University of Pittsburgh

The GSPH Core Curriculum

About the Core Curriculum
Core Curriculum Grading Policy
ASPH Core Competencies 
National Board of Public Health Examiners Credentialing Exam 
Goals of the Core Curriculum
About the GSPH MPH
About the GSPH MHA
About the GSPH MS
About the GSPH DrPH
About the GSPH PhD
Core Curriculum Classes and Descriptions
Class Sequence for Fall 2008 and Spring 2009
Grading
Advising and Registration
Learning Objectives for each course

About the Core Curriculum

GSPH provides educational programs of the depth, rigor, and multidisciplinary perspective needed for its graduates to serve as public health professionals with the leadership, knowledge, and research skills necessary to protect communities from diseases and health threats. The School provides a structured sequence of instruction, practice, and research in the five areas of knowledge basic to public health, as well as in human genetics and infectious diseases and microbiology. 

As an integral part of our educational programs, the school wide core curriculum enables students to gain a broad understanding of the areas of knowledge that are central to public health practice. In April of 2006, GSPH adopted a new school wide core curriculum. GSPH initiated the change in response to both our internal discussions about the core and guidance and encouragement from our professional accrediting body, the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). Faculty and students wanted a stronger, more integrated core experience and we believe the core curriculum strengthens the foundation of public health knowledge and competencies for our students. The courses were redesigned and continue to be revised with both the ASPH Core Competencies and the new National Board of Public Health Examiners Credentialing Exam in mind.   All students are eligible to sit for the credentialing exam. 

Grading Policy for GSPH Core Curriculum

The school-wide Core Curriculum Committee recommended to the Educational Policies and Curriculum Committee and the GSPH Council the following policy for school wide courses:

Existing school policy is that all GSPH students must maintain an overall grade point average of 3.0 or better. 

A grade of B or better is the desired grade for all school wide core courses required in a student's academic program (see below).  The rationale is that students who earn a B or better will be able to demonstrate competencies in the subject matter and thus be better prepared to enter public health practice. 

If a student earns a C, the student and his/her advisor should meet to discuss the grade and the student is strongly encouraged to re-take the core course.  However, the final decision to re-take the course will be left to the advisor and the student. 

If a student receives any grade below a C, that student must repeat the course. 

This policy will be effective for all students beginning in August, 2009 for courses taken in the fall term 2009 and thereafter.  This policy will also apply to students resolving incomplete grades in core courses where the incomplete grade was assigned prior to fall 2009.

back to the top    

The broader goals of the full core curriculum are to enable graduates to: 

• Command the essential competencies of public health’s core content areas, and apply those competencies to complex public health issues.
• Explain how their chosen public health concentration contributes uniquely to the study of population health, and how it intersects with other public health disciplines.
• Articulate and advocate the values and ethics that distinguish public health as an historic, contemporary, and cohesive field of practice and inquiry.
• Successfully plan and execute programs and/or research intended to advance the public's health and health awareness, nationally and globally. 
• Communicate effectively and appropriately with diverse groups of professional colleagues and public constituents.
• Locate, assemble, and critically analyze data, information, and knowledge resources.
• Develop a sense of identity, authority, and service in public health, and within their elected area of specialization.
• Assume key management roles in health organizations, and provide leadership in creating, implementing, and interpreting policy that promotes the ideals of public health.

Students pursuing an MPH or MHA degree and students without an MPH pursuing the DrPH must take all of the school wide core courses unless the program in which they are enrolled has been granted a waiver of certain core courses.  PhD students do not take school wide core courses unless the courses are required by their department.  Waivers of core courses and PhD requirements are based on a student's prior coursework and are specific to each student.  For more information, please check with your department.  MS students take an abbreviated version of the core curriculum.

back to the top

Master in Public Health (MPH)

The MPH degree is considered the entry professional degree within public health. The focus of this degree is on preparation of students who will become leaders in public health practice, whether in local, state, or federal public health agencies, voluntary health agencies, community-based organizations, or non-governmental organizations around the world. Graduates with an MPH should be competent in multiple broad domains as partially defined by the ASPH Education Committee Master’s Degree in Public Health Core Competency Development Project.  The school wide core curriculum for MPH, MHA and some DrPH students includes an overview of public health, core courses in the five disciplines of public health, a capstone course, and a course in public health biology.    

Core courses for MPH students are:

*Students are required to take either Biost 2011 OR Biost 2041 and they should be chosen in consultation with your advisor.

back to the top

Master of Health Administration (MHA)

The MHA degree is a professional degree that focuses specifically on management of health care organizations. MHA students engage in a rigorous curriculum that includes school wide core courses and a comprehensive set of courses and experiences focused on administration and management of various types of health care agencies including managed care organizations, hospitals or consulting firms. 

