MPH Program Curriculum and Competencies

PROFESSION SCIENCE OF PUBLIC HEALTH
1. Explain public health history, philosophy and values
2. Identify the core functions of public health and the 10 Essential Services
3. Explain the role of quantitative and qualitative methods and sciences in describing and assessing a population’s health
4. List major causes and trends of morbidity and mortality in the US or other community relevant to the school or program
5. Discuss the science of primary, secondary and tertiary prevention in population health, including health promotion, screening, etc.
6. Explain the critical importance of evidence in advancing public health knowledge

FACTORS RELATED TO HUMAN HEALTH
7. Explain effects of environmental factors on a population’s health
8. Explain biological and genetic factors that affect a population’s health
9. Explain behavioral and psychological factors that affect a population’s health
10. Explain the social, political and economic determinants of health and how they contribute to population health and health inequities
11. Explain how globalization affects global burdens of disease
12. Explain an ecological perspective on the connections among human health, animal health and ecosystem health (e.g., One Health)

The MPH Foundational Competencies are arranged into eight domains.

DOMAIN 1: EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACHES TO PUBLIC HEALTH
1. Apply epidemiological methods to settings and situations in public health practice
2. Select quantitative and qualitative data collection methods appropriate for a given public health context
3. Analyze quantitative and qualitative data using biostatistics, informatics, computer-based programming and software, as appropriate
4. Interpret results of data analysis for public health research, policy or practice

DOMAIN 2: PUBLIC HEALTH & HEALTH CARE SYSTEMS
5. Compare the organization, structure, and function of health care, public health, and regulatory systems across national and international settings
6. Discuss the means by which structural bias, social inequalities, and racism undermine health and create challenges to achieving health equity at organizational, community, and systematic levels

DOMAIN 3: PLANNING & MANAGEMENT TO PROMOTE HEALTH
7. Assess population needs, assets and capacities that affect communities’ health
8. Apply awareness of cultural values and practices to the design, implementation, or critique of public health policies or programs
9. Design a population-based policy, program, project or intervention
10. Explain basic principles and tools of budget and resource management
11. Select methods to evaluate public health programs

DOMAIN 4: POLICY IN PUBLIC HEALTH
12. Discuss the policy-making process, including the roles of ethics and evidence
13. Propose strategies to identify stakeholders and build coalitions and partnerships for influencing public health outcomes
14. Advocate for political, social or economic policies and programs that will improve health in diverse populations
15. Evaluate policies for their impact on public health and health equity

DOMAIN 5: LEADERSHIP
16. Apply leadership and/or management principles to address a relevant issue
17. Apply negotiation and mediation skills to address organizational or community challenges

DOMAIN 6: COMMUNICATION
18. Select communication strategies for different audiences and sectors
19. Communicate audience-appropriate (i.e., non-academic, non-peer audience) public health content, both in writing and through oral presentation
20. Describe the importance of cultural competence in communicating public health content

DOMAIN 7: INTERPROFESSIONAL PRACTICE*
21. Integrate perspectives from other sectors and/or professions to promote and advance population health

DOMAIN 8: SYSTEMS THINKING
22. Apply systems thinking tools to visually represent a public health issue in a format other than the standard narrative

*In this context, “interprofessional” refers to engagement with professionals (either students in other professions or practicing professionals) outside of public health (eg, architects, nurses), rather than to engagement with individuals from other public health disciplines (eg, biostatisticians, health promotion specialists). “Interprofessional education occurs when students from two or more professions learn about, from and with each other to enable effective collaboration and improve health outcomes.” From: Framework for Action on Interprofessional Education & Collaborative Practice (WHO/HRH/HPN/10.3).

1. Critically evaluate and apply principles of epidemiologic methods, including exposure and outcome measures, measures of association, bias and confounding, and study design options.
2. Demonstrate the ability to critically evaluate and apply appropriate biostatistical techniques for data arising from evaluation of public health problems (e.g., including basic probability theory and common distributions, effect measure estimation, continuous and categorical data analysis, parametric and non-parametric hypothesis tests, confidence intervals and p-values, correlation and basic regression techniques, and power/sample size calculations).
3. Conduct and interpret results from regression analyses used to examine the effectiveness of clinical decisions and interventions.
4. Formulate a clinical research question and develop a proposal for a study to address this question.
5. Summarize and critically evaluate the methods and results of studies designed to examine the effectiveness of clinical decisions and interventions.

1. Critically evaluate and apply principles of epidemiologic methods, including exposure and outcome measures, measures of association, bias and confounding, and study design options.
2. Demonstrate the ability to critically evaluate and apply appropriate biostatistical techniques for data arising from evaluation of public health problems (e.g., including basic probability theory and common distributions, effect measure estimation, continuous and categorical data analysis, parametric and non-parametric hypothesis tests, confidence intervals and p-values, correlation and basic regression techniques, and power/sample size calculations).
3. Conduct and interpret results from analyses using regression-based methods to adjust for confounding and to develop and evaluate prediction rules.
4. Conduct and interpret results from analyses using advanced methods to examine causal effects, including propensity scores, inverse probability weighting, and instrumental variable methods.
5. Apply study design evaluation skills to current topics in public health.

