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Clinton School of Public Service

MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH (MPH) 

The Master of Public Health (MPH) degree prepares students in the art and science of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting health through organized community outreach. Public health differs from other health programs in that it focuses on large population groups instead of individuals. It emphasizes promoting health and wellness as ultimate goals and prevention over cure

The MPH degree is a forty-two (42) semester credit hour program designed to accommodate the student who wishes to obtain an area of concentration in traditional public health specialties. Available specialty tracks include biostatistics, epidemiology, environmental and occupational health, health education/health behavior, and health policy and management. Each student who declares a specialty area must select an academic advisor from members of the faculty of the department related to that particular area of public health specialization.

The MPH curriculum design accommodates the student who wishes to develop a career as a generalist in public health. These students are required to work with an advisory committee of three (3) COPH faculty members to design a program of study in keeping with the student’s career goals and objectives. The advisory committee must be composed of the primary advisor, and two other members. Although it is strongly recommended that at least three (3) COPH departments be represented on a generalist advisory committee, at least two (2) COPH departments must be represented on the committee. Listed below are some of the key requirements of the UAMS Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health for the awarding of the Master of Public Health degree.

Capstone Courses. Two (2) capstone courses are required as part of the forty-two (42) semester credit hour MPH curriculum. The first is a preceptorship, or field experience, requiring a minimum of 135 clock hours of work in a public health-related activity, under the joint supervision of a qualified specialist in public health practice and a COPH faculty member. The second is an integration project, requiring the student to synthesize and integrate knowledge and apply theory and principles learned to an area of public health practice resulting in preparation of a manuscript for publication, a health policy proposal, a research proposal for submission, or equivalent, if approved by the Integration Project Advisory Committee (IPAC) composed of COPH Faculty members.

Successful Completion of Courses. Courses must be completed with a grade of “C” or better to be considered successfully completed. Only successfully completed courses can be counted toward degree requirements. When a listed requirement for enrollment in a course includes completion of a prerequisite course, the prerequisite course must also have been successfully completed.

Grade Point Average and Semester Credit Hours. Forty-two (42) semester credit hours and a minimum cumulative grade point of 2.85 on all courses.

Time Frame for Completion of Degree. All requirements for a master’s degree must be satisfied within six (6) consecutive calendar years from the first registration (whether degree-seeking or non-degree seeking) with the Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health. Students must begin classes within one (1) calendar year after acceptance to the COPH.

MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

The MPH program requires a minimum of forty-two (42) graduate semester credit hours. The overall curriculum model includes:

·  Core Courses:                                    18 semester credit hours

·  Concentration (specialty or generalist):  15 semester credit hours

·  Elective:                                             3 semester credit hours

·  Preceptorship in Public Health:                3 semester credit hours

·  Public Health Integration Project:            3 semester credit hours

REQUIRED CORE COURSES

The six (6) core courses listed below include a general overview of public health as well as an introductory course in each of the five (5) core public health disciplines. These courses comprise the entire Post-Baccalaureate Certificate curriculum, and also serve as the required eighteen (18) semester credit hour core for all MPH students. Upon successful completion of these six (6) core courses, students will be able to achieve each of the following learning objectives:

·    Define the components of community-based public health practice.

·    Describe basic and contemporary issues of public health, including tools of community-based health assessment, surveillance, health promotion, disease prevention, policy, cultural competency, and ethics.

·    Demonstrate the ability to complete descriptive analyses as well as nonparametric, regression, multiple comparisons of means and analysis of variance for one- and two-factor experiment biostatistics for datasets.

·    Demonstrate an understanding of core statistical concepts, including database principles, basic probability principles, diagnostic test statistics, tests of hypotheses, sample-size estimation, and power of tests.     

·    Describe the elements of the common chemical, physical, and biological hazards in the occupational and community settings, along with the ways in which these hazards are evaluated, controlled, and regulated.

