Master of Public Health (MPH)

The Daemen College Master of Public Health (MPH) degree is offered to applicants who have completed a bachelor’s degree and are interested in pursuing graduate study in public health.  Daemen’s 45-credit hour MPH program is comprised of competencies across five key public health areas: (1) biostatistics, (2) epidemiology, (3) health services administration, (4) health education/behavioral science, and (5) environmental health. In addition to class room and web enhanced instruction, students also complete a 240-hour practicum.  This field experience provides for real-world applications of training and builds experience working directly with public health professionals. A final Integrative Learning Experience (capstone project) provides students the opportunity to investigate an important public health problem in their area of interest.

Daemen’s unique MPH program is structured so that classes do not begin earlier than 4:00 p.m.  This later class format provides students with the opportunity to work while completing their degree. The exception to later classes is the Applied Practice Experience (practicum) which is scheduled during the summer.  Students are expected to be able to complete a full-time summer internship during regular daytime working hours.  Further, the practicum may require an additional expense to the student for travel and room and board.  The MPH program is a demanding program in coursework, time commitment and financial obligations.

The program offers three specialty tracks of study: Epidemiology, Community Health Education, and a Generalist Track. Regardless of which area of study students pursue, graduates from Daemen’s MPH program will be well prepared to serve their communities in promoting public health and well-being, and preventing disease and injury.

Daemen also offers an accelerated joint degree program in which students earn a Bachelor of Science in Health Promotion after four years and a Master of Public Health degree after the fifth year.  Access to the complete curriculum for the accelerated joint BS, Health Promotion and Master of Public Health program can be found on the Daemen MPH webpage.

A similar professional program articulation exists with D’Youville College; D’Youville undergraduate public health students can earn both a Bachelor of Science in Public Health (from D’Youville) after four years and the MPH degree (from Daemen) after a fifth year.  Likewise, D’Youville Pharmacy students also have the opportunity to earn both a Pharm.D. (from D’Youville) and a MPH degree (from Daemen) after the 5th year.

Required Core Courses (23 credits)

• PH500  Epidemiology (3)*
• PH510  Psychosocial and Behavioral Foundations of Public Health (3)
• PH520  Research Methods in Health Promotion (3)*
• PH530  Web Environmental Health (3)
• PH540/L  Public Health Biostatistics Lecture and Lab (3/2)
• PH550  Public Health Policy, Administration, and Management (3)
• PH595 Cultural Competency and Health Disparities in Public Health (3)

  * PH 500 and PH 520 must be taken during the first semester offered.

Required Specialty Track Courses; Choose One Track (12 credits)

COMMUNITY HEALTH EDUCATION

• PH560 Community Health Education (3 credits)
• PH562 Assessment and Planning in Community Health Education (3 credits)
• PH564 Implementation and Evaluation in Community Health Education (3 credits)
• PH566 Communication, Advocacy and Consultation in Community Health Education (3 credits)

EPIDEMIOLOGY

• PH568 – Advanced Epidemiology (3 credits)
• PH570 – Advanced Biostatistics (3 credits)
• PH572 – Chronic Diseases, A Lifecourse Approach (3 credit seminar)
• PH574 – Infectious Disease Epidemiology (3 credit)

GENERALIST

Choose any four courses (12 credits) from the other tracks or electives.

Electives (3 credits)

Choose from electives that include topics on global health, reproductive and perinatal health, grant writing, community-based participatory research, public health nutrition, public health law, and others as offered or approved by the department.

Summer Practicum (3 credits)

Under the direction of a faculty advisor, students complete a summer practicum in their specialty track in order to apply and to further develop their academic skills. Each practicum requires a minimum of 240 hours of documented work and a minimum number of designated weeks (typically 9) at the practicum site.  In line with the service learning focus of Daemen College, the practicum, regardless of track, is a concerted effort to integrate classroom learning, community, and service, providing students an opportunity to work alongside community members in service to the community, and to begin creating a network of colleagues outside the College.

