Master of Applied Science in Population Health Management, MAS

Program Overview

The Master of Applied Science (MAS) is a fully online, part-time degree designed for working professionals. The Certificate and Master’s degree programs in Population Health Management focus on emergent industry sectors in public health and health care that have a need for highly skilled professionals. By building on the strengths of the school, they provide unmatched opportunities for advanced training and  prepare students to create innovative solutions through multidisciplinary approaches that apply the latest scientific knowledge. The Master’s program culminates in a final Integrative Activity. The goal of this activity is for students to synthesize knowledge and skills obtained through coursework in a final project that demonstrates mastery of program competencies, as applied to real-world public health and health care questions.

Population health management has emerged as an important strategy for health care providers and payers. The MAS program in Population Health Management prepares students to examine and respond to both challenges and opportunities to improve health within and across populations. The program is structured to guide health care professionals seeking to transform systems into sustainable models of value-driven accountable care.

The  curriculum’s health equity and interdisciplinary focus  builds competencies in  evaluation, analysis, planning, and execution. By integrating healthcare management and public health skills, students leave the program capable of interpreting the impact of social drivers of health and designing programs that can create sustainable improvements in community health across a broad range of culturally-diverse settings.

LinkedIn Group

We have established a LinkedIn group for each of the MAS program areas in order to strengthen connections between current students, faculty, and alumni of MAS programs, as well as to facilitate student-to-student peer networking.

Participation is voluntary, but we encourage you to join this professional networking community.

BSPH MAS and Certificate in Population Health Management

Additional Public Health Learning Resources

The Mid-Atlantic Regional Public Health Training Center provides links to many of its online learning resources, as well as external resources, databases, and public health organizations. These can be used to supplement learning on a particular topic or provide background material. Many of these resources are available for free via their website.

The Welch Medical Library at Johns Hopkins has many resources related to research, writing, and documentation on its YouTube channel.

The School has a number of research and practice-related seminar series that occur throughout the year and contribute to the intellectual community of the School, for students, staff, and faculty.  The Bloomberg School has a website that provides some additional resources for practitioners as well.

Practitioners can also access dozens of courses from Bloomberg School faculty on Coursera. Practice-focused offerings include courses on topics such as gun violence, food systems, health equity, biostatistics, and epidemiology, among others. 

MAS in Population Health Management Contact Information

MAS Program Advisers

Mark Bittle, DrPH, MBA
Bloomberg Centennial Teaching Professor and Program Co-Director, MAS and Certificate programs in Population Health Management
Email: mbittle1@jhu.edu

David Baker, DrPH, MBA
Associate Professor - Adjunct and Program Co-Director, MAS and Certificate programs in Population Health Management 
Email: dbaker26@jhmi.edu

Megan Priolo, DrPH, MHS
Associate
Email: mmaguir5@jhu.edu

Debra Thompson, DNP, MAS, MSN
Associate
Email: dthomp79@jhu.edu

For Program-wide Issues

Elizabeth F. Topper, PhD, MEd, MPH
Research Professor and Director, Master of Applied Science (MAS) Program Office
Email: etopper2@jhu.edu

Program Requirements

Course location and modality is found on the BSPH website.

The Master of Applied Science in Population Health Management is an interdisciplinary program. The Master of Applied Science (MAS) in Population Health Management provides students the opportunity to learn from experts and develop advanced skills in population health leadership and management, informatics, community health assessment, improvement of health equity among diverse groups, and social and behavioral techniques to engage communities, reduce health disparities, and improve health on a large scale.

Students will complete 50 credits to graduate. The program is designed to be completed in eight academic terms - two academic years (Sept-May). In addition to the coursework, students must complete an Integrative Activity, where newly acquired knowledge and skills are used to create an applicable activity (e.g., a service-learning project that showcases the collective impact on an aspect of public health) – with a final paper that describes the methodology used and the final assessment. While courses have no formal prerequisites, second year courses cannot be taken until first year courses are completed.

