Curriculum

42 credit minimum

Credits are listed in ( ).

Basic Curriculum (22-credit minimum)
All basic curriculum courses are offered either online or during the three-week summer Public Health Institute on campus at the University of Minnesota.

PubH 6299    Public Health Practice: Public Health as a Team Sport - Power of
                      Collaboration (1.5)
PubH 6020    Fundamentals of Social and Behavioral Science (3)
PubH 6102    Issues in Environmental and Occupational Health (2)
PubH 6320    Fundamentals of Epidemiology (3)
PubH 6414    Biostatistical Methods I (3)
PubH 6741    Ethics in Public Health: Professional Practice and Policy (1)
PubH 6752    Public Health Management (3)

Field Experience
Minimum of 135 hours in a public health setting, with adviser approval, is required for completion of the MPH Field Experience; the same site may be counted as a clinical rotation in a college of veterinary medicine as long as it meets content and credit standards for both experiences and receives prior approval.  At least 45 hours must be completed in a human public health setting.  These activities must relate to the common goal of public health.

PubH 7296    Field Experience: Public Health Practice (3)

Master’s Project
Students may complete their MPH Master’s Project as part of their college of veterinary medicine curriculum as long as it meets content and credit standards for both experiences and receives prior approval.

PubH 7294    Master's Project: Public Health Practice (3)

Elective Curriculum (20-credit minimum)
Students select one of the following three options for the elective curriculum. The courses below are examples of applicable coursework. Other courses may be selected only in consultation with the student’s VPH advisor. Most courses are offered during a three-week Public Health Institute in May/June of each year on campus at the University of Minnesota.

Up to 14 credits may be transferred into the MPH from a school of veterinary medicine upon approval of the advisor and major chair. Each of the elective curriculum options addresses the need for students to have coursework in the following four domains: Public Health Policy and Systems Development, Community Intervention, Assessment and Basic Sciences, and Program Management and Communications.  DVM/MPH students are also required to take one course to fulfill the veterinary public health competencies: biostatistics, surveillance, infectious disease epidemiology, zoonoses and environmental health.

Option 1 – Food Protection (this list is not exclusive)
PubH 7210    Global Food Systems: Cereals, Poultry, Restaurants (.5 each/1.5 total)
PubH 7210    Global Food Systems: Pork, Dairy, Fresh Produce (.5 each/1.5 total)
PubH 7211    Food System Biosecurity: Preparedness and Response (1)
PubH 7212    Food System Biosecurity: Threats (1)
PubH 7213    Applications of Microbiology to Food Monitoring (1)
PubH 7214    Principles of Risk Communication (1)
PubH 7215    Food Safety Risk Assessment (1)
PubH 7216    Food Safety Risk Management (1)
PubH 7217    Advances in Molecular Epidemiological Analysis (1)
PubH 72xx    Application of Principles: Understanding Emergence Zoonotic Diseases (1)
PubH 72xx    Public and Environmental Health Problem Solving (1)
PubH 7200   Antimicrobial Resistance: Emerging Issues in Infectious Diseases (1)
PubH 7200   Avian Influenza: Emerging Infectious Disease (1)
PubH 7200   Food Labeling & Nutrition Law
PubH 7200   Planning for Urgent Threats (1)
PubH 7200   Politics & Public Health Policy
PubH 7200   Principles of Infectious Disease Epidemiology (1)
PubH 7200   Vector Ecology Field Survey (.5)

PubH 6282    Emerging Infectious Disease (3)
PubH 6711    Public Health Law (2)
CVM 6518    Food Public Policy (1-3)

PubH 72xx    Surveillance and Monitoring of Animals and Plants (1) AND
PubH 72xx    Surveillance of Foodborne Diseases in Humans (1); OR
PubH 6181    Surveillance of Foodborne Diseases and Food Safety Hazards (2) OR
VMed 5165    Surveillance of Foodborne Diseases (2) for U of MN DVM students only

Additional course options for U of MN DVM students only:
BAE 5212      Safety & Env Hlth Issues in Plant/Animal Production & Processing (3)
CVM 6222     Advanced Clinical Epidemiology (2)
CVM 8090     Epi of Zoonoses and Diseases Common to Animals and Humans (1-4)
CVM 8195     Pre-Harvest Food Safety (1-3)

Option 2 – Preparedness, Response and Recovery (PRR)
PubH 6181    Surveillance of Foodborne Diseases and Food Safety Hazards (2) OR
VMed 5165   Surveillance of Foodborne Diseases (2) for U of MN DVM students only

PubH 7214    Principles of Risk Communication (1)
PubH 7217    Advances in Molecular Epidemiological Analysis (1)
PubH 72xx    Designing, Conducting & Evaluating Tabletop Exercises for PRR (1.5)
PubH 72xx    Incident Management System: The Public Health Role (1)
PubH 72xx    Information Technologies (0.5)
PubH 72xx    Interagency Drill (1.5)
PubH 72xx    Media Relations Practicum (0.5)
PubH 72xx    Planning for Urgent Threats (1)
PubH 72xx    Psychosocial Approaches in Disaster PRR (0.5)
PubH 72xx    Surveillance of Foodborne Disease in Humans (1)

PubH 6282    Emerging Infectious Disease (3)
PubH 6711    Public Health Law (2)
CVM 6518     Food Public Policy (1-3)

Plus additional coursework in Infectious Disease to achieve required number of credits

Option 3 – Occupational Health and Safety
PubH 6130    Occupational Medicine: Principles and Practice (2)
PubH 6170    Introduction to Occupational Health and Safety (3)
PubH 6711    Public Health Law (2)
PubH 72xx    Incident Management System: The Public Health Role (1)
PubH 72xx    Principles of Risk Communication (1)
PubH 72xx    Psychosocial Approaches in Disaster PRR (0.5)
PubH 72xx    Worker Protection Law in Times of Threat (0.5)
PubH 72xx    Workplace Design for Safety (1)
CVM 6518     Food Policy (1-3)

PubH 72xx    Ergonomics and the Prevention of Workplace Injuries (1)
PubH 72xx    Hazard Recognition, Evaluation, and Control (1)

PubH 6727    Health Leadership and Effecting Change (2)
PubH 6558    Health Care Finance Management: Public Sector (2)

Timeline for Completion
Students may begin MPH coursework in the summer before the first year of the veterinary medicine curriculum. The maximum time to compolete an MPH degree is 7 years, but students usually are able to complete it in 3-4 years. Dual degree students will be enrolled full-time in the School of Public Health during the summers (a minimum of two terms is required). During the summer, students may register for courses in both the Public Health Institute and for on-line or on-campus courses.