The M.P.H. program prepares students for management in the public health sector, such as federal, state, and local health agencies. Some M.P.H. graduates work in the private sector.
Learning Outcomes
- Students will be able to apply operations management concepts to address organizational performance issues in health service organizations.
- Students will be able to describe legal perspectives on health policy and management issues, including assessment of legal and regulatory environments in the context of public health.
- Students will be able to apply economic principles for allocating and mobilizing resources for public health interventions and programs.
- Students will be able to apply the principles and tools of budgeting, resource management, and financial analysis to improve efficiency of public health and health care delivery organizations.
- Students will be able to develop policy options for the achievement of an agency’s or program’s objectives.
Program Requirements (45 Hours)
Program Summary
| Requirements |
Credit Hours |
| Public Health Core (biostatistics, epidemiology, environmental health sciences, administration, and health promotion, education, and behavior) |
16 |
| Public Health Management |
18 |
| Public Health and Healthcare Policy |
6 |
| Practice Experience and Capstone Course |
5 |
Public Health Core Requirements (16 Hours)
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| PUBH 725 | Quantitative Methods for Public Health Practice | 5 |
| PUBH 726 | Qualitative Methods for Public Health Practice | 3 |
| PUBH 730 | Public Health Systems, Policy, and Leadership | 3 |
| PUBH 735 | Practical Applications of Public Health Planning | 4 |
| PUBH 678 | Transforming Health Care for the Future | 1 |
| Total Credit Hours | 16 |
Public Health Management Requirements (18 Hours)
Required Management Courses (12 Hours)
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| HSPM 712 | Health Economics | 3 |
| HSPM 726 | Applied Public Health Law for Administrators | 3 |
| HSPM 730 | Financing of Health Care | 3 |
| HSPM 768 | Health Services Administration II | 3 |
| Total Credit Hours | 12 |
Management Electives (6 Hours)
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| 6 |
| Health and Economic Development: Interrelationships among health, poverty and economic progress | |
| Perspectives in Rural Health | |
| Information Systems in Health Administration | |
| Perspectives in Community Health Organizations | |
| Quantitative Methods for Health Administration | |
| Long-Term Care Administration | |
| Organizational Behavior | |
| Quality Management in Healthcare | |
| Physician Practice Management | |
| International Health | |
| Healthcare Policy and Principles of Health Insurance | |
| Total Credit Hours | 6 |
Public Health and Healthcare Policy Requirements (6 Hours)
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| HSPM 727 | Advancing Public Health Policy | 3 |
| 3 |
| Health Politics | |
| Public Health Advocacy and Policy | |
| The Public Policy Process | |
| Theories of Comparative Politics | |
| Race and Public Policy| | |
| |
| Total Credit Hours | 6 |
Practice Experience and Capstone Requirements (5 Hours)
Course List
| Course |
Title |
Credits |
| HSPM 788 | Public Health Practice Experience | 3 |
| HSPM 796 | Health Services Policy and Management MPH Capstone Course | 2 |
| Total Credit Hours | 5 |
Final Examination
The final grant proposal and grant proposal presentation included in the HSPM MPH Capstone Course (HSPM 799) which is required for all HSPM MPH students will serve as the comprehensive final exam assessment for the HSPM MPH degree. The final grant proposal will be reviewed by at least two HSPM faculty members. The grant proposal presentations in face-to-face classes will be attended and reviewed by least two HSPM faculty members. Distance students’ presentations will be recorded and reviewed by at least two HSPM faculty members. Faculty reviewers will be provided with a comprehensive assessment rubric which will identify the essential required elements for both the grant proposal and presentation.
Graduate Assistantship
All full-time M.P.H. students are encouraged to work as graduate assistants in health service organizations in the community to acquire work experience and enrich the learning process through on-the-job application of concepts and techniques learned in the classroom. To qualify for an assistantship, a student must be fully admitted to a degree program, be enrolled as a full-time student, and maintain a 3.00 GPA.
Dual Degrees
The Department of Health Services Policy and Management and the College of Social Work, and Department of Political Science offer coordinated programs that lead to a dual degree. The requirements for the M.P.H. portion of each dual degree program are the same as shown above. The M.P.A. and M.S.W. portions of the dual degree programs are determined by the respective schools and college. Some courses do fulfill requirements for both portions of the dual degree. A dual degree program thus typically requires fewer semester hours in total than if the two programs were taken separately.
