Program Structure and Experience

The “Core” curriculum was designed to provide incoming MPH students with a foundation in public health, taught in a more integrated approach than was done traditionally.  The Core is made up of 6 Studios, each representing a major area of Public Health. Students are assigned to one of four cohorts, and move through the six Studios as part of a cohort, made up of individuals from different departments with varied academic and professional backgrounds.  The material covered in each Studio is organized into units called modules focused on more specific topic areas.  Most Studios are composed of three modules and are primarily taught in lectures to classes that consist of a one or two cohorts. Some Studios have discussion sessions, where students have the opportunity to work on projects and other assignments. 

Class times will vary slightly by cohort, with some cohorts starting classes earlier in the morning and finishing earlier in the afternoon, and other cohorts starting in the afternoon and finishing in early evening. The first Core classes start at 8:30am and the last classes finish at about 6:50pm.  Every Core curriculum class is scheduled for 80 minutes, and typically a maximum of three Core classes are scheduled on a single day. 

In addition to classroom instruction students will also participate in a case-based course called Integration of Science and Practice (ISP). In ISP students apply Core material to real-life public health, which meets once a week in groups throughout the first two semesters of the MPH program (except for students in the accelerated or a dual degree program, who only take ISP in the fall semester in combination with a Leadership.  Leadership is taught in the second semester to two year students).

Assessments

There are both individual module assessments and some assessments that span all modules in a Studio. Confirmed dates of assessments will be communicated through the individual Studio Coursework sites and through your Studio teaching assistants. Specific modules within Studios will also assign smaller, more individualized assessments.

Events and Seminars

The Mailman School hosts a number of school-wide and departmental events— including the Grand Rounds series, which aims to inspire innovative approaches to national and global public health challenges, as well as the newly developed, Core Conversations series. Specifically designed for students in the Core, the Core Conversations series will provide an opportunity for the whole MPH student body to come together in an interactive learning environment and discuss cross-cutting public health challenges with experts.

Other School events during the semester include job fairs, brown-bags, certificate-related events, and practicum-related events.