The Department of Global and Community Health has added three new concentrations to the Master of Public Health (MPH) program: community health promotion, global health, and public health communication. MPH students will have the option to enroll in these new concentrations starting in the fall 2016 semester.
The concentration in community health promotion prepares students to become health promotion specialists in local, state, and federal public health agencies; non-governmental health organizations, the health care sector, and private industry. Through this concentration, students will examine the social, behavioral, and environmental factors associated with the most pressing health problems. Students will develop the skills necessary to improve public health by designing, implementing, and evaluating appropriate health promotion programs and preventive services.
The global health concentration prepares students to apply public health tools to the promotion of health in communities, countries, regions, and the world. The concentration’s coursework emphasizes comparative global health metrics; the socioeconomic, environmental, and other risk factors associated with transnational health concerns; and ethical and effective strategies for preventing and controlling infectious and non-communicable diseases in diverse populations. Students gain professional communication skills and develop competencies in program planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.
Students in the public health communication concentration are trained in effective communication strategies to inform and influence individual and community decisions that affect health, combining the fields of public health and communication. The concentration emphasizes how to design, implement, and evaluate effective communication strategies and messaging to address the health needs of diverse populations.
The MPH program also offers a concentration in epidemiology, which prepares students to investigate and analyze factors that influence the occurrence, distribution, prevention, and control of disease and injuries in human populations.
In addition to the new concentrations, the Department of Global and Community Health is now a SOPHAS school and a member of the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. SOPHAS is an online application system where prospective public health graduate students can apply to multiple accredited schools.
For more information on the MPH program and concentrations, visit chhs.gmu.edu/gch or contact Ali Weinstein at aweinst2@gmu.edu.