The Ph.D. program has three tracks, providing different levels of foundational knowledge based on the students’ studies prior to entering the program. All students complete the same core and specialized curriculum.
- Track I: Students who enter the program with a bachelor’s degree or with a graduate degree that is not in public health complete a set of foundational courses in the core competencies and practice of public health before they move on to the sequence of courses described for Track III, followed by the core and specialization courses.
- Track II: Students who enter the program with a master’s degree in public health from a program or school of public health accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH)* complete PUBH 8101 Foundations for Graduate Study in Public Health followed by the program’s core and specialization courses.
- Track III: Students who enter the program with a master’s degree in public health from a non-CEPH-accredited program or school of public health complete an additional sequence of courses to ensure they have adequate foundational knowledge in the areas of biostatistics, epidemiology, environmental health sciences, health services administration, and the social and behavioral sciences—before they take the core and specialization courses.
* The Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) is an independent agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education to accredit schools of public health and certain public health programs offered in settings other than schools of public health.
Foundational Curriculum
Foundation Courses: All Tracks (6 cr.)
PUBH 8002 Essentials of Public Health: A Case Study Approach (4 cr.)
PUBH 8101 Principles of Communication in Public Health (2 cr.)
Foundational Courses: Tracks I and III (20 cr.)
PUBH 8115 Social, Behavioral, and Cultural Factors in Public Health (4 cr.)
PUBH 8125 Biostatistics (4 cr.)
PUBH 8145 Epidemiology (4 cr.)
PUBH 8165 Environmental Health (4 cr.)
PUBH 8175 Health Policy and Management (4 cr.)
Additional Courses: Track I (12 cr.)
PUBH 8135 Leadership, Professionalism, and Ethics in Public Health Practice (4 cr.)
PUBH 8155 Research in Public Health (4 cr.)
PUBH 8235 Program Design, Planning, and Evaluation (4 cr.)
Core Curriculum
PUBH 8010 Promoting Population Health (5 cr.)
PUBH 8015 Administration and Leadership of Public Health Programs (5 cr.)
PUBH 8020 Public Health Informatics (5 cr.)
PUBH 8417 Research Seminar I: Human Inquiry and Science (4 cr.)
PUBH 8427 Research Seminar II: Design in Human, Public Health, and Health Services Research (5 cr.)
Specialized Curriculum
Community Health Promotion and Education Specialization (30 cr.)
The Community Health Promotion and Education specialization focuses on the medical, social, political, ethical, and economic factors that contribute to the overall well-being of public health systems and the communities they serve.
PUBH 8200 Organizing Community Action for Health Promotion and Education (5 cr.)
PUBH 8210 Public Campaigns for Health Promotion and Education (5 cr.)
PUBH 8215 Public Health Policy Design and Implementation (5 cr.)
PUBH 8220 Health Promotion and Education Interventions Diverse Populations (5 cr.)
PUBH 8225 Design and Analysis of Community Trials (5 cr.)
PUBH 8437 Research Seminar III: Data Analysis in Human, Public Health, and Health Services Research (5 cr.)
Epidemiology Specialization (30 cr.)
The Epidemiology specialization focuses on the scientific understanding of the causes, distribution, control, and prevention of disease in populations.
PUBH 8300 Infectious Disease Epidemiology (5 cr.)
PUBH 8310 Social and Behavioral Epidemiology (5 cr.)
PUBH 8320 Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology (5 cr.)
PUBH 8330 Chronic Disease Epidemiology (5 cr.)
PUBH 8340 Molecular and Genetic Epidemiology (5 cr.)
PUBH 8350 Field Methods and Data Analysis in Epidemiology (5 cr.)
Dissertation (30 cr.)
PUBH 9000 Public Health Dissertation (30 cr.)
M.P.H. Option
Students who enroll in the Ph.D. in Public Health program and want to earn a Master in Public Health (M.P.H.) along the way are required to complete the courses and the culminating experiences for the M.P.H. program prior to beginning the Ph.D. program’s core and specialized curriculum.