If the 2-credit Professional Development Workshop courses (such as Writing for Results) are not included in the required curriculum, students are still welcome to take them, in addition to the required degree courses outlined below. MAS scholarship funds will apply towards these credits. Students should refer to the online course directory (publichealth.jhu.edu/courses) for additional details.

Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP)

The Bloomberg School of Public Health requires students to maintain satisfactory academic progress for the duration of the degree program. For the MAS program, satisfactory academic progress is defined as follows:

Maintaining a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.75 and grades of C or better in all required courses. Grades of P are sufficient in courses that are graded as Pass/Fail. Students falling below this minimum should consult with the MAS Program Office and their Academic Adviser in order to develop a course plan to allow them to raise their GPA above 2.75 as soon as possible in order to return to good academic standing.

Failure to maintain satisfactory academic progress as defined by any of the criteria above may be grounds for dismissal from the program, and financial aid status will be affected. Full details of the School's Satisfactory Academic Policy can be found here.

Program Plan of Study

Students should follow the plan outlined below if they wish to complete the MAS program in two years. This plan will also allow students to maintain minimum credits needed for financial aid eligibility each term and to follow any prerequisite sequencing. Courses can be taken at a slower pace if needed, so long as course prerequisites are met.

Plan of Study Grid

First Year
First Term		Credits
PH.550.860	Academic & Research Ethics at JHSPH
PH.602.631	Essentials of Population Health Management	3
PH.602.651	Principles and Applications of Advanced Payment Models in Population Health Management	3
	Credits	6
Second Term
PH.602.671	Collective Impact: Developing and Leading Community Partnerships to Improve Population Health	3
PH.602.681	Applications in Accountable Care: Assessing Quality and Effectiveness of Population Health initiatives	3
	Credits	6
Third Term
PH.602.731	Population and Consumer Health Informatics	3
PH.600.701	Introduction to Epidemiology	4
	Credits	7
Fourth Term
PH.600.709	Statistical Concepts in Public Health 1	3
PH.602.691	Managing Health Across the Continuum: Contemporary Models and Applications of Care Coordination and Management	3
	Credits	6
Second Year
First Term
PH.602.701	Applied Concepts and Foundations of High Performance for Population Health	3
PH.602.711	Health Behavior: Improving Health Through Health Education/Promotion	3
	Credits	6
Second Term
PH.602.721	Organizing for Public Health: A Systems Approach	2
PH.602.741	Behavioral Economics and Risk: Value-Based Payment Methods and incentives	4
	Credits	6
Third Term
PH.602.751	The Built Environment: Influences and Challenges to Improving Population Health	3
PH.602.761	Value-Based Concepts of Socially-Responsible Leadership	3
	Credits	6
Fourth Term
PH.604.771	Social & Cultural Basis for Community and Primary Health Programs	3
PH.602.880	Population Health Management integrative Activity	4
	Credits	7
	Total Credits	50

Integrative Activity

master of applied science (mas) Integrative Activity: Human Subjects Research and Other Activities

This culminating experience will provide Master of Applied Science students with the opportunity to synthesize lessons learned via the application of concepts and techniques. Please note that individual degree programs may have specific guidelines related to their particular Integrative Activity course including, but not limited to the format, presentation, and composition of the final course deliverable.

As students begin planning the research for their Integrative Activity within the MAS program, they should review the information below and proceed accordingly. Regardless of whether an IRB review is required, all MAS students should apply ethical principles in their interactions with humans and/or their data. Students should follow the BSPH Ethical Code for Student Activities that Involve Human Interactions.

