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UIC School of Public Health Student Handbook 2008-2009

The Master of Public Health: Epidemiology

LEARNING OBJECTIVES FOR EPIDEMIOLOGY • CULMINATING EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS

To print the PEP curricular table for the Epidemiology MPH, please download here(pdf)

Professional Enhancement Program (PEP) MPH Curriculum

TOTAL Credit Hours = minimum of 42 semester credit hours (SH)

http://www.uic.edu/sph/eb.htm

School-Wide

Core

Requirements

· EPID 403 Introduction to Epidemiology: Principles and Methods (3 SH)

· BSTT 400 Biostatistics I (4 SH)

· HPA 400 Principles of Management in Public Health (3 SH)

· CHSC 400 Public Health Concepts and Practice (3 SH)

· EOHS 400 Principles of Environmental Health Sciences (3 SH)

· CHSC 401 Behavioral Sciences in Public Health (3 SH)

Required Non-Credit Training:
(http://tigger.uic.edu/depts/ovcr/research/protocolreview/irb/
education/initial.shtml)

· HIPAA Research 101 (non-credit)

· Investigator Training 101 (non-credit)

Culminating Experience:

· IPHS 650 Field Experience in Public Health (3 or 5 SH)*

· IPHS 698 MPH Capstone Experience (1 SH)**

SUB-TOTAL: 23-25 semester credit hours

Divisional

Core

Requirements

· EPID 406 Epidemiologic Computing (3 SH)

· EPID 404 Intermediate Epidemiologic Methods (4 SH)

· EPID 410 Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases (2 SH)

· EPID 411 Epidemiology of Chronic Diseases (3 SH)

· EPID 591 Current Epidemiologic Literature (2 SH)

· BSTT 401 Biostatistics II (4 SH)

SUB-TOTAL: 18 semester credit hours

Electives

Students must complete the number of electives necessary to bring total program hours to a minimum of 42 semester credit hours.

TOTAL HOURS

Minimum of 42 semester credit hours

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To print the Comprehensive curricular table for the Epidemiology MPH, please download here(pdf)

Comprehensive MPH Curriculum

TOTAL Credit Hours = minimum of 53 semester credit hours (SH)

http://www.uic.edu/sph/eb.htm

School-Wide

Core

Requirements

· EPID 403 Introduction to Epidemiology: Principles and Methods (3 SH)

· BSTT 400 Biostatistics I (4 SH)

· HPA 400 Principles of Management in Public Health (3 SH)

· CHSC 400 Public Health Concepts and Practice (3 SH)

· EOHS 400 Principles of Environmental Health Sciences (3 SH)

· CHSC 401 Behavioral Sciences in Public Health (3 SH)

Required Non-Credit Training: (http://tigger.uic.edu/depts/ovcr/research/protocolreview/irb
/education/initial.shtml)

· HIPAA Research 101 (non-credit)

· Investigator Training 101 (non-credit)

Culminating Experience:

· IPHS 650 Field Experience in Public Health (3 or 5 SH)*

· IPHS 698 MPH Capstone Experience (1 SH)**

SUB-TOTAL: 23-25 semester credit hours

Divisional

Core

Requirements

· EPID 406 Epidemiologic Computing (3 SH)

· EPID 404 Intermediate Epidemiologic Methods (4 SH)

· EPID 410 Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases (2 SH)

· EPID 411 Epidemiology of Chronic Disease (3 SH)

· EPID 591 Current Epidemiologic Literature (2 SH)

· BSTT 401 Biostatistics II (4 SH)

SUB-TOTAL: 18 semester credit hours

Electives

Students may use their electives to pursue a course of study in the following divisional concentration; or may customize their program of study by selecting from a broad range of course work to meet their career goals and interests.

All students must complete a minimum of 12 semester hours of electives.

SUB-TOTAL: minimum 12 semester credit hours

Optional

Concentration

formal approval pending

Maternal and Child Health Epidemiology

Core MCH Epidemiology Concentration Courses:

· BSTT 401 Biostatistics II (4 SH)

· EPID 404 Intermediate Epidemiologic Methods (4 SH)

· EPID 406 Epidemiologic Computing (3 SH)

Select one of the following courses:

· EPID 410 Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases (2 SH)

· EPID 411 Epidemiology of Chronic Diseases (3 SH)

· CHSC 431 Community Assessment in Public Health (3 SH)

· CHSC 433 Public Health Planning and Evaluation (3 SH)

Select one of the following courses:

· CHSC 434 Qualitative Methods (3 SH)

· CHSC 446 Research Methods in Community Health (3 SH)

· PA 540 Research Methods in Public Administration (4 SH)

· CHSC 548 Readings in Reproductive and Perinatal Epidemiology (1 SH)

Select one of the following courses:

· CHSC/EPID 545 Reproductive and Perinatal Health (3 SH)

· EPID 518 Epidemiology of Pediatric Diseases (3 SH)

Select two of the following courses:

· CHSC 510 MCH Outcomes and Measurements (3 SH)

· CHSC 511 MCH Delivery Systems (3 SH)

· CHSC 512 Best Practices is MCH Programs (3 SH)

· CHSC 543 MCH Policy and Advocacy (3 SH)

Electives MCH Epidemiology Concentration:

All students must complete a minimum of 9-11 semester hours of electives as necessary to reach minimum of 53 total program hours.

