Public Health, MPH

Program Description

The Master of Public Health (MPH) program offers a generalist MPH degree consisting of 42 credit hours. The program’s mission is to prevent disease, promote health, and protect the well-being of the public through education, research and service.

Students gain knowledge in each of the five core disciplines of public health: biostatistics, epidemiology, environmental health sciences, public health administration, and the social behavioral sciences. The program prepares students to assess community health needs, plan effective health education and health intervention programs, implement and evaluate educational experiences, and conduct public health research.

Graduates of this program will enter public health service as practitioners, administrators, researchers, educators, and consultants in a wide variety of public health settings. Most will be employed in local, state, and national public health agencies, while others will work for non-profit organizations, private agencies, medical facilities, governmental agencies, and educational institutions.

Admission Requirements

The Master of Public Health (MPH) program seeks to admit students who:

Demonstrate the potential to be successful in graduate school
Are committed to the public health profession
Show evidence of their commitments through their interest, backgrounds, and experiences

Consideration for admission to the Master of Public Health Program requires the following:

Completion of a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college or university with a minimum GPA of 3.00;
Submission of completed Graduate Application;
International applicants for whom English is not the native language are required to submit official scores from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). See the required scores as noted on the Graduate College webpage. The IELTS will also be accepted.

Accelerated MPH Option

An accelerated option is available for eligible Missouri State University undergraduate students. Up to 12 hours of courses can be counted for both graduate and undergraduate credit. Contact the Master of Public Health (MPH) program for further information and guidelines.

Degree Requirements

The MPH program requires completion of 42 credit hours and includes the following:

PBH Core Courses Credit Hours: 30

Elective Courses Credit Hours: 6

Students will select 2 graduate-level (600 or higher) courses with consent of program advisor.

Field and Capstone Experience Credit Hours: 6

Complete 6 credits with one of the following combination of credits:
PBH 798 (3 credits) and PBH 799 (3 credits) OR
PBH 798 (6 credits)

Core Course Examination

After satisfactory completion of PBH 720 , PBH 730 , PBH 740 , PBH 745 and PBH 775 , all students are required to pass a written examination.

Field Experience

All students are required to complete a practical experience in an approved public health setting under the mentorship of a faculty member and the supervision of an on-site public health professional.

In order to qualify for the Public Health Field Experience, students must have successfully passed the core examination. The Field Experience must be approved. The only curricular practical training that will be approved is the PBH 798 course. No external research at other institutions will be approved for curricular practical training during the completion of the Master of Public Health (MPH) program.

Capstone Project

If a student chooses to complete 3 credits of field experience and 3 credits of a capstone project, the capstone project will be completed with the mentorship of an MPH faculty member.

Retention and Readmission to the Program

Admission to the Master of Public Health (MPH) program is through a competitive admissions process with only a limited number of students admitted each year. Students who leave the program will be required to apply for readmission. Applications for readmission will be reviewed by the MPH faculty. International students must comply with program and International Services policies. Students have a maximum of eight years to complete the program. Students who exceed this time period must seek an extension. All other retention policies are defined by the Graduate College.

MPH-MHA Dual Degree

Students can obtain dual degrees in health administration and public health at Missouri State University. A total of 12 hours of coursework can be applied to both programs, reducing the time required to obtain both degrees separately. See graduate advisor for more information.