Certificate program

General Guidelines for Applicants
Overview

The courses are intended to give graduates the basic core competencies around cancer prevention and control science. The Certificate will help train specialists in cancer prevention and control to work in local health jurisdictions at the city, county, or state level or regional public health; work sites; managed care organizations; schools; and voluntary associations. They will also be able to participate in cancer prevention and control research in academic and research institute settings.


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Competencies

By the completion of this Certificate program, the trainees will be able to:

  • Identify causes of cancer, including behavioral, social and environmental
  • Discuss the selection of a cancer prevention target for research
  • Identify social, cultural, and behavioral issues in performing cancer related health behavior
  • Identify and define cancer related outcomes
  • Describe cost analysis for cancer prevention interventions
  • Design an evaluation of a cancer prevention interventions


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Required Courses - (10 credits)

All students in the Certificate program will be required to take the following courses:

  • HSERV 575 - Cancer Prevention (4) Bowen, Ramsey
  • HSERV 581 - Strategies of Health Promotion (4) Bowen
  • HSERV 592 - Seminar in Cancer Interventions and Outcomes (2) Bowen


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Electives

All students will be required to take an additional 6 credits from the following list:

  • EPI 524 Epidemiologic Studies of Cancer Etiology and Prevention (3) Li
  • EPI 540 Introduction to Cancer Biology (3) Ulrich
  • HSERV 507 Communication for Health Promotion: Theory and Application (3) Meischke
  • HSERV 582 Theoretical Perspectives on Health Behavior Change (3) Meischke
  • HSERV 510 Society and Health (3) Meischke, Bowen, Grembowski, Shiu-Thornton


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Capstone

The capstone (1 credit) learning experience for all students will consist of a series of three sessions in which students present and lead discussion:

  1. Causes of cancer and prospects for prevention,
  2. Design and evaluation of cancer interventions, and
  3. Designing and evaluating cancer communications.

Students will prepare topics for discussion at the Quarterly Fellows Session of the Biobehavioral Cancer Training Program. Students will be asked to give a formal presentation of a project that synthesizes the material covered in the certificate program in Spring Quarter meeting of all mentors and trainees. Each trainee will present her or his mentored research work . The presentations will be 30 minutes, and will include the theoretical basis for the research work, findings to date, plans for completion of the research and production of the research products (eg, manuscripts) and future directions for research. The presentation will be advertised to the general academic community, and therefore other faculty and trainees will be welcome. Feedback will be provided to the trainee immediately after the presentation and in written form from the faculty and trainees present.


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Admissions and Mentoring

Eligibility will be based on graduate status at the University of Washington and interest in and background in health or health affairs. Potential applicants include graduate students in the Health Sciences (Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Public Health and Community Medicine, and Social Work), graduate students in the Arts and Sciences Departments potentially interested in Cancer Prevention (Psychology, Anthropology, Sociology, etc.), and graduate students in the School of Public Affairs.

Admissions will be accomplished by a small committee (Drs Ramsey, Patrick, and Bowen). Potential certificate applicants will complete a simple form that asks for a personal statement on reasons for pursuing the certificate and their current standing in the department.

A cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above is required for all courses counting toward the certificate, and a grade of 2.7 is required for any individual course counted toward the certificate.

All applicants will either be assigned a mentor from the training program faculty by the Advisory Committee or the mentor can be the same as their current advisor.


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Faculty