Doctor of Public Health (DrPH), Program Information

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General Requirements for the Doctor of Public Health Degree

All students who seek to earn the Doctor of Public Health degree will be required to complete a minimum of forty-five (45) graduate credit hours.
Complete a Public Health Practicum.
Students must also successfully pass the Program’s core competency exam in partial fulfillment of graduation, upon successful completion of all core course requirements.
Students must hold a Master’s degree in health or social science from an accredited College or University with a minimum academic grade point average of 3.0 or above.
Submit an approved dissertation in partial fulfillment of the DrPH degree.

Note

Although Program length will vary for students who are part-time, the time allotted for completion of all requirements for the doctoral degrees by the School of Graduate Studies is seven (7) consecutive years.

Residency Requirements

All full-time students must complete a minimum of two consecutive semesters in residence - with at least nine (9) credit hours of coursework per semester - to satisfy the residency requirement of the program and University. A full course load within the DrPH program consists of twelve (12) credit hours per semester. Upon completion of course requirements and successfully passing the core competency examination, the DrPH candidate must continue to register for PUBH 997 - Dissertation Guidance each semester until the dissertation is fully and successfully completed.

Transfer Students from Other Morgan State University Graduate Programs

The School of Community Health and Policy’s Public Health Program will accept MSU students from other graduate degree programs wishing to go into the field of public health. Such students will be assessed on an individual basis regarding their public health interest, relevance of prior undergraduate and graduate courses to the School, and academic performance in their respective fields, as well as their potential to cope with public health science-based courses. A maximum of twelve (12) graduate credits of coursework may be transferred from other graduate programs (which were not counted towards the previous graduate degree).

Program of Study

Incoming DrPH students must complete the doctoral core which is designed to provide advanced level knowledge of major areas of public health. The core courses cover advanced areas of epidemiology, environmental health, biostatistics, research methods, health planning, and policy and administration as well as social and behavioral factors in public health. A total of fifteen (15) credit hours of graduate courses are designated for the DrPH degree core area. Students not holding an MPH degree must complete the Master’s core (See MPH curriculum) prior to beginning the doctoral core courses.

Core Courses

PUBH 801 - Theory-based Public Health Solutions 3 Credits
PUBH 805 - Strategic Leadership in Public Health Practice 3 Credits
PUBH 806 - Application of Epidemiology Methods 3 Credits
PUBH 808 - Advanced Critical Health Issues 3 Credits
PUBH 810 - Contemporary Analytic Tools for Public Health 3 Credits

Total: 15 Credit Hours

Required Course

PUBH 708 - Design and Implementation of Public Health Research 3 Credits
PUBH 720 - Qualitative Research in Public Health 3 Credits
PUBH 780 - Community Engagement in Public Health 3 Credits
PUBH 812 - Critical Issues for Ethical Public Health Practice 3 Credits
PUBH 998 - Dissertation Defense 9 Credits **

Total: 15 Credit Hours

**The course is used only when the curriculum has been completed, candidacy has been achieved, and the student is completing the research and writing of the Dissertation. The course registration maintains the student status as a matriculated, full-time student (student is registered for 3 credit hours and the system reports a full-time 9 credit hour load).

Practice Courses

PUBH 551 - Application of Public Health Principles 3 Credits (Application of Public Health Principles)
PUBH 651 - Doctoral Service Learning Practicum 3 Credits (Field Experience)
PUBH 751 - Doctoral Internship III 3 Credits (Integrating Experience – Synthesis)

Total: 9 Credit Hours

Elective Courses

XXXX - PUBH Elective 3 credits
XXXX - PUBH Elective 3 credits

Total: 6 Credit Hours

Summary for DrPH Degree Coursework

Degree Coursework		Credit Hours
	Program Core Courses	15
	Program Required Courses	18
	Public Health Practice Courses	9
	Elective Course	3


	Total Credits for the Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) Degree	45

A Total of 45 Minimum Credits are required for the Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) Degree with previous graduate degree.

Degree Offering

The Program offers a DrPH degree where students can select the generalist or departmental concentration track in behavioral health. Students will declare their track at the end of the first year of study. For each track, students must follow a prescribed set of courses as described in their approved plan of study. Additional requirements for concentrations can also be found in the approved student handbook.

Doctoral Dissertation

The doctoral dissertation, PUBH 998 , is designed to provide students with a comprehensive and original research experience, and requires a minimum of nine (9) hours of dissertation credits. The dissertation credits are completed after the successful completion of course-work and passing the core competency examination. The SCHP-PHP is committed to helping students successfully move through the Program in the allotted time.

Public Health Practicum

A minimum nine (9) credit hours of internship is required of all DrPH students. The internship provides the student an opportunity to engage in community practice experiences by working with ongoing community projects. Depending on the student’s interest, the internship may be carried out in governmental or non-governmental health agencies, health institutes, community organizations, and academic units and programs of public health.

Core Competency Examination

All DrPH students are required to sit for the Program-wide Core Competency Examination. At a minimum, this core competency based examination covers content from the core courses. Each doctoral student must pass the examination at a proficiency established by the Program.

Suggested Curriculum Sequence

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH), Curriculum Sequence