International Health, MSPH

Master of Science in Public Health (MSPH) Department of International Health

Overview

The  Master of Science in Public Health degree in International Health is a STEM-designated, professional degree program. Each student is admitted into one of the four concentrations: Global Disease Epidemiology and Control, Health Systems, Human Nutrition, or Social and Behavioral Interventions.

An academic adviser is assigned from the list of Advising Faculty in the student's program area. The Concentration Director provides general guidance and supervision over all students in each program area. 

Concentrations

GLOBAL DISEASE EPIDEMIOLOGY AND CONTROL

Overall Program Goal

This program provides training for public health practitioners who will use epidemiologic, immunologic and/or laboratory and statistical methods to design, implement and/or evaluate disease control interventions for diseases of public health importance to under-served populations. Graduates will have a fundamental understanding of the pathogenesis, epidemiology, and control measures applicable to diseases of public health importance in disadvantaged populations. Interventions to be studied will be primarily biomedical (e.g. therapeutic or prophylactic drugs, vaccines, or environmental modifications), although there may be a behavioral component to the effective implementation of such interventions. 

Special strengths of the program are infectious disease epidemiology (including emerging infections), vaccinology, and micronutrients. Students have the opportunity to learn from leading experts in vaccine science and policy and may take courses to complete a certificate in this area. Students can acquire a broad understanding of the methods, skills, and tools needed to design, conduct, and analyze community and clinical trials and/or laboratory-based investigations. Students will be able to provide technical assistance to public health researchers and public health managers in the design, implementation, and evaluation of programs to address public health problems facing underserved populations in the US and abroad.

Requirements for Admission

The concentration in Global Disease Epidemiology and Control (GDEC) Program includes required courses that are intensively quantitative requiring strong quantitative skills and aptitudes. Students will learn advanced skills in epidemiology and data analysis to address disease control and prevention.  Successful candidates demonstrate skills and aptitude in quantitative subjects either through a (1) high score in their quantitative GRE, and (2) either successful courses in calculus, statistics or related highly quantitative subjects or (3) demonstrated work experience and successful performance in quantitative sciences. GRE scores are required.

Advising Faculty

For a list of current advising faculty, please visit the Global Disease Epidemiology and Control Faculty webpage.

HEALTH SYSTEMS 

Overall Program Goal

Graduates of the Health Systems MSPH program will be prepared to take on leadership and management roles in health policy and planning, health financing and management, and monitoring and evaluation of health programs. Graduates will contribute to strengthening health systems through the implementation of equitable and cost-effective interventions for improving access, quality, and efficiency of health services for underserved populations. A health-related practicum experience is an important component of this degree program. 

Requirements for Admission 

Students must have a degree in biological or health sciences, social sciences, or management. Some prior international or health systems experience is highly desirable. GRE scores are required.

advising Faculty

For a list of current advising faculty, please visit the Health Systems Faculty webpage.

HUMAN NUTRITION

Educational Objectives

The MSPH program in Human Nutrition is designed to train professionals to focus on understanding and solving public health problems in food and nutrition across a diverse societal landscape. The MSPH degree in Human Nutrition prepares students to assume professional, technical, and management positions within public health nutrition programs or government, international or nongovernmental agencies, universities, hospitals, and private industry. The program also offers a broad public health nutrition component that complements dietetics skills acquired in the combined MSPH-Dietitian program (see below). The MSPH program also prepares students with a foundation of knowledge and skills for carrying out subsequent doctoral studies and research in the field of human nutrition or training in medicine.

Overall Program Goal

There are four overarching academic competencies that students are expected to master during the course of their master's degree program. Students should:

• Demonstrate knowledge of public health nutrition problems and characterize these problems in terms of measurable indicators.
• Identify nutrition problems of public health importance; analyze and synthesize relevant data; and develop and implement prevention, control, and evaluation plans.
• Participate in a field, laboratory, or clinical experience related to nutrition research or programs from conception of ideas through design, management, monitoring, data collection, and analysis.
• Communicate through written reports, oral presentations, and other media nutrition information of high technical quality and program or policy relevance.

Requirements for Admission 

The program seeks to attract and train future experts in public health nutrition across a range of professional interests and backgrounds. Entry into the Master of Science in Public Health (MSPH) program in Human Nutrition requires, at a minimum, a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent, preferably in nutrition, biology, health or social sciences, public health, health, economics, or health policy. GRE scores are required.

