The MPH Program at USC requires course work in the five core areas of public health: epidemiology, biostatistics, health policy and management, environmental and occupational health, and the social and behavioral sciences. In addition to receiving a solid foundation in these core disciplines, students will gain depth through coursework in a chosen specialized area of public health (health education and promotion, biostatistics/epidemiology, preventive nutrition, child and family health, global health leadership or health communication). As a culminating experience, students will have the opportunity to integrate their knowledge through practical training, known as the public health practicum.
The overall educational objectives are to prepare graduate students in public health to:
- Assess the strengths and needs of diverse communities;
- Plan, implement and evaluate collaborative health promotion and disease prevention interventions; and
- Build community capacity to solve public health problems through collaboration and placement of trained public health professionals.
Effective Fall 2006, 43-47 semester units of course work are required of all MPH students (a four-unit waiver of PM 593 applies to MPH dual degree students only). The program is intended to be a 2-year program encompassing two fall and two spring semesters for full-time students. However, as all MPH core courses are offered every semester (including summer), students may complete the program in 3 semesters. Students may also pursue the MPH degree through part-time study which would require enrollment in at least one (1) course per semester. Part-time students must complete the program within 5 years. In order to qualify for full-time status, MPH students must be enrolled in eight (8) units. The average number of units taken by MPH students each semester is twelve (12) units.
Track 1: Health Education & Promotion
Health Promotion involves the use of health education and specific interventions at various levels of prevention to facilitate behavioral and environmental changes conducive to health enhancement among individuals and communities. The program of study will be designed from the following courses:
* Biological Basis of Disease
* Culture and Health: An International Perspective
* Communication in Public Health
* Detection and Control of Sexually Transmitted Infections
* Intervention Approaches for Health Promotion & Disease Prevention
* Organizing & Mobilizing Communities for Global Health
* Program Evaluation & Research
* Program Design & Evaluation
* Public Health Leadership & Management
* Training and Curriculum Design in Public Health
For more details, please contact Track Director, Dr. Tom Valente.
Classes in Track 1 are held on the HSA campus.
Track 2: Biostatistics and Epidemiology
Epidemiology is the study of disease and disability including its distribution, occurrence, determinants and controls in human populations. Biostatistics involves research and management focused on guiding the design, analysis, interpretation and presentation of health science data. The program of study will be designed from the following courses:
* Behavioral Epidemiology
* Bioinformatics
* Biological Threats & Terrorism
* Chronic Disease Epidemiology
* Data Analysis (SAS & STATA)
* Design of Clinical Studies
* Detection and Control of Sexually Transmitted Infections
* Genetics in Public Health & Preventive Medicine
* Infectious Disease Epidemiology
* Program Evaluation and Research
* Research Methods in Cancer Epidemiology
* Social Network Analysis
For more details, please contact Track Director, Dr. Stanley Azen.
Classes in Track 2 are held primarily on the HSC campus.
Track 3: Health Communication
Health communication encompasses the study and use of communication strategies to inform and influence individual and community decisions that enhance health. The track builds upon the existing knowledge of persuasion and attitude change, social service and public relation campaigns, and health care media programs. The program of study will be designed from the following courses:
* Audience Analysis
* Communication in Public Health
* Communication, Values Attitudes and Behavior
* Global Entertainment Education Programs
* Intervention Approaches for Health Promotion & Disease Prevention
* Introduction to Strategic Public Relations
* Patient-Provider Communication
* Public Relations Media Strategies
* Program Evaluation and Research
* Social Network Analysis
* Web Designs for Organizations
For more details, please contact Track Director, Dr. Tess Cruz.
Classes in Track 4 are held primarily on the UPC campus.
Track 4: Child & Family Health
This track is designed to provide both broad-based and in-depth learning experiences focusing on public health issues for children and adolescents in the context of their families and social environments. The ultimate goal of training public health professionals is to improve the health status of children and their families, allowing students interested in a career working with children, adolescents, and families to apply the methods of public health research and practice to services provided to these populations. The program of study will be designed from the following courses:
* Program Design and Evaluation
* Foundations of Child Health
* Quality & Inequality in Health Care: Examination of Health Services
* Maternal & Child Nutrition
* Epidemiology and Prevention of Pediatric Injury
* Foundations of Early Childhood Mental Health
* Systems of Care for Children with Special Needs
* Child Health Policy
For more details, please contact Track Director, Dr. Alex Chen.
Classes in Track 5 are held on the HSA campus.
Track 5: Global Health Leadership
The purpose of this track is to equip students and develop leaders with world-class knowledge and technology in population-based disease prevention and control and public health leadership and management principles to work with international partners to strengthen regional public health systems, enhance public health preparedness and emergency response, and protect and improve global health as a whole. MPH Graduates of this track will be equipped with knowledge, skills and abilities to lead multi-disciplinary, multi-sectoral and multi-national initiatives to enhance the health status and wellbeing of individuals, families, and communities around the world. The program of study will be designed from the following courses:
* Culture and Health: An International Perspective
* Public Health Leadership & Management
* Emerging Trends in Global Health: A Public Health Seminar
* Global Entertainment Education Programs
* Organizing and Mobilizing Communities for Global Health
* Public Health in China : A System and Country in Transition
* Floods, Quakes & Human Folly: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Disaster Study
* Ethical Issues in International Health Research, Promotion and Intervention
For more details, please contact Track Director, Dr. Paula H. Palmer.
Classes in Track 6 are held on the HSA campus.
Program Curriculum, Class Schedules, and Academic Policies
Summaries of the MPH program curriculum, including degree checklists for tracks 1-4, class schedules, and academic policies are provided above in the information boxes to the right. Additional descriptions of course offerings may also be found in the USC Catalogue.
|
«
Back to Departments
