Master of Public Health
(MPH) in Health
Promotion
4-week
COURSES
Year-round
enrollment
230K+ Alumni Worldwide
Overview
The Master of Public Health (MPH) program prepares professionals for leadership positions in health promotion, disease prevention, community mental health, or public healthcare administration. Public health involves multidisciplinary and collaborative strategies for solving health-related problems and promoting social justice, including programs that serve the public sector at all levels—local, state, federal, and global.
Accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH), the MPH program emphasizes broad-based, state-of-the-art quantitative and qualitative skills needed for public health problem-solving. Coursework is designed to help professionals advance their careers within public health, or transition into the field from other health professions. Strategic internships and a comprehensive capstone experience will further enhance your opportunities for professional growth and job placement.
The Health Promotion specialization prepares MPH students for leadership positions in health promotion, health education, and health enhancement. The program focuses on the planning, implementation, and evaluation of community-wide prevention programs.
Admission Requirements
In addition to completing an application, the Master of Public Health program requires the following:
- Completion of a college introductory statistics course such as BST 322 or MTH 210
- Completion of a baccalaureate degree with a 2.85 cumulative GPA from a regionally accredited institution
- Proficiency in operating a personal computer, including applications such as Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, internet browsers, and standard email systems
Course Details
Foundation Courses
For the Master of Public Health with a specialization in Health Promotion, you must complete eight foundation courses, seven specialization courses, one health experience course, and a capstone course.
Course Name
Includes orientation to the Master of Public Health Program including history, philosophy, values, core functions and the critical importance of evidence in advancing public health knowledge. Introduction to the available options for attaining public health foundational competencies and competencies in their chosen MPH specialization. Can be taken concurrently with HCA 600: US Healthcare System. Grading is S/U only.
US healthcare system overview, including terminology, components of healthcare delivery systems, financing, personnel, regulation, delivery and consumers. Consideration of the effects of public policy on services.
Prerequisite: HCA 600
Analysis of global public health with emphasis on defining and evaluating preventive efforts to affect the quantitative, biological, economic, social, political, and behavioral determinants of health. Investigation of burden of disease, social justice and equitable health care. Emphasis on reproductive health, population dynamics, complex humanitarian emergencies, globalization and global cooperation.
An introduction to the use of statistical analysis in public health. Provides an understanding of the basic methods and underlying concepts of statistics that are used in public health decision-making. Among topics explored are descriptive statistics, probability, sampling, hypothesis testing and non-parametric statistics.
The theoretical basis of individual health behavior. Application of cognitive, psychosocial and environmental theories of health behavior and theories of self-directed and professionally facilitated health behavior change. Emphasis on Behavior Modification, Health Belief Model, Theory of Planned Behavior, Social Cognitive Theory, Stress and Coping, Social Support, and Transtheoretical Model.
Prerequisite: COH 602, or ANA 630
The study of determinants and distribution of disease and disability in human populations. Empirical analysis of population data related to morbidity and mortality. Investigation of disease outbreaks, risk factors, health outcomes and causal relationships. Critical evaluation of public health literature and study design.
Fundamentals of research methods and statistical analysis of public health data. Includes principles of research investigation, research design, sampling, measurements, and the use of descriptive and inferential statistics for data analysis and hypothesis testing. Focuses on health survey design, sampling methodologies, questionnaire construction and administration, interviewing, and coding procedures.
Explores the roles health advocates assume and how individuals working in public health settings might participate in advocacy strategies to affect policy. Focuses on frameworks for conceptualizing and promoting the right to health as well as strategies to give consumers more power in making decisions, defining issues, designing programs, and developing policies.
Specialization Courses
Course Name
Biological foundations of public health issues including infectious and chronic diseases. Reproduction and development of disease pathogens and transmission, immune responses and constitution of the host. Anatomical, physiological and cellular foundations for understanding chronic diseases. Focuses on methods for the control and prevention of disease.
Analysis of the health impact of home, workplace, community and global environments. Examines scientific understanding of causes and control of the major environmental health problems. Includes environmental pollutants; physical, chemical, and biological agents of environmental contamination; vectors for dissemination; solid hazardous waste; susceptible populations; biomarkers; and emerging global environmental problems.
Prerequisite: COH 604
Exploration of health status and issues in various communities. Application of the national agenda for health promotion and disease prevention in the United States. Emphasis on health disparities by socioeconomic status, ethnicity, gender, age, ability and literacy. Examination of diffusion of health innovations throughout communities.