1. Design an appropriate response for action and recovery for a public health threat
2. Formulate and evaluate population and community-based solutions to respond to community and stakeholder needs
3. Apply ethical theories, principles, and/or frameworks to make a recommendation for a public health ethics dilemma
4. Investigate relationships between health inequities and environmental or climate exposure
5. Prepare communications that utilize storytelling frameworks to illustrate a public health challenge and persuade others for public health action

1. Examine the quantitative and qualitative evidence of a wide variety of global health challenges and settings
2. Evaluate global health interventions under different circumstances with different objectives (e.g. their relationship with health system reform)
3. Solve economic problems and write critically about applying concepts from health economics to global health
4. Identify key principles and domains of consequential leadership, and how they are applied in the practice of public health in global institutions
5. Analyze the ethical dimensions of global health problems, policies, and/or systems according to various ethical perspectives

1. Explain and use financial data to assess financial health and make managerial decisions for a health care unit, organization, or system.
2. Critically evaluate organizational and team structures, processes, and climates to initiate and sustain performance.
3. Apply appropriate frameworks and analysis in the development of an organizational strategy.
4. Explain the imperatives to improve health quality and apply methods of quality improvement to address a quality problem.
5. Create an action plan to address an unmet public health need by applying key concepts and skills of innovation and entrepreneurship.

1. Apply economic concepts to analyze and critique health care and public health policies.
2. Recommend a course of action to address a health policy challenge that includes assessing alternative approaches within a specific political, economic, and/or social context.
3. Critically evaluate and draw policy implications from health decision science studies (including cost-effectiveness) or health policy program evaluations.
4. Design an effective political strategy to influence a health policy outcome.
5. Prepare professional quality health policy memos that are informed by skillful use of evidence and are appropriate to their purpose and audience.

1. Design a proposed social and/or behavioral public health intervention using social and behavioral theories or conceptual paradigms as a guide.
2. Assess theory-guided social and behavioral change interventions based on their appropriateness and responsiveness to the social and cultural context.
3. Critically appraise principles of research, evaluation, and/or public health monitoring/surveillance methodology – including quantitative and qualitative methods – to address research hypotheses using a range of research designs.
4. Describe and apply rigorous frameworks or theory-based approaches to research translation for practice, policy, and/or public health settings.
5. Explain how principles of social inclusion, diversity, social justice, and/or ethics can be applied in research and interventions.

1. Evaluate the role nutrition plays in the development and prevention of certain diseases and health conditions.
2. Evaluate drivers of poor diets and malnutrition (e.g., culture/behavior, socioeconomic status, food environments and ecology, etc.)
3. Assess policies, programs, and strategies typically used in public health nutrition initiatives.
4. Utilize communication skills to disseminate evidence-based nutritional messaging to promote public health.
5. Interpret discrepancies between nutrition research and nutritional information conveyed to the public using critical reading skills

1. Begin formulation of the differential diagnosis after acquiring an accurate and relevant history, including occupational history related to workplace or environmental exposures.
2. Develop a study in the field of environmental and occupational health that takes into account the principles of toxicology.
3. Assess environmental and occupational health hazards using core principles of industrial hygiene, ergonomics, occupational safety, and risk/hazard control and communication (e.g., recognition of regulatory standards and guidelines).
4. Identify and evaluate workplace and environmental causes of injury or illness and recommend controls or programs to reduce exposure, and to enhance the health and productivity of workers under minimal supervision.
5. Apply epidemiological and risk based concepts to public policy or the actions of regulatory agencies.

1. Critically evaluate and apply principles of epidemiologic methods, including exposure and outcome measures, measures of association, bias and confounding, and study design options.
2. Demonstrate the ability to critically evaluate and apply appropriate biostatistical techniques for data arising from evaluation of public health problems (e.g., including basic probability theory and common distributions, effect measure estimation, continuous and categorical data analysis, parametric and non-parametric hypothesis tests, confidence intervals and p-values, correlation and basic regression techniques, and power/sample size calculations)
3. Design, implement, evaluate, and interpret univariate and multivariable regression methods appropriate for data arising from relevant public health and clinical research problems.
4. Apply and critically evaluate causal inference methods, such as the application of counterfactual conceptualizations and the use of Directed Acyclic Graphs, to the setting of observational studies relevant to public health and clinical applications.
5. Assess the validity and efficiency of different study designs for specific research questions through critical evaluation of contemporary studies published in the peer-reviewed literature.