1. As long as the project is limited to the context of the course or courses if components of the Integrative Activity are spread among more than one course, there is no need for IRB approval, even if the project involves human subjects research. These types of student projects are considered learning exercises when there is no plan to disseminate beyond the class, School, or affiliated agency.
2. If students do wish to publish their projects while they are a student, students will need to test to see if they are conducting Human Subjects Research (HSR) which would necessitate IRB approval. Students can test their project for HSR by using the IRB worksheet or consulting the IRB guidance flowchart. Students will need to go to IRB for official/final determination before beginning their research in order to be approved for publication. All student-initiated research projects that students intend to publish must have a preliminary review by the IRB Office to determine whether they are human subjects research requiring IRB oversight, unless: (1) the student is working with a Principal Investigator (PI) from another institution, or (2) the PI is adding the student as an investigator to an existing, IRB-approved study. If students are using human subjects data, they must obtain a determination from the BSPH IRB. If students are collecting primary new data, they must complete the IRB Office Determination Request Form for Primary Data Collection or if the student is using existing data, complete the IRB Office Determination Request Form for Secondary Data Analysis in collaboration with their adviser and submit it to the BSPH IRB Office email address bsph.irboffice@jhu.edu. Students should be sure to include their adviser in their email submission.
3. If students do not intend to publish their project while a student, IRB approval will not be required. However, if students would be interested in publishing it after graduating from JHU, they should note that the project must meet the ethical standards of their institution and that many institutions will not allow students to present/publish human subjects research without having prior IRB approval. For this reason, we strongly recommend that students consult their organization now if they think that they may wish to publish in the future.

Program Policies

For a full list of program policies, please visit the MAS in Population Health Management Curriculum page where students can find our handbook.

PROGRAM COMPETENCIES

The Master of Applied Science in Population Health Management is an interdisciplinary program. The Master of Applied Science (MAS) in Population Health Management provides students the opportunity to learn from experts and develop advanced skills in population health leadership and management, informatics, community health assessment, improvement of health equity among diverse groups, and social and behavioral techniques to engage communities, reduce health disparities, and improve health on a large scale.

According to the requirements of the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH), all BSPH degree students must be grounded in foundational public health knowledge. Please view the list of specific CEPH requirements by degree type.

Core competencies and learning objectives central to the program include:

1. Leadership in Population Health Management:
   1. Develop the ability to lead and navigate complex population health initiatives, demonstrating effective decision-making, strategic planning, and organizational management skills.
   2. Cultivate leadership competencies to inspire and mobilize interdisciplinary teams toward achieving population health goals.
2. Communication Strategies in Population Health:
   1. Enhance communication skills to convey complex population health concepts and strategies to diverse stakeholders, including community members, healthcare professionals, policymakers, and other relevant parties.
3. Data Analysis and Synthesis for Population Health:
   1. Acquire advanced analytical skills to assess and interpret population health data, employing quantitative and qualitative methodologies to derive actionable insights.
   2. Integrate data from various sources to inform evidence-based decision-making and design targeted interventions to address population health challenges.
4. Health Equity and Social Determinants of Health:
   1. Explore the social determinants of health and disparities that impact population health outcomes and develop strategies to address health inequities within diverse communities.
   2. Analyze the intersectionality of numerous factors, such as race, socioeconomic status, and geography, in shaping health disparities and implement policies that promote health equity.
5. Collaborative Leadership and Interdisciplinary Teamwork:
   1. Foster collaboration among diverse stakeholders, including healthcare professionals, community organizations, and policymakers, to create synergies and optimize resources for effective population health management.
   2. Demonstrate the ability to work in interdisciplinary teams, fostering a collaborative culture that values diverse perspectives and expertise.
6. Policy Development and Advocacy:
   1. Gain expertise in policy development and advocacy strategies to influence public health policies, regulations, and initiatives that positively impact population health at the local, regional, and national levels.
7. Implementation Science in Population Health Management:
   1. Apply principles of implementation science to effectively translate evidence-based population health interventions into practice, ensuring successful implementation and sustainable outcomes.
8. Evaluation and Continuous Improvement in Population Health Programs:
   1. Develop skills in designing and conducting evaluations of population health programs, using performance metrics and feedback to continuously improve program effectiveness and efficiency.