Cara L Pennel, Denny Fe G Agana-Norman, Leslie A Stalnaker, Dana Wiltz-Beckham, Marisol Luna
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Objectives: Revised accreditation criteria from the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) in 2016 prompted schools and programs of public health to shift their master of public health (MPH) core curricula. Our objective was to provide data on revisions to MPH core curricula at CEPH-accredited schools and programs of public health and other descriptive statistics on the MPH core curriculum and required courses as of 2023.
Methods: We analyzed data from 67 accredited schools of public health and 130 accredited public health programs to assess changes from 2016 to 2023 in the MPH core curriculum. We examined the number of courses, the proportion of credit hours in the core curriculum, core curriculum composition, and course types.
Results: Almost half (49.2%) of schools, but only 16.9% of programs, made extensive changes to their MPH core curricula, an overall increase of 153.6% from 2020 to 2023. Approximately one-fifth of schools and programs made few to no changes to their core curricula and retained core courses in the 5 former core disciplines. On average, core curriculum credit hours comprised 37.8% of total credit hours for schools and 51.7% for programs. Half (50.0%) of all programs in the sample offered single-concentration MPH degrees. Schools and programs were more likely to continue requiring traditional biostatistics (81.7%) and epidemiology (81.2%) courses in the core curriculum compared with environmental health (69.0%), social and behavioral health (61.9%), and health policy and management (42.1%).
Conclusions: Most schools and programs modified their MPH core curricula, reflecting a departure from traditional public health courses toward innovative approaches to ensure knowledge and skill proficiency of graduates. Future research will determine if these curricular changes improve the knowledge and skill proficiency of public health graduates and the workforce.
期刊介绍：
Public Health Reports is the official journal of the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General and the U.S. Public Health Service and has been published since 1878. It is published bimonthly, plus supplement issues, through an official agreement with the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. The journal is peer-reviewed and publishes original research and commentaries in the areas of public health practice and methodology, original research, public health law, and public health schools and teaching. Issues contain regular commentaries by the U.S. Surgeon General and executives of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Health.
The journal focuses upon such topics as tobacco control, teenage violence, occupational disease and injury, immunization, drug policy, lead screening, health disparities, and many other key and emerging public health issues. In addition to the six regular issues, PHR produces supplemental issues approximately 2-5 times per year which focus on specific topics that are of particular interest to our readership. The journal''s contributors are on the front line of public health and they present their work in a readable and accessible format.
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