Public Health, M.P.H.

Graduation Requirements

To be awarded an MPH degree; students must successfully complete all academic work by the semester they wish to graduate. Capstone fieldwork experience or a thesis must also be completed. Specific requirements to be fulfilled by the graduating students include:

• Academic Performance: Cumulative grade point average of 3.00 on a 4.0 scale in all required and elective courses.
• Practicum: Three credits for students who elect the practicum option aimed at developing the skills and competencies through service experience in a health profession or health-related organization and to apply concepts and theories learned in the classroom.  The practicum will be arranged in one block spanning over one semesters (a minimum of 180 hours) and must be successfully completed. Prior to the experience, the practicum coordinator will discuss with each student their career interest, needs, and geographic constraints to determine the placement site.
• Thesis Proposal and Defense: Students who select the research option will submit their thesis to the faculty mentor and a copy must be submitted to the chairperson two weeks before defense date. The student must successfully defend the thesis.  Students who elect the thesis option must complete a Research Paper to include an introduction, literature review, methodology/results, and conclusion, and  minimum across 5 competencies of 15-20 pages.
• Project Presentation: Each student must successfully complete their capstone fieldwork experience and/or thesis and present it at the public forum.
• Grade Format: Letter (A-F) grades are awarded in theory courses. “Satisfactory” or “Unsatisfactory” grades are awarded only for the capstone, thesis and practicum experiences.

Progression and Probation Policy

The following academic progress and probation policy will be enforced in the MPH program:

Students must maintain a minimum 3.0 cumulative grade point average to demonstrate satisfactory academic progress and good academic standing. A student is placed on probation if the cumulative grade point average falls below 3.0 for any term. After being placed on probation, a student must attain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 within the next two terms or be dismissed from the graduate program.

No more than two grades of C can be earned in any of the MPH courses. More than two grades of Care grounds for dismissal. A course in which a D was obtained must be repeated to obtain a grade of C or better.

Students cannot obtain more than six credit hours of course work with a grade of D or F, whether the grade is part of the MPH program or not. More than 6 credit hours with grades of D or F will result in dismissal from the program. Where a student has two or more grades of Incomplete outstanding, the student should be reviewed for probationary status.

Public Health Generalist Degree

Total Program Credit Hours: 42