the full range of quantitative and qualitative approaches, but that the 'capstone' investigative efforts of our MPH students, based on real-world community health improvement problems, will add to this effort as well.
Why Earn a Public Health Degree?
The MPH is a professional degree, similar to the MBA in management. It is designed to prepare professionals for the 'real world' of practice, with a focus on health improvement. Specifically, the MPH will provide you with skills to:
• understand and utilize the factors which influence local, national and global
legislative and social polices;
• apply state-of-the-art analytical (both quantitative and qualitative) techniques
needed for problem solving;
• develop multidisciplinary and collaborative strategies for solving health-related
problems;
• approach health as a population-based concern rather than an individual one;
• develop and implement health programs in limited resource settings that are tailored
to the specific needs of the community and in partnership with that community;
• travel or experience health from an international perspective;
• advocate for change in your community on a policy level;
• communicate more effectively with diverse populations; and,
• be positioned for a leadership role.
For more information on how a public health degree may or may not be the right choice for you, we recommend you visit www.whatispublichealth.org or contact any of the individuals named at the bottom of this page.
Admissions to the University of Cincinnati MPH Program
In recruiting students, the Cincinnati MPH program will focus upon several target populations:
• health professionals who are currently practicing or in training for medicine, nursing,
pharmacy, allied health, and similar clinical fields who are interested in public health
practice and research;
• practicing public health professionals who seek additional education; and
• individuals who are interested in developing skills in population-based health,
including graduates with degrees in relevant fields such as health education/health
promotion, medical anthropology, medical sociology, psychology, social work, and
those with undergraduate degrees who wish to enter the public health workforce.
The MPH Program leadership and faculty are committed to enhancing the diversity of health professionals involved in public health-related practice and research. Toward that end, they have begun to coordinate with current University of Cincinnati programs that have this objective as their mission, such as the Student National Medical Association, the Office of Diversity and Community Affairs at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, and the academic health center’s Graduate Student Recruitment Office.
The evidence-based approach of our curriculum is modeled in the way our degree will be developed — our goal is continuous improvement in our program, based upon ongoing assessment. The spirit and intent of this decision is to develop the highest quality program in these initial years. Accordingly, for our early classes we are seeking a relatively small number of individuals who possess a pioneering spirit and the ambition to provide informed leadership on the frontier of public health. We do not anticipate enrolling full-sized classes until after the program is fully accredited. The Council for Education in Public Health (CEPH) will not consider a program for accreditation until after it has graduated its first cohort of students.
For more information on MPH admissions, including application processes, click here: Applying for the MPH.
The MPH Curriculum
The Cincinnati MPH degree will include approximately sixty quarter hours of coursework. This will consist of twenty-eight quarter hours of core courses and thirty-two quarter hours in a concentration selected by the student. The core courses will include:
• Introduction to Evidence-Based Public Health
• The Environment and the Public's Health
• Health Systems and Policy
• Introduction to Population Health and Illness
• Social & Behavioral Change in Public Health
• Statistical Analysis for Public Health Practitioners
• Legal & Ethical Issues in Public Health
Additionally, students must select one of three specialty coursework concentrations — one in Caring for Vulnerable Populations, one in Leading and Managing in Public Health, or one in Health Promotion and Education. Each of these concentrations consists of a mixture of required and elective courses, totaling a minimum of thirty-two quarter hours, including the experiential Practicum and Capstone courses detailed below. Students may pre-select their concentration at the time of Program application, or by no later than the end of the second term of the program (in the case of part-time students, after a similar number of credits have been completed). Students will generally be encouraged to complete the core sequence before taking concentration courses but may, based on course availability, schedule, and other circumstances, with advisor's and instructor's permission, register for a limited number of concentration courses before completing the core.
Experiential courses required in all concentrations: Practicum and Capstone
Practicum — The Practicum is an individually-planned, supervised, and evaluated practice experience through which the student will develop an understanding of, and appreciation for, practice in a public health-related environment relevant to their chosen concentration. Experiences gained in the Practicum may well lead directly to the problem or project the student undertakes as his/her Capstone.
Capstone Experience — This culminating experience is the mechanism by which the student demonstrates her/his ability to synthesize and integrate the knowledge and skills gained throughout the program. It allows the student to apply theory and principles in a situation that approximates some aspect of professional problem-solving practice and serves as a means by which faculty judge whether the student has mastered the body of knowledge and can demonstrate proficiency in the required competencies. Many different models are possible, including written or oral comprehensive examinations, supervised practice experiences, a major written paper such as a thesis or an applied research project, development of case studies, capstone seminars, and others. Students will typically register for the Capstone across more than one term.
Additional Information
For more information on the developing MPH Program, including concentrations in 'Leading and Managing for Public Health' and 'Caring for Vulnerable Populations,' contact:
• James Boex, PhD, MBA
Professor of Public Health and MPH Program Director
College of Medicine
513.558.5613
James.Boex@uc.edu
For more information on the MPH concentration in Health Promotion and Health Education, contact:
• Randall Cottrell, PhD
Professor of Health Education and Program Coordinator
College of Education, Criminal Justice and Human Services
513.556.3861
Randall.Cottrell@uc.edu
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