SUB-TOTAL: minimum of 33 semester hour credits

Other Recognized Interdisciplinary Concentrations

Interdepartmental Graduate Concentration in Survey Research Methodology http://www.srl.uic.edu/gcsrm.htm

Interdepartmental Graduate Concentration in Women's Health http://www.uic.edu/nursing/forms/WHConcentrationWebInfo.pdf

Graduate Concentration in Women's Studies http://www.uic.edu/depts/wsweb/graduate/index.htm

Global Health http://www.uic.edu/sph/global/index.shtml

TOTAL HOURS

Minimum of 53 semester credit hours

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Epidemiology: MPH Learning Objectives

In addition to the school-wide learning objectives, for students pursuing the MPH degree in Epidemiology, the following objectives apply:

Appreciate the history and philosophy of epidemiology as a public health science.
Understand the implications of epidemiology for other health specialists.
Understand the fundamental measures and study designs used in epidemiology. Understand and be able to apply statistical methods commonly used in epidemiology
Have substantive knowledge of epidemiology.
Have knowledge of protocol development, subject recruitment, data collection, quality control, reporting and presentation of findings.
Demonstrate the ability to conduct data analyses and interpret results.
Demonstrate the ability to manage and analyze data using statistical and epidemiological software packages.

Joint Degree Options for Epidemiology students:

General MPH Curricular Policies: See http://www.uic.edu/sph/shandbook_mph.htm

* Field Experience

The Field Experience provides the student with practical experience in a public health setting. The overall learning objective of the Field Experience is for the student to apply and integrate the skills and knowledge learned during their graduate study in a real-world application. The Field Experience is required of all MPH students, with the majority being required to complete a 5 credit (320 contact hours) assignment. Some students may qualify for a reduced practicum of 3 credits (192 contact hours) depending on their prior public health experience and career goals, and would need to discuss this possibility within their chosen division.

The field experience may be waived on an individual basis based upon a student’s demonstration of a Bachelor’s or advanced degree in a health or related profession plus 3 years of paid public health experience. A prior professional degree without public health experience; or prior work experience that is not closely related to the academic objectives of the student’s degree program; are not sufficient reason for waiving the practice requirement. If petitioning to waive the field practicum, please attach supporting documentation including a resume and letter explaining relevant public health experiences and how these experiences relate to the field practicum learning objectives found in the SPH student handbook General MPH Curricular Policies http://www.uic.edu/sph/shandbook_mph.htm.

** Epidemiology Capstone Requirements:

Learning Objectives of Capstone Requirement:

Required Courses:

All students must complete the following two course requirements:

IPHS 650 Field Experience in Public Health (3-5 SH)
IPHS 698 MPH Capstone Experience (1 SH)

Capstone Requirements:

Oral Presentation - Students must complete a formal oral presentation to Division students and faculty on a topic as described below. The presentation will conform to the format and time length of a paper delivered at the annual meetings of the American Public Health Association (APHA), approximately 12-15 minutes.

The topic is to be approved by the student's advisor, and a final abstract of the presentation is to be submitted at least one week prior to the presentation. Where appropriate, students are encouraged to present findings based on their field experience (IPHS 650). However, it may take an alternative form, such as a comprehensive review of the literature on a public health issue from an epidemiologic perspective; a report on another research project in which the student has taken part; a proposal for a study to address an important public health issue; or another format acceptable to the student and his/her academic advisor or faculty mentor. The topic should not be the same as one already addressed in a paper submitted for a previous course.

The presentation should consist of the following:

Introduction to the problem or issue
Explanation of the methods used to research the topic
Summary of the results or findings
Conclusions as to the public health implications of the results
Recommendations for practical applications or further research

NOTE: Students who are doing research involving human subjects will need to undergo training and have their protocols approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB).

Evaluation / Grading Procedures:

Three faculty members will evaluate the quality of the presentation. Each faculty member will assess the experience based on three criteria: content (60%), organization (20%) and oral presentation (20%).

If the presentation is evaluated as unsatisfactory by at least two of the three faculty members, the student will be required to submit a written paper, including citations, covering the same material as the oral presentation. The written paper will be evaluated by the three committee members on the content and organization of the material. In some cases, the capstone review committee may simply require written clarification or additional analyses pertinent to identified deficiencies in the oral presentation.

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