Recommended Preparation: COH 604
Development of community-wide interventions to promote health and prevent disease. Systematic design by application of the principles of epidemiology, health behavior and Evidence-Based Public Health. Includes Community-Based Participatory Research and investigation of ethical issues in conducting community-based public health programs.
Fundamentals of evaluation methods applied to public health interventions. Effective use of measurement tools to evaluate achievement of program goals and objectives. Includes analysis of validity and reliability of measurement instruments. Emphasis on reach, effectiveness, acceptance, implementation and maintenance of community programs. Includes fundamentals of proposal development.
Prerequisite: COH 605 and COH 609
Investigation and evaluation of strategies implemented to promote health in communities. Emphasis on community organization, coalition building, curriculum development, communication theory and technology, social marketing, mass media and ecological models. Critical analysis of interventions that implement each strategy through systematic analysis of public health literature.
Prerequisite: COH 606
Application of information systems and technology to public health practice and research. Information technologies that support and improve the status of individual and community health. Development, deployment and maintenance of these systems. Effective use of data, information and knowledge tools to build manage, merge, retrieve and analyze public health data.
Health Experience Courses
Select one of the following two courses:
Course Name
Demonstrate attainment of public health foundational competencies and specialization competencies through applied practice experience in a global setting. Faculty-led short-term study abroad program. Exploration of the healthcare system and public health issues facing global communities. Tour location and experience the healthcare, economic, political, legal, and cultural environment of a host country. Development of thorough knowledge of global public health through combination of pre-departure study, service learning, on-site lectures and presentations by host country experts and healthcare leaders, post-tour analysis and reflection.
Recommended: Prior completion of: all core and specialization courses prior to enrolling in COH 693B
Demonstrate attainment of public health foundational competencies and healthcare administration specialization through applied practice experience. Students may either work in a healthcare agency applying leadership and management skills or provide a portfolio that demonstrates alignment of volunteer work with the competencies. Grading is H/S/U only.
Capstone Course Requirement
Course Name
Recommended: Prior completion of: all core and specialization courses prior to enrolling in COH 694A
Two-month capstone project of original research related to the contemporary practice of public health promotion. Planning and completion of either a data-based analysis, an evaluation of a health promotion program or primary research related to public health promotion. Student project may require Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval. Student produces a high-quality written product. Grading is S/H/U only.
*It’s recommended that you complete all foundation and specialization courses prior to enrolling in COH 694C.
Learning Outcomes
Students earning the Master in Public Health degree with a Health Promotion specialization will learn to:
- Assess factors that influence, enhance, or impede health promotion.
- Explain factors that influence implementation of health promotion programs.
- Evaluate the implementation of health promotion programs.
- Integrate the results of health promotion evaluation into interventions and policies.
- Apply principles of financial management, information technology, human resource management, and community building to build or enhance health promotion programs.
- Provide advice and consultation on health promotion issues.
- Apply appropriate research principles and techniques to develop health promotion programs.
Program Disclosure
Successful completion and attainment of National University degrees do not lead to automatic or immediate licensure, employment, or certification in any state/country. The University cannot guarantee that any professional organization or business will accept a graduate’s application to sit for any certification, licensure, or related exam for the purpose of professional certification.
Program availability varies by state. Many disciplines, professions, and jobs require disclosure of an individual’s criminal history, and a variety of states require background checks to apply to, or be eligible for, certain certificates, registrations, and licenses. Existence of a criminal history may also subject an individual to denial of an initial application for a certificate, registration, or license and/or result in the revocation or suspension of an existing certificate, registration, or license. Requirements can vary by state, occupation, and/or licensing authority.
NU graduates will be subject to additional requirements on a program, certification/licensure, employment, and state-by-state basis that can include one or more of the following items: internships, practicum experience, additional coursework, exams, tests, drug testing, earning an additional degree, and/or other training/education requirements.
All prospective students are advised to review employment, certification, and/or licensure requirements in their state, and to contact the certification/licensing body of the state and/or country where they intend to obtain certification/licensure to verify that these courses/programs qualify in that state/country, prior to enrolling. Prospective students are also advised to regularly review the state’s/country’s policies and procedures relating to certification/licensure, as those policies are subject to change.
National University degrees do not guarantee employment or salary of any kind. Prospective students are strongly encouraged to review desired job positions to review degrees, education, and/or training required to apply for desired positions. Prospective students should monitor these positions as requirements, salary, and other relevant factors can change over time.