Core courses for MHA students are:

*Students are required to take either Biost 2011 OR Biost 2041 and they should be chosen in consultation with your advisor.

back to the top

Master of Science (MS)

The MS degree is an academic degree that aims to provide students with a foundation in research skills as preparation for either future graduate work or employment in a research setting. Students in MS programs at GSPH take a modified version of our school wide core that exposes them to key public health areas including epidemiology, biostatistics and an essentials of public health course that integrates social and behavioral sciences, environmental health and health policy issues. 

Core courses for MS students are:

*Students are required to take either Biost 2011 OR Biost 2041 and they should be chosen in consultation with your advisor. 

back to the top

Doctor of Public Health (DrPH)

The DrPH is an advanced professional degree that is offered by several GSPH departments.  Typically, DrPH programs prepare students to apply theory and research methods in settings in which they may play management roles or conduct applied research.  DrPH graduates often become senior staff in agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, state health departments, international organizations, and other settings.  Students seeking a DrPH degree take the same school wide core curriculum as MPH students unless they enter with an MPH degree.

Core courses for DrPH students without an MPH are:

*Students are required to take either Biost 2011 OR Biost 2041 and they should be chosen in consultation with your advisor.

back to the top

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

The PhD degree is oriented toward students wishing to seek a career in academics and research rather than public health practice.  Their academic program has a heavy focus on research methods and experience in the conduct of research studies.  PhD graduates gravitate toward academic positions in colleges and universities, research firms, and governmental agencies like the National Institutes of Health.  Some PhD programs include GSPH Core courses as requirements.  Please check with your department. 

back to the top

Listing of GSPH Core Curriculum Courses

MPH, MHA, and some DrPH students must take the following:

MS students must take the following:

*Students are required to take either Biost 2011 OR Biost 2041 and they should be chosen in consultation with your advisor. 

back to the top

Class Sequence for School Wide Core Curriculum

Effective August 2009

Summer Term: Historically, BCHS 2509, Public Health Biology (2015), HPM 2001, and Biost 2011 and 2041 have been offered during summer terms.  Continue to check the Courses and Registration section of the web for summer schedules. 

back to the top

Grading

All school core courses utilize the letter grade system. A student must attain a C or above to pass a school wide core course. The Educational Policies and Curriculum Committee (EPCC) recognizes that a C grade may be considered a passing grade for courses taken at the graduate level, including GSPH core courses. Although students who earn a C grade in a GSPH core course will not be required to retake the course, the student will be notified that this represents performance below expectations and will be encouraged by her/his advisor to repeat the course or otherwise demonstrate competency in this core area.

back to the top

Advising and Registration

New, full-time students should register for Public Health Biology and the Overview of Public Health in their first term. The Capstone course should be taken only when a student has completed all other GSPH core courses, or after a student has taken some of the core courses with simultaneous registration in the Capstone Course and the core courses remaining to be taken. 

Learning Objectives for All Courses in the GSPH Core Curriculum

The core curriculum courses address the basic areas of knowledge in public health and also provide the opportunity for integrating this knowledge and applying it through case studies. The learning objectives for the core curriculum are outlined below.

Public Health Overview
Social and Behavioral Sciences and Public Health
Principles of Statistical Reasoning
Environmental Health and Disease
Principles of Epidemiology
Introduction to Leadership, Management and Policy for Public Health
Essentials of Public Health
Public Health Biology
Capstone Course

Behavioral and Community Health Sciences (BCHS)

BCHS 2509 - Social and Behavioral Sciences and Public Health

Upon completion, students will be able to:

• Describe social and community factors in onset of and solutions to public health issues.
• Identify causes of social and behavioral factors affecting health.
• Identify theories, concepts, and models used in behavioral and social sciences.
• Identify levels and targets for interventions.
• Identify individual, organizational and community issues, assets, resources, and challenges.
• Apply evidence-based approaches to develop and evaluate interventions.
• Understand the merits of social and behavioral interventions.
• Apply ethical principles to planning, implementation and evaluation.
• Outline the steps in planning, implementing, and evaluating public health policies and programs.
• Identify critical stakeholders.

Biostatistics (BIOST)

BIOST 2011 - Principles of Statistical Reasoning

Upon completion, students will be able to:

• Apply concepts of statistical reasoning to public health problems.
• Define and use the basic terminology of statistics.
• Calculate various statistical measures and indices.
• Quantify health relationships; compute and interpret inferential statistical techniques.
• Use statistical software in processing, editing, storing, analyzing and interpreting health research data.

