Master of Public Health (MPH)

The College of Health Sciences now offers the Master of Public Health (MPH) degree with a concentration in Hispanic and Border Health.  Applications are now being accepted for the Fall 2008 semester.

WHY CHOOSE PUBLIC HEALTH?

The Master of Public Health (MPH) is a professional degree that prepares students for careers in public health.

Public health is population health. It uses a multidisciplinary approach where professionals from different disciplines work together for a common purpose: promoting health, preventing disease, and improving the life quality of communities.

Many public health jobs require a graduate degree in public health. The MPH degree provides public health professionals a competitive edge by providing them with the broad knowledge and analytical and technical skills needed to be an effective leader in the public health field.

Public health professionals may be involved in activities as varied as conducting disease outbreak investigations, designing programs to increase child physical activity and reduce obesity, conducting community health surveys, eveloping natural disaster and anti-bioterrorism response plans, and leading cancer, asthma and diabetes prevention initiatives, lobbying state and federal legislators to improve health care coverage for low-income families, planning
environmental health programs, managing pregnancy and breastfeeding initiatives, and lanning HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis prevention initiatives. Others work as public health physicians, nurses, dentists, and allied health professionals.


PUBLIC HEALTH CAREERS

Persons with MPH degrees can work in many types of private, public, for-profit, and non-profit organizations.


JOB TITLE EXAMPLES

  • Health department epidemiologist
  • Community health program planner
  • Health communications specialist
  • Health educator
  • Health policy analyst
  • Environmental health specialist
  • WIC program manager
  • Academic researcher
  • Hospital infection control specialist
  • Public health lobbyist
  • Food safety specialist
  • Health care consultant
  • HIV/AIDS program specialist
  • Non-profit organization director

MPH PROGRAM AT UTEP

The MPH program prepares students for public health practice through a combination of classroom instruction, field and research experience in communities on both sides of the U.S.-Mexican border and in other national and international settings.

MPH Program faculty are committed to the individual mentoring of each student. A faculty member advises no more than 4-5 raduate students, allowing time for careful attention to each.


PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

Students are required to successfully complete 42 credit hours of coursework: core courses (15 hrs), Hispanic and border health concentration (9 hrs), practicum (6 hrs), and the remaining credit hours from a combination of course electives and a culminating experience (thesis or graduate project). Elective courses are chosen in conjunction with the faculty mentor with Graduate Advisor approval.

MPH Core Courses (15 hrs)

  • Social & Behavioral Approaches to Public Health (PUBH 5353)
  • Epidemiology for Public Health Professionals (PUBH 5302 )
  • Biostatistics in Public Health (PUBH 5305 )
  • Environmental Health (PUBH 5304)
  • Health Services Administration & Policy (PUBH 5307)

Practicum (6 hrs)

  • Practicum (PUBH 5662)

Hispanic & Border Health Concentration Courses (9 hrs)

  • Responding to Chronic & Infectious Diseases in Hispanic & Border Health Communities (PUBH 5321)
  • Eliminating Health Disparities (PUBH 5322)
  • Public Health Evaluation & Research (PUBH 5352)

Selective Courses (6 hrs)

Selected with approval of Grad Advisor and faculty mentor

Culminating Experience (9 hrs)

  • Thesis I (PUBH 5398)
  • Thesis II (PUBH 5399)
  • Graduate Research Project (PUBH5397)

Final program of study determined through consultation with the Graduate Advisor and faculty mentors. Teaching assistantships, research assistantships, fellowships, and other financial assistance are available for qualified students.

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

Requirements for Admission:

  • Completed baccalaureate degree from an accredited U.S. institution or recognized foreign institution
  • Minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA on 4.0 scale for prior academic work
  • GRE or MCAT scores in accordance with UTEP graduate admissions requirements
  • International applicants: Meet minimum TOEFL score requirement.
  • Prior health experience (e.g., in health care, research, community development, health education) &/or commitment to public health

Application Process:
Submit all documents to: The UTEP Graduate School, Student Services Bldg., El Paso, TX 79968-0566

  • A completed UTEP application form
  • Official transcripts from all colleges attended
  • Official GRE General Test scores
  • Three letters of recommendation from professional references. At least one of these must be from an academic reference (e.g., former professor)
  • A 500-word statement describing prior health experience, reasons for pursuing the MPH, and future career plans.

Applicants must contact the Grad Advisor (Dr. Martha Cruz) before submitting their application materials. The MPH Program has Fall admission only. All application documents must be received by UTEP Graduate School by April 15st for full consideration for Fall admission.

FACULTY RESEARCH
Rodrigo X. Armijos, MD, ScD.

Infectious disease prevention & control; vaccine development, air pollutant exposure, immune response & disease.

Marta Cruz, DVM, D. Phil.

Pediatric obesity, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome & non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Maria Duarte-Gardea, PhD, RD, LD.
Nutrition & breast cancer, diabetes prevention

E. Lee Rosenthal, MPH, PhD.

Community health development; eliminating health isparities; community health workers; health policy

Michele G. Shedlin, PhD.

HIV-AIDS; substance abuse; immigrant/ border health; qualitative research methods

Brenda Smith, PhD, CHES.

Human sexuality; aging; intimate partner violence; health behavior

Sharon Thompson, PhD, MPH, CHES.
U.S.-Mexico border health issues; health education/promotion in underserved communities.

Joe Tomaka, PhD.

Social psychology & health; behavioral approaches to alcohol; risk reduction; stress; coping and cardiovascular reactivity to stress.

M. Margaret Weigel, PhD.

Infectious disease, reproductive, & nutritional epidemiology; Hispanic/border and global health and nutrition.


University of Texas at El Paso
College of Health Sciences

____________
Master of Public Health (MPH)
Degree Program
Concentration in Hispanic and Border Health
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For more information, please contact:
Dr. Meg Weigel
Department of Health Promotion
UTEP College of Health Sciences
Tel: (915) 747-8308
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