Program Requirements

Students will be expected to enroll each term, satisfy the educational requirements, successfully complete a practicum experience and write a capstone. Students must also pass a written comprehensive exam. A minimum of 16 total credits of coursework per term is required. Of these, approximately 64 credits are associated with directed coursework usually completed in the first year, a minimum of 28 credits are associated with a practicum experience, and a minimum of 4 credits with a capstone usually completed during the second year.

Students are required to take specific courses in each of the four core content areas in order to develop specific competencies: Nutrition and Health, Biochemistry and Metabolism, Research Methods, and Professional Skills. Approximately 53-course credits are associated with these core content areas common to all MSPH students. MSPH-Dietitian students are required to take an additional 12 credits of required coursework. Within these required courses, all students must complete coursework in environmental health and management sciences. To complete the remainder of their coursework requirements, students will choose elective coursework and special studies in conjunction with their adviser, depending on their unique career goals.

Nutrition Practicum

MSPH candidates complete a practicum for a minimum of 2 terms. The student, faculty adviser, and other faculty within the department or school arrange this experience, as necessary. The practicum complements and reinforces the didactic portion of the MSPH program. It provides students with an opportunity to apply the knowledge gained during the first year to develop field, laboratory, or clinical skills related to nutrition research or programs according to individually designed learning objectives and to work as part of a team in an applied research or practice project. Students are placed in a variety of professional settings, which may include: government, non-government organizations (NGOs), university projects, and multi-lateral, private, and/or the for-profit sector. Practicum locations exist in the US and in most regions of the world. Students are often placed in organizations such as WHO, the World Bank, UNICEF, Helen Keller International, USDA, Feeding America, and the Center for Livable Future. Funding or scholarship opportunities for the practicum experience include funding from the Center for Global Health at JHU, Sight and Life, and the Borlaug Foundation. In addition to providing students with a real-world opportunity to apply their knowledge, the practicum experience helps facilitate subsequent career opportunities.

Advising faculty

For a list of current advising faculty, please visit the Human Nutrition Faculty webpage.

SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS 

Overall Program Goal

The program offers multidisciplinary training for researchers and public health practitioners who wish to use the social sciences in the design, implementation, and evaluation of public health programs, particularly community-based interventions. The program provides students with exposure to applied theory and methods from the fields of social psychology and medical anthropology and sociology. The combined use of qualitative and quantitative methods is a defining characteristic of the program.

Students may choose to specialize in the development, implementation, and evaluation of public health programs related to a given area of interest such as HIV/AIDS, maternal and child health, malaria prevention, or a host of other topical areas relevant to the enhancement of health in lower income settings. Upon completion of the program, students will be able to provide technical assistance in assessing and responding to the socio-cultural context surrounding public health interventions and in the development, implementation, and evaluation of social and behavioral change programs to improve the health of underserved communities.

The program addresses the following educational objectives:

The Evidence Base for International Health: Identify, define, and address major global health problems of underserved populations in lower-income contexts, using appropriate indicators and current best practices.

• International Health: Examine conditions faced by disadvantaged populations in lower-income contexts, principles of health equity, and social justice and apply a range of tools to achieve better health outcomes.
• Public Health Biology: Explain biologic mechanisms and/or clinical manifestations of disease(s) impacting public health.
• Environmental Health: Discuss environmental influences on public health and appropriate risk assessment and public health response options.

Epidemiology and Biostatistics: Develop a solid foundation in epidemiologic and statistical research and evaluation skills applicable to public health assessment and action.

• Identify and utilize epidemiologic and biostatistics tools relevant to assessing the scope of a public health problem or the impact of public health action on a given condition.

Social and Behavioral Interventions: Develop the theoretical and methodological tools to gain an understanding of the socio-cultural context surrounding public health in lower-income contexts and to assist in the development, implementation, and evaluation of locally appropriate social and behavioral change programs.

• Theory and Practice: Apply relevant theories and concepts drawn from anthropology, sociology, and psychology to design effective theory-driven social and behavioral interventions to improve the health and well-being of underserved communities.
• Qualitative Methods: Develop an understanding of theoretical paradigms and perspectives informing ethnography and qualitative research and use appropriate and rigorous qualitative research methods to understand the socio-cultural context of health and inform public health action.
• Formative Research and Human Centered Design: Conduct multi-method formative research to develop locally appropriate social and behavioral interventions to improve health, including development of appropriate communication interventions in support of those strategies.

Management and Leadership: Apply management and leadership techniques to develop, implement and evaluate health programs including organizational and financial best practices.

