Degree Pathways
Master of Public Health
The MCH Program offers a two-year, in-residence interdisciplinary program that leads to a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree with a concentration in maternal and child health. The program is interdepartmental: students obtain their degree either through the Department of Epidemiology or the Department of Health Services.
For more information about the MPH degree in health services, go to http://depts.washington.edu/hserv/academics#MPH. For more information about the MPH degree in epidemiology, go to http://depts.washington.edu/epidem/program/.
The maternal and child health curriculum in health services emphasizes policy development; program planning, management, and evaluation; and health services research. In epidemiology, it emphasizes biostatistics, epidemiological methods, and etiologic aspects of MCH problems.
Both curricula require the completion of a practicum and a thesis. The practicum provides students opportunities to apply the knowledge and skills they learned in the academic environment to community, state, or federal public health organizations. The thesis provides students opportunities to study public health problems in depth, using analytic and research skills.
The MCH Program has strong links with many public and private health organizations in the Northwest. Practicum placements and thesis research can involve working with local and state health departments, area hospitals, private and community health centers, and other regional programs.
All students are required to attend a weekly seminar and complete the Topics in Maternal and Child Health Series: HSERV 541 and HSERV 542. These courses emphasize skill development in research, data analysis, advocacy, and public health program planning, management, and evaluation, in addition to providing content on the basic epidemiologic, behavioral, sociologic, political, and economic aspects of maternal and child health,
Students also acquire knowledge and skills in ethical conduct, leadership, and oral and written communication through course work, in program-sponsored outreach activities and technical assistance, and in joint sessions with other University of Washington MCH leadership programs in neurodevelopmental disabilities, pediatric pulmonary care, and pediatric dentistry.