·    Define the major components of at least two (2) models of health behavior change, i.e., the Health Belief Model, Transtheoretical Model, Social Cognitive Theory.

·    Describe the organizational arrangements, financing, health status issues, health insurance, health manpower, cost of health care, quality of health care, access and regulatory issues of the health care delivery system in the United States.

·    Describe the core concepts of epidemiology, including its history and theoretical basis; measures of morbidity, mortality, disease transmission and risk; major study designs; measures of association; bias, confounding and interaction; evaluation of screening tests; inference; and causality.

REQUIRED PRECEPTORSHIP AND INTEGRATION PROJECT

The following are College-wide courses required of all MPH candidates. These two (2) courses are meant to be taken at the end of each student’s degree program, and are designed to give students an opportunity to integrate their public health knowledge and apply their skills to a variety of problems or issues in public health.

Current policies on Preceptorships include:

·    Preceptorships will be graded on a pass/fail basis.

·    No student who has earned less than a 2.85 GPA in College of Public Health courses may enroll in the Preceptorship. (Students will continue to have a maximum of six (6) additional hours to raise their GPAs above the 2.85 GPA, consistent with the previous policies.)

·    Students who enrolled in Preceptorship in a semester prior to fall 2005 will receive a letter grade for their Preceptorship, regardless of the date in which they finish their Preceptorship and a final grade is posted.

Current policies on Integration Projects include:

·    Integration project will be graded on pass/fail basis.

·    No student who has earned less than a 2.85 GPA in College of Public Health courses may enroll in the Integration Project.  (Students will continue to have a maximum of six (6) additional hours to raise their GPAs above the 2.85 GPA, consistent with the previous policies.)

·    Students who enrolled in Integration Project in a semester prior to fall 2005 will receive a letter grade for their Integration Project, regardless of the date in which they finish their project and a final grade is posted. Inclusion of description of integration of at least three (3) public health sciences in student plans and projects, project activities, and learning objectives is mandatory. The process by which the student will integrate these public health perspectives into their project activities must be clearly described.  Statements that the student “will use their knowledge of [various public health sciences] to complete the project” are not adequate.

·    Documentation must be included in the integration project plan that (a) the full IPAC (all three members) and the student had at least one full-group meeting prior to the approval of the plan and (b) the full IPAC and the student will have at least one full-group meeting again during the integration project period.

·    Students will have a maximum of three (3) consecutive semesters to complete their integration project from the semester in which they first register for it.  Students who require more than one semester to complete their project will register and pay for the three (3) semester credit hour integration course for each semester they are involved in their project (up to nine (9) semester credit hours).  Any additional semester credit hours, beyond the required three (3) semester credit hours, that are taken for Integration Project will NOT count against the six (6) semester credit hours that are permitted for students to raise their GPA to 2.85 or higher (to meet graduation requirements).

·    All integration plans and papers will be made publicly available (unblinded) in the COPH Office of Student Services.

MPH GENERALIST TRACK

The objective of the generalist MPH curriculum is to provide students with an opportunity to design a program of study that addresses her/his professional interests and goals, grounded in the core competencies for public health professionals as defined by the Conference on Linkages between Academia and Public Health Practice. Students must choose a set of courses totaling at least eighteen (18) semester credit hours (in addition to the core courses, the preceptorship, and the integration course), representing at least three COPH departments, which are related to these interests and goals.

Creation of Generalist MPH Plan

Each student who elects the generalist MPH curriculum must work with a faculty advisory committee (one chair and two other members, representing at least two COPH departments), who will assist the student in developing a set of five or more learning objectives (based on the Linkages Competencies) for her/his program of study. The chosen generalist courses must address the student’s approved program learning objectives.