• PH600 Practicum – Community Health Education track
• PH601 Practicum – Epidemiology track
• PH602 Practicum – Generalist track

Capstone Seminar (1 credit) and Capstone Project (3 credits)

The capstone seminar (PH610) provides a supportive setting to help prepare students to identify and plan for their capstone project in their specialty track. The capstone project is a culminating experience that provides students the opportunity to synthesize, integrate, and apply their curricular knowledge to a significant public health problem in their specialty track, and like the practicum, is completed in collaboration with a community partner.

• PH620 Capstone Project in Community Health Education
• PH621 Capstone Project in Epidemiology
• PH622 Capstone Project – General

TOTAL PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS = 45 CREDITS

Admission Requirements

Transfer Studies

Students in the MPH program may apply for up to six graduate transfer credit hours for courses with grades of B or better taken from a public health accredited or public health-related accredited institution outside of the College.  Requests for transfer credit will be considered on an individual basis by the program director or departmental designee.  Grades assigned to transfer credits will not be included in the calculation of the student’s grade point average.

Prerequisite Studies

There are no specific prerequisite courses that are required by students in order to be considered for the MPH program.  However, applicants should have a demonstrated interest in public health through previous related academic studies or volunteer or employed public health related work.

Non-Matriculating Students

Non-degree or non-matriculating students may take no more than nine credits of “PH” courses before they are required to apply to the program.  This does not apply to students admitted to the accelerated BS in Health Promotion / Master of Public Health degree program.  Exceptions may be made at the discretion of the MPH Program Director.

Students Considering MPH courses While an Undergraduate Student:

Program Policies and Student Expectations

Time Limitation

A student admitted to the program is expected to maintain continuity in his/her academic program and enroll each semester until all requirements are completed.  Normally, a part time student should complete a minimum of three (3) credits per semester.  Full time students must complete a minimum of nine (9) credits per semester.  All requirements for the Master of Public Health degree must be completed within a period of five years from the student’s enrollment for graduate study unless otherwise approved by the MPH program director.  For information on leaves of absence and extensions, consult the Academic Regulations and Standards section in the Graduate Catalog.

Course Repeats, Probation, and Dismissal

Any course for the MPH degree in which less than a grade of B- is earned must be repeated.  No course can be repeated more than once.  A maximum of two repeated courses is allowed.  Students who earn more than three grades below a B- will be dismissed from the program.

Students must maintain an overall minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 at the end of each semester.  Students who earn less than a B- in a course or less than a 3.0 semester or cumulative GPA will be placed on academic probation. Academic deficiencies which resulted in program academic probation must be corrected within the two semesters immediately following the date of probation.  Failure to meet the academic standards during a probationary period will result in dismissal from the program.

Professional Conduct

Students are expected to conduct themselves in a manner commensurate with the standards of an institution of higher education and to abide by the “Standards of Honor and Professional Conduct Policies” established by the Department. These standards and policies are guided by the mission of our program and American Public Health Association (APHA) Core Values. Upon entering the MPH program, the essential values are expected to be our common understanding.  As future public health leaders, professionalism and ethical conduct will influence how others perceive the field of public health.  MPH students are required to maintain high standards for their work. This includes the necessity of remaining current on significant developments in the field and abiding by recognized ethical standards in the conduct and publication of research.  As a member of the profession of public health, all matriculating MPH students are required to maintain student membership in the American Public Health Association (apha.org).

Graduation Requirements

Completion of all course work as defined under the curricular requirements for the program, including:

1. Completion of all course work as defined on the student’s Plan of Study, which is designed together with the student’s Graduate Faculty Advisor.
2. Successful completion of a practicum and capstone.
3. A minimum grade of B- in any course. (Refer to the “Course Repeats” section for policies on course repeats.)  Students must maintain an overall minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.00.
4. Filing an Application for Degree form with the Registrar’s Office at the onset of the final term of study. The Application for Degree form is accessible from the Registrar’s web page.

Daemen College reserves the right to make changes to the Master of Public Health curriculum, professional program entrance criteria, and/or professional program and graduation requirements. All enrolled students must meet all requirements if changed or amended by Daemen College.