Environmental and Occupational Health (EOH)

EOH 2013 - Environmental Health and Disease

Upon completion, students will be able to:

• Define environment and the requirements for a healthy environment.
• Identify sources of environmental hazards to human health.
• Explain issues related to measurement of environmental quality, identification of environmental hazards, individual exposures and risk characterization.
• Describe methods for quantifying risk.
• Discuss issues of identifying populations most susceptible to environmental hazards.
• Discuss issues of environmental health promotion.
• Identify responsible government agencies and important laws that regulate and protect environmental quality and health.
• Identify agencies and parties responsible for cleaning the environment.
• Discuss approaches for preventing or remediating environmental hazards.
• Discuss approaches to protecting populations from environmental hazards.

Epidemiology (EPIDEM)

EPIDEM 2110 - Principles of Epidemiology

Upon completion, students will be able to:

• Understand the history and role of epidemiology as the basic science for public health.
• Develop a population-based perspective of disease and other health-related events.
• Recognize ethical and professional issues in the conduct of epidemiologic research.
• Calculate and interpret epidemiologic measures of disease occurrence.
• Calculate and interpret measures of effect used to compare the risk of disease between populations and subgroups.
• Understand features, strengths and limitations of descriptive, observational, experimental and genetic epidemiologic studies.
• Distinguish between association and causation, including knowledge of criteria used to evaluate casual associations.
• Understand the roles of chance, bias and confounding in the evaluation of epidemiologic research.
• Understand the concept of effect measure modification.
• Understand the dynamics on infectious disease transmission and methodology used to investigate an epidemic outbreak.
• Understand the role of screening and public health surveillance in applied epidemiology.
• Recognize the impact of racial, ethnic and cultural variability in epidemiologic research.

Health Policy and Management (HPM)

HPM 2001 - Introduction to Leadership, Management and Policy for Public Health

Upon completion, students will be able to:

• Gain sufficient understanding of the functions of leadership, organization management and policy in health care and public health to enhance professional competence.
• Apply one or more models of leadership as a professional development tool.
• Explain and apply a systems approach to analyzing organizational behavior and resolving problems.
• Understand a model of policy-making and analysis and apply it to a public health problem, challenge or priority.

PUBHLT 2011 - Essentials of Public Health

• Define the scope of public health.
• Describe historical foundations of public health and relate them to contemporary issues of public health.
• Describe the major determinants of ill health, and the role of population and community-based approaches in health issues.
• Be conversant with core curriculum and central concepts of behavioral and community health sciences, environmental and occupational health, and health policy and management; as well as have knowledge pertinetnt to human population genetics and infectious disease.
• Be familiar with the interface between public health science and policy, and the role of public health science in protecting the health of the public.
• Recognize the integration of disciplines and the multi-disciplinary collaboration necessary to address the multiple determinants of health.
• Understand the rudiments of the design and evaluation of a public health intervention. 

PUBHLT 2014 - Public Health Overview

• Comprehend public health as a broad and complex domain of professional practice and inquiry.
• Make inferences from history and cite milestones in the evolution of the public health field.
• Examine ethical issues relevant to public health practice and justify proposed courses of action.
• Begin to integrate core knowledge areas around common health topics.
• Generate well-formed questions based on text readings and other sources and contribute meaningful perspectives to discussions.
• Construct, adapt and apply visual models when analyzing public health problems

Public Health Biology

PUBHLT 2015 - Public Health Biology

Upon completion, students will be able to:

• Explain the role of biology in the ecological model of public health.
• Integrate general biological and molecular concepts into issues affecting public health.
• Explain how infectious agents affect the health of individuals and populations.
• Describe the role of the immune system functions normally to protect against disease.
• Explain how the immune system functions normally to protect against disease.
• Describe how this normal function is enhanced by vaccination.
• Explain the consequences of a breakdown in normal immune function.
• Explain how genetics and genomics affect disease processes and public health practice.
• Identify the ethical, legal and social issues arising from public health biology.
• Understand the role of evidence-based biological concepts in the broader public health arena.

Capstone Course

PUBHLT 2016 - Capstone: Problem Solving in Public Health

Upon completion, students will be able to:

• Use problem-solving methodology appropriate for addressing public health problems at different population levels with an emphasis on science, policy and practice considerations.
• Apply an interdisciplinary approach to public health problem-solving.
• Apply the skills necessary to effectively solve public health problems.