MS in Public Health
Admission Requirements
In addition to the Graduate College minimum requirements, applicants must meet the following program requirements:
- Baccalaureate Field
- A major in the biological, physical, or social sciences is preferred.
- Students applying to the primary concentration in Environmental and Occupational Health must have completed a full year of general chemistry, at least one semester of organic chemistry, and two semesters of calculus; one course in human physiology is also required for those interested in a secondary concentration in Occupational Safety.
- Those interested in the ASAC-ABET Accredited MS Program in Industrial Hygiene must have a baccalaureate degree from an accredited school, including completed course work in college-level mathematics, biology, general and organic chemistry, and physics.
- Exceptions may be granted for applicants with relevant work experience or high-level academic achievements. Exceptions may be admitted with an individually documented plan of study to compensate for deficiencies, although applicants are strongly encouraged to satisfy all deficiencies prior to matriculation. Applicants are invited to consult with the Industrial Hygiene program director about possible deficiencies.
- Grade Point Average At least 3.00/4.00.
- Tests Required GRE General. For GRE General Tests, the combined verbal and quantitative scores must be at least 300.
- Minimum English Competency Test Score
- TOEFL 80, with subscores of Reading 19, Listening 17, Speaking 20, and Writing 21 (iBT Test); 60, with subscores of Reading 19, Listening 17, Writing 21 (revised Paper-Delivered Test), OR,
- IELTS 6.5, with subscores of 6.0 for all four subscores, OR,
- PTE-Academic 54, with subscores of Reading 51, Listening 47, Speaking 53, and Writing 56.
- Letters of Recommendation Three required.
- Personal Statement Required; the statement should address the applicant’s intended research, career goals, and reason for pursuing the MS degree in the chosen area.
Degree Requirements
In addition to the Graduate College minimum requirements, students must meet the following program requirements:
- Minimum Semester Hours Required Varies by concentration. 48 for the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Concentration; 40 for the Health Policy and Administration Concentration; 52 for the Industrial Hygiene concentration; and 53 for the Occupational Safety concentration.
- Course Work At least 32 semester hours must be in courses other than IPHS 598, and at least 9 semester hours must be at the 500 level. No more than 4 hours of IPHS 596 may be applied to the degree.
- Comprehensive Examination Not required.
- Thesis, Project, or Course-Work-Only Options Thesis or course work only. No other options available.
- Thesis: Thesis required for all areas. Thesis students must earn at least 8 hours in IPHS 598.
- Course Work Only: Only for Biostatistics students. Comprehensive examination required.
School-Wide Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| School of Public Health Core Requirements | ||
| Biostatistics I a | ||
| Introduction to Epidemiology: Principles and Methods | ||
| Foundations of Public Health | ||
| Required Non-Credit Training | ||
Information Privacy & Security/Health Privacy Training (IPS) | ||
Human Subjects Research | ||
Title IX Training | ||
SPH Academic Integrity Tutorial | ||
- a
BSTT 400 is not required for students in the MS in Biostatistics or MS in Biostatistics, Concentration in Health Analytics programs.
