Public Health

Website: www.uis.edu/public-health/
Email: mph@uis.edu
Office Phone: (217) 206-8716
Office Location: HSB 314

• Masters Degree (2)
• Joint Graduate Degrees (2) 
  • MPH/HMS 
  • MPH/MPA
• Graduate Certificates (5)

Departmental Vision and Mission

The Vision of the UIS MPH Program is enhancing health among diverse communities in Springfield, Illinois and beyond.

Our Mission is to promote public health in the communities through professional education, public health scholarship and community services. 

Goals

The program's goals that describe strategies to accomplish the defined mission are as follows:

• Provide professional education built on public health competencies for students.
• Engage in scholarly activities and research that advance public health knowledge.
• Participate in diverse community engagement through service, outreach, and partnerships.

The MPH Program offers two degrees for graduate-level study in public health: a Master of Public Health degree with a strong interdisciplinary foundation for practice in public health and a Master of Public Health in Environmental Health (MPH-EH) degree emphasizing preparation in risk assessment, emergency preparedness and environmental health policy. Our MPH-EH degree provides cross-disciplinary education opportunities and intentional integration of science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM), and associated practices. The MPH-EH program is a STEM-designated degree and accredited curriculum through the National Environmental Health Science and Protection Accreditation Council (EHAC). 

There are also two options for joint study degrees: Master of Public Health with a Master of Human Services (MPH/HMS) and Master of Public Health with a Master of Public Administration (MPH/MPA). The curriculum is designed to provide students with the academic background necessary to meet core competencies in public health as published on the Public Health website. 

The Master's Degree

• MPH Environmental Health

• MPH General

• MPH Professional Option

Advising

Advising in the MPH Program provides an individual approach to the academic and professional development of each student. On admission, each student is assigned an academic advisor to assist with academic planning from the MPH faculty. Students must prepare an educational plan before registering for courses in order to map out progress through the degree consistent with career and personal goals. Students are not allowed to register until this educational plan is approved.

Grading Policy

Students must maintain a B (3.0) or better cumulative average during their entire course of study. A maximum of eight hours of C (2.0) grades is applicable to the degree (grades of C- or lower are not accepted), provided that a minimum GPA of 3.0 is reached at time of graduation and an approved Student Petition is on file in the Office of Records and Registration. Courses taken on a CR/NC basis will not count toward the degree. Only pre-approved 400-level courses are permitted for use toward the degree.

NOTE: Students also should refer to the campus policy on Grades Acceptable Toward Master’s Degrees section of this catalog.

The degree of study must be declared at the time of application. Students in the MPH General or MPH-EH take 48 semester hours of course work. 

All degrees offered by the MPH department require students to complete 32 hours of core courses, including a four-credit hour internship.

Program Learning Outcomes 

1. Apply epidemiological methods to settings and situations in public health practice.
2. Select quantitative and qualitative data collection methods appropriate for a given public health context.
3. Analyze quantitative and qualitative data using biostatistics, informatics, computer-based programming, and software, as appropriate.
4. Interpret results of data analysis for public health research, policy, or practice.
5. Compare the organization, structure, and function of health care, public health, and regulatory systems across national and international settings.
6. Discuss the means by which structural bias, social inequities, and racism undermine health and create challenges to achieving health equity at organizational, community and systemic levels.
7. Assess population needs, assets and capacities that affect communities’ health.
8. Apply awareness of cultural values and practices to the design, implementation, or critique of public health policies or programs.
9. Design a population-based policy, program, project or intervention.
10. Explain basic principles and tools of budget and resource management.
11. Select methods to evaluate public health programs.
12. Discuss the policy-making process, including the roles of ethics and evidence.
13. Propose strategies to identify stakeholders and build coalitions and partnerships for influencing public health outcomes.
14. Advocate for political, social or economic policies and programs that will improve health in diverse populations.
15. Evaluate policies for their impact on public health and health equity.
16. Apply leadership and/or management principles to address a relevant issue.
17. Apply negotiation and mediation skills to address organizational or community challenges.
18. Select communication strategies for different audiences and sectors.
19. Communicate audience-appropriate (i.e., non-academic, non-peer audience) public health content, both in writing and through oral presentation.
20. Describe the importance of cultural competence in communicating public health content.
21. Integrate perspectives from other sectors and/or professions to promote and advance population health.
22. Apply a systems thinking tool to visually represent a public health issue in a format other than standard narrative.

Requirements

Master’s Closure

Students in all degree programs offered through the MPH Program take a comprehensive written examination based on a case study with questions designed to test students' ability to integrate the knowledge and skills they have gained from the curriculum. MPH students complete an Integrative Learning Experience (i.e., MPH Comprehensive Exam) that demonstrates syntheses of foundational and concentration competencies designed by the Council of Education for Public Health. A student may request to take the comprehensive exam during the prior spring semester with a Student Petition.

A student must complete all core courses (except the internship) prior to taking the comprehensive exam but may take the exam concurrently with electives or the internship during the last semester of study. When students need to take the comprehensive exam to graduate, the students must complete the comprehensive exam eligibility survey before the end of Week 3 of each semester except the summer semester. The student must successfully complete the exam within one year after completing course work for the degree. Students who take MPH 579 and do not pass, must enroll in MPH 583 (zero credit hour, one billable credit hour) each regular semester (fall/spring) until they pass the exam. Students must pass this exam within one year of completing course work with a maximum of three consecutive attempts. 

• MPH/HMS Joint Degree 

• MPH/MPA Joint Degree 

Graduate Certificates

MPH program offers five graduate certificates for specialized study in public health. These certificates, may be taken by either degree or non-degree seeking students (except as noted below) interested in advanced preparation in:

• Graduate Certificate in Community Health Education

• Graduate Certificate in Emergency Preparedness and Homeland Security

• Graduate Certificate in Environmental Health

• Graduate Certificate in Environmental Risk Assessment

• Graduate Certificate in Epidemiology