Epidemiology

The MPH program is designed to  prepare students for careers in public  health by providing them with the  skills needed to conduct research into the causes, prevention, and  control of human disease.

These  goals are achieved via a curriculum  that emphasizes mastery of methods of epidemiological research and is  enriched by substantive courses on  important disease outcomes, such as  AIDS, tuberculosis, and cancer, and  on factors that may be important in disease causation, such as genetics, nutrition, and the environment.

Upon satisfactory completion of an MPH degree, students  are able to discuss the role of epidemiology within the broader field of public health and identify its relationship  to the fields of medicine, social and behavioral sciences,  environmental science, and health policy. They also can  explain and analyze the distribution and determinants of  both chronic and infectious diseases in different populations; apply principles of disease prevention within populations; discuss contemporary issues in epidemiological  research in at least three substantive areas -which may  include diseases, other health outcomes, or exposures;  and identify potential ethical problems in research studies, evaluate alternative approaches to solving ethical dilemmas, and apply the principles underlying ethical treatment of human subjects in research.

MPH Programs Launching Fall 2012

The School recently launched a full review of the MPH program, consulting with students, alumni, potential employers, and our faculty. This led to our restructured 2-year Columbia MPH program and a new one-year Accelerated MPH program—both debuting in 2012. The new programs offer integrated interdisciplinary school-wide curriculums. Columbia MPH students will also be able to select and apply for a Certificate which provides a secondary area of expertise in addition to students’ departmental focus.

Visit the Prospective Student site for more information about degree programs and Certificate programs.

Master’s Thesis

Master’s students are required to complete a thesis to be awarded the MPH degree. Students initiate the process in their first year and continue their work throughout the course of their training. The process begins by identification of a topic, dataset, and first and second readers. The first reader must be an epidemiology faculty member; the second can be outside of academia or from another department. 

Students also take two thesis courses to provide structure and guidance and to assure they are on track with their projects. The process is intentionally iterative: students submit multiple drafts to their readers before the final thesis submission.

Master’s Required Courses for Students Enrolling by Fall 2011*

Core Courses

P6400 Epi I: Principles of Epidemiology

P6103 Introduction to Biostatistics 

P6300 Environmental Health Sciences 

P6530 Issues and Approaches to Health Policy and Management 

P6700 Introduction to Sociomedical Sciences 

P6810 Introduction to Global Health**

Methods Sequence

P8438 Epi II: Design and Conduct of Observational Epidemiology 

P8400 Epi III: Applied Epidemiologic Analysis 

P8120 Analysis of Categorical Data 

P8483 Applications of Epidemiologic Research Methods I

Practicum

Master’s students in the Department of Epidemiology are required to complete an epidemiologically-relevant practicum in a public health  setting that provides the opportunity to develop epidemiology core competencies and extend skills acquired through course work. Learn more about the practicum.

Thesis

P9419 Master’s Thesis in Epidemiology I 

P9420 Master’s Thesis in Epidemiology II 

Recommended

P8100 Applied Regression I 

In addition to the required courses listed above, MPH students are also required to take any three of the substantive courses, plus 6 elective credits.

* Required courses for MPH students entering Fall 2012 or later will be different. Please visit the Prospective Student website for more information on curriculum requirements.

**Required for Global Health Track Students only