Concentration Requirements
Remaining courses and their distribution depend on the student’s primary (and secondary, where applicable) area of concentration. MS students select from one of the following primary concentration areas:
Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Concentration
In addition to School of Public Health Core Requirements, students must complete the following concentration requirements:
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Concentration Requirements | ||
| Biostatistics II | ||
| Environmental Calculations | ||
| Students must also complete the division core of 12 semester hours in EOHS courses, choosing at least one course in each of the following three areas: (1) Exposure Assessment, (2) Health Assessment, (3) Risk Assessment and Policy | ||
• Students should see their advisor for a list of courses in each area. | ||
• Students are strongly encouraged to complete at least one course recommended by the Director of Graduate Studies which provides a broad introduction to public health. | ||
Health Policy and Administration Concentration
- MS students concentrating in Health Policy and Administration must complete all of the School of Public Health Core Requirements for the MS degree. In addition, 22 hours of course work relevant to the disciplinary area of Health Policy and Administration are taken in consultation with the faculty advisor.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction to Public Health Policy | ||
| Introduction to the Economics of Health and Healthcare | ||
| Empirical Methods for Health Research I | ||
| Empirical Methods for Health Research II | ||
| Public Health Policy Analysis | ||
| Advanced Topics in Health Economics | ||
Electives - Selected in consultation with the faculty advisor (4 hours) | ||
Secondary Concentrations
Global Health Secondary Concentration (available to all onsite MS students)
Students earning an onsite MS in Public Health degree in any of the primary concentrations may also enroll in the Concentration in Global Health. Students in the Global Health Concentration program must satisfy school-wide and divisional requirements in addition to the following: IPHS 409, IPHS 410 and an elective (3 hours). Selection of an elective should be made with the help of the student’s academic advisor; and is subject to the offering department’s approval. MS students in the GH Concentration must focus their research thesis (IPHS 598, 8 or 16 hours, as required by the student’s divisional concentration) on a global health related topic either outside the U.S. or domestically through an appropriate alternative venue. In addition, as feasible, students in the concentration are strongly encouraged to select topics of global health relevance when completing all course assignments for their program. Competency in a foreign language is also highly recommended but not required for the program. With proper planning, courses may be used to satisfy both the Global Health Concentration and divisional requirements.
Industrial Hygiene Secondary Concentration (EOHS students only)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Secondary Concentration Requirements | ||
| MS students concentrating in the ASAC-ABET-Accredited Program in Industrial Hygiene within the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Division must complete all of the SPH requirements for the MS degree. In addition, students must take: | ||
| Biostatistics II | ||
| Environmental Calculations | ||
| Occupational Health and Safety Practice | ||
| Evaluation and Control of Physical Agents | ||
| Evaluation and Control of Airborne Contaminants | ||
| Evaluation and Control of the Psychosocial Work Environment | ||
| Industrial Hygiene Laboratory I | ||
| Air Quality Assessment and Management | ||
| Applied Industrial Hygiene and Safety | ||
| Occupational and Environmental Disease | ||
| Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems | ||
Occupational Safety Secondary Concentration (EOHS students only)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Secondary Concentration Requirements | ||
| MS students concentrating in Occupational Safety must complete all of the SPH requirements for the MS degree. In addition, students must take: | ||
| Biostatistics II | ||
| Environmental Calculations | ||
| Occupational Health and Safety Practice | ||
| Evaluation and Control of the Psychosocial Work Environment | ||
| Industrial Hygiene Laboratory I | ||
| Applied Industrial Hygiene and Safety | ||
| Occupational and Environmental Disease | ||
| Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems | ||
| Injury Epidemiology and Prevention | ||
| Ergonomics and Human Factors | ||
| Safety Engineering | ||
| Select one of the following: | ||
| Evaluation and Control of Physical Agents | ||
| Quality Control and Reliability | ||
TSM 421 | (Urbana campus course) | |
Public Health Informatics Secondary Concentration (Online MS-HPA students only)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Secondary Concentration Requirements | ||
| MS students concentrating in Public Health Informatics must complete all of the SPH requirements for the MS degree. In addition, students must take the following: | ||
| Required Courses | ||
| Biostatistics II | ||
| Health Information and Decision Support Systems | ||
| Development of Public Health Surveillance Information Systems | ||
| Selective Courses | ||
| A minimum of 16 hours from among the following: | ||
| Health Related Database Design and Analysis | ||
| Management of Communication Systems for Public Health Informatics Applications | ||
| Legal and Ethical Issues in Public Health Informatics | ||
| Survey of Public Health Information Systems | ||
| Public Health Information Systems Evaluation and Project Management | ||
| Web-Based Public Health Information Systems | ||
| Geographic Information System Application in Public Health | ||
| Datamining Applications in Public Health | ||
| Elective Courses | ||
| A minimum of 6 hours from among the following: | ||
| Informatics for the Clinical Investigator | ||
| Knowledge Management in Healthcare Organizations | ||
| Consumer Health Informatics | ||
| Strategic Planning and Budgeting/Finance | ||
| Organizational Leadership in Public Health | ||
| Geographic Information Systems Integrative Project | ||
| Survey of Public Health Information Systems | ||
| Students are strongly encouraged to complete at least one course recommended by the Director of Graduate Studies which provides a broad introduction to public health. | ||