Documentation Required

The student’s learning objectives and associated program of courses, signed by all three members of the student’s faculty advisory committee, must be filed with the COPH Student Administrative Advisor prior to registering for non-core courses. A form, “Generalist MPH Learning Objectives and Course Plan,” provides a structure for recording this information, and is available in the office of the COPH Student Administrative Advisor and in the COPH Course Catalog. It is strongly recommended that students and members of the generalist advisory committees retain copies of these forms to assist in future course planning and student advising. If a student wishes to make changes to her/his learning objectives or course plan, a new “Generalist MPH Learning Objectives and Course Plan” form, with all required signatures, must be filed with the Student Administrative Advisor before registration for new courses.

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MPH

MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH

A Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health completed application form with all required materials, must be received by the COPH Office of Student Services by 4:30 p.m. on April 1 for applicants seeking admission in the fall semester and by 4:30 p.m. on October 1 for admission to the spring semester.

To apply to the Master of Public Health (MPH) program in the Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, applicants must submit the following materials:

1.  A completed and signed original COPH application form.

2.  A baccalaureate degree transcript from an accredited college or university. Official, original transcripts of all academic work must be sent to the COPH Office of Student Services directly from each college or university attended, whether or not a degree was awarded at that institution. Transcripts showing courses completed at the UAMS Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health must also be requested from the COPH Registrar and received by the deadline date. Transcripts from foreign institutions must be translated. (Students who anticipate completion of their undergraduate degree soon after the admissions deadline may apply for conditional admission. If granted conditional admission, a final transcript from the student’s baccalaureate institution must be received by the Office of Student Services prior to the date of registration of the admitted semester.) 

3.  Graduate Record Examination (GRE) official score(s). The test must have been taken within the five (5) years immediately preceding the application deadline (April 1 or October 1) of the requested semester for admission. Official scores must be sent by the testing agency to the UAMS Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health (code 6512). In some circumstances, and subject to approval from the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, scores on a comparable graduate test (MCAT, LSAT, GMAT, DAT, and PCAT) may be considered. Applicants who have completed a master’s degree or higher are exempt from the GRE requirement

4.  Personal statement or letter of interest (500 to 700 words). 

5.  Three (3) COPH recommendation forms. The forms must be completed by separate individuals who can speak to the candidate’s academic, professional and public health experience. (Completed forms may be accompanied by a formal letter of reference, at the discretion of the recommender; however, the letter will not suffice as a recommendation without the completed form.) The envelope containing the completed forms must be signed by the referring party on the form and across the seal of the envelope. The required form may be found online at www. uams.edu/coph/applicants. 

6.  In admission reviews, first consideration is given to Arkansas residents. In recognition of the support of COPH programs by private and federal organizations highly qualified applicants who are residents of another state or citizens of a foreign country may compete for admission. Those whose native language is not English or who do not have an undergraduate degree from an accredited US college or university, are required to submit a minimum score of 600 on the paper based examination, 250 on the computer based examination, or 100 on the internet based examination on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). The test must have been taken within the five (5) years immediately preceding the application deadline (April 1or October 1)of the requested semester for admission. An original report of the test score, sent by the testing agency to the Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, is required before any action is taken on an application. Copies are not acceptable. An international student non-refundable application fee of $100, in a check or money order, payable to UAMS COPH, also applies. (Please see “Admission Requirements for International Students” for more information.)

7.  A current curriculum vitae or résumé.

8.  Non-refundable application fee of $40, in a check or money order, payable to UAMS COPH. International students must pay a non-refundable $100 application fee.

9.  Complete a guided telephone interview conducted by COPH Student Services shortly after the application deadline.

The Office of Student Services must receive all required materials by 4:30 p.m. on the published deadline (April 1 or October 1) date. It is the applicant’s responsibility to make sure that her/his file is completed and received by the Office of Student Services as required by the deadline. Accepted students will be notified in writing.

An offer of acceptance is valid for a maximum of one calendar year from the admitted term of acceptance. Acceptance is defined as enrolling with the COPH.

For additional specifics about the curricula content and degree requirements refer to the COPH Catalog or contact the Assistant Dean of Student Services at 501-526-6747.

 




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