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General MPH Degree

The Master in Public Health program at the Department of Global Health is a rigorous two-year program that gives students multidisciplinary, comprehensive training in international public health. Requirements include a public health practicum and a thesis which should be based on original research work.

Graduates of this program will be able to approach global health issues with a solid grounding in the basic public health disciplines. They will be skilled in applied research and will have an understanding of the socio-political matrix of health determinants of the developing world. They will gain practical experience and be able to develop, analyze, write, and publish public health papers.

Between 15 and 20 students enroll in the Global Health MPH through either the Department of Global Health or the Department of Epidemiology, and about half of them usually come from developing countries. This diverse student population helps to create a dynamic environment for sharing and interactive teaching.

Students come from a variety of academic disciplines. Applicants must have a bachelor's degree, and some hold a clinical and/or a graduate degree. The most important admissions criterion is substantial (generally 2 years) health-related work experience in a developing country.

Admissions

Commitment to Diversity

GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR A SUCCESSFUL APPLICATION

Successful applications to the MPH program usually meet the following criteria:

• Show a good match between the training goals of applicant and the track to which they are applying.
• Demonstrate a progression between past and present training and/or experience and attainment of the MPH. Goal statements should clearly address how an MPH degree will advance applicant's professional goals.
• Are submitted, (with some exceptions), after applicants have at least two or three years of developing country health-related work experience.
• Are supported by good recommendation letters, transcripts, and GRE scores. The minimum grade point average which is acceptable to the Graduate School is 3.0, a "B" average. The MPH Program can petition for a waiver from this requirement for a few applicants with other exceptional qualifications or experience.

While the programs do not have specific expectations about GRE scores, successful applicants usually achieve at least 50% in each of the categories. The GRE is not required for those who have earned a doctoral degree in the United States from an accredited institution of higher learning. The programs will accept "old" GRE scores, so long as they are still available from the Educational Testing Service.

There are no course prerequisites; however, since biostatistics and epidemiology are core courses for the MPH, the faculty are often concerned about the ability of an applicant to perform well in quantitative work. A review course in algebra or statistics may be desirable for applicants who need to bolster their skills in this area.

Combined Online Application to UW Graduate School and Global Health General MPH

Apply online

IMPORTANT APPLICATION INFORMATION: PLEASE READ BEFORE APPLYING

MD-MPH Application Deadline: December 1 (or next business day if this is a weekend)

(For MD-MPH, use Global Health – General Track application and enter MD-MPH into concurrent degree section.)

All others: Application Deadline: December 15 (or next business day if this is a weekend)

Admission requirements will be described once you begin the application and select a program. You may also find this information at Graduate Programs.

All materials except transcripts and tests will be collected online. You will be able to check online for the status of each component of your application.

Transcript Instructions:

For all colleges or universities attended, have the institution(s) send one set of transcripts to the Department of Global Health Graduate Admissions office in a sealed envelope. Minor transcripts for course-work that has no relevance to the degree can be omitted:

Department of Global Health
Graduate Admissions - MPH
1959 NE Pacific Street, H-660
Box 357660
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195-7660

FOREIGN DEGREE: (not study abroad) Major transcripts in languages other than English must be accompanied by a certified English translation. Send official transcripts & diplomas showing grades/marks (with graduation date) to UW Graduate Admissions & to Global Health. If an institution only issues 1 transcript, have it sent to Global Health.

Test Instructions:

The General GRE test is required of all applicants. Only those with a doctoral level degree from an accredited U.S. school are exempted from this requirement (ex. PhD, JD, DDS, MD). Please have Educational Testing Service (ETS) submit your score to the University of Washington using institution code 4854.

The TOEFL is required of all international applicants, permanent residents, immigrants and transfer students, who are not citizens of the United States on the date of admission, and whose native language is other than English. No waivers of this English proficiency requirement may be given.

Please request Educational Testing Service, PO Box 6151, Princeton, NJ 08541-6151 to forward your TOEFL score report using our institution code #4854. Score reports over two years old (from the test date) are no longer valid

International Applicants:

International applicants should evaluate whether they are eligible for admission before applying to the University of Washington Graduate School.

Due to the time required for processing international applications, applicants are strongly encouraged to submit the application and transcripts to the Office of Graduate Admissions as close as possible to November 1.

For more information on admissions requirements, see graduate admissions information.

MPH Degree Requirements

Global Health Foundation course:

• G H 511 (Formerly HSERV/EPI 531)
  Problems in International Health

Global Health Management course:

• HSERV 590H
  International Program Management and Evaluation

One of the following assessment courses:

• EPI/HSERV 539
  Research Methods in Developing Countries

• EPI 586
  Responsible Conduct in International Research
  

Global Health Seminar (each in-residence quarter):

• G H 592

Global Health MPH Workshop (first two in-residence quarters):

• H 592

• BIOST 511
  Medical Biometry I
• BIOST 517
  Applied Biostatistics

At least one of the following Epidemiology courses:

• EPI 511
  Introduction to Epidemiology
• EPI 512 & 513
  Epidemiologic Methods I & II (2 courses)

At least one of the following Environmental Health courses:

• ENVH 511
  Intro. to Environmental and Occupational Health
• ENVH 570
  Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology
• ENVH 577
  Risk Assessment for Environmental Health Hazards
• ENVH 584
  Occupational Health & Safety: Policy and Politics
• ENVH 517
  Children's Environmental Health

• HSERV 510
  Society and Health

• G H 595
  

• G H 700
  

And at least 3 additional credits of Global Health courses

Qualitative Methods course:
If a student’s thesis is primarily qualitative, a course in qualitative methods is required; HSERV 526, Qualitative Research Methods for Public Health, or HSERV 521, Qualitative Methods in Health Services Research.  These courses may be substituted by another qualitative methods course with permission from thesis chair.  In the case of a substitution, please contact a student services staff member.

Overall, students must complete:              63 credits total

of which:                                                 At least 30 credits must be from graduate-level in                                                                   classroom courses

which must include:                             At least 18 credits must be from Global Health                                                                   in- classroom courses

Finally, all Global Health MPH students are encouraged to take elective courses in other departments of the School of Public Health and other health sciences schools, as well as through other schools and colleges throughout the university, including the Jackson School of International Studies and the Evans School of Public Affairs. Independent study under faculty supervision is also encouraged for credit.

Sample Schedule for Global Health MPH - General Track

First Year

Note that typically students travel summer and/or fall (and/or winter) to conduct thesis research.

Second Year

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