Evaluation: Propose, conduct, or assess process and outcome evaluations of social and behavioral interventions in global health

Professional Communication and Interprofessional Performance: Produce written reports of programmatic findings and/or research and communicate them via oral presentations, posters, briefs, or other official documents, intended for public health professionals and/or policymakers in audience-appropriate formats; perform effectively on interprofessional teams with local community organizations and stakeholders over the course of a project of mutual interest.

Requirements for Admission

Applicants into the program must have a bachelor's degree in the health or social sciences. Some prior international or health experience is highly desirable. GRE scores are required.

Advising Faculty

For a list of current advising faculty, please visit the Social and Behavioral Interventions Faculty webpage.

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Bachelor's/MSPH

For Public Health Majors at JHU Krieger School of Arts and Sciences

The Department of International Health offers early graduate school admission to JHU seniors majoring in Public Health Studies. This transition program serves as a mode of entry into the following International Health MSPH degree programs:

• MSPH in Global Disease Epidemiology and Control
• MSPH in Health Systems
• MSPH in Social and Behavioral Interventions

Students in this program will receive co-advising from both Schools as part of this unique experience. Admitted students must complete the BA degree before formally enrolling in the degree program.

Once students complete the BA degree, admitted students will be automatically enrolled in the MSPH degree at BSPH starting that fall. The MSPH degree consists of the following:

• One full year of coursework
• Comprehensive written exam (for some programs)
• Practicum experience in the second year (minimum of 4 months, maximum of 11 months full-time) where students apply all their skills in a field setting
  • Students may pursue practicum opportunities domestically or internationally
• Capstone culminating essay

Program Prerequisites

Undergraduate students applying must have completed the following coursework and have received a B or higher on each of the following:

• AS 280.380 Global Health Principles and Practice
• AS 280.345 Public Health Biostatistics or EN 553.311 Probability and Statistics for the Biological Sciences and Engineering
• AS 280.350 Fundamentals of Epidemiology
• Maintain a GPA of 3.3 at the end of both junior and senior years

How to Apply

• Online SOPHAS Express Application.
• Unofficial JHU transcripts when applying (official transcript is required before starting the MSPH degree)
• Three letters of recommendation
• Current resume or curriculum vitae
• Statement of purpose
• Completion of all prerequisite courses (B or higher)
• GRE score is require only if cumulative GPA is less than 3.3 at the time of application

If you have questions please email Elisabeth Simmons (esimmons@jhu.edu).

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Concurrent Degree Options

For admitted doctoral students at the Bloomberg School of Public Health

Students admitted to a PhD program in other departments at the Bloomberg School of Public Health have the opportunity to pursue an MSPH Degree in International Health concurrently with their doctoral program. Students must have been accepted into one of the doctoral programs at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and have approval from their department in order to apply for the MSPH in International Health in one of the following concentration areas: 

• Global Disease Epidemiology and Control
• Health Systems
• Human Nutrition
• Social and Behavioral Interventions

Contact Us

Students interested in pursuing this concurrent degree option should contact Cristina Salazar (csalazar@jhu.edu) or Elisabeth Simmons (esimmons@jhu.edu) for more information.

MSPH Requirements 

Course location and modality is found on the BSPH website.

Program Concentration Specific Requirements 

Global Disease Epidemiology and Control 

Coursework Requirements

All required courses must be taken for a letter grade except for courses only offered for pass/fail.

Students may choose Epidemiology Option 3 with guidance and approval from their academic adviser AND the GDEC MSPH Concentration Directors. Please review the guidance from the Epidemiology Department provided during GDEC orientation to decide which Epi course option best fits. For additional information regarding policies and requirements, please view our departmental Academic Guide published August of each academic year.  

Updates regarding course availability can be found on the BSPH Course Directory System. 

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Required Courses
General Degree Requirements
PH.220.600	International Travel Preparation, Safety, & Wellness	1
PH.220.841	International Health Masters Independent Goals Analysis (International Health Masters Individual Goals Analysis)	1
PH.223.801	Global Disease Epidemiology and Control Program Seminar 1	1
PH.223.802	Global Disease Epidemiology and Control Program Seminar 2	1
PH.223.803	Global Disease Epidemiology and Control Program Seminar 3	1
PH.550.860	Academic & Research Ethics at JHSPH
Epidemiology
PH.340.751	Epidemiologic Methods 1	5
PH.340.752	Epidemiologic Methods 2	5
Biostatistics
PH.140.621	Statistical Methods in Public Health I	4
PH.140.622	Statistical Methods in Public Health II	4
PH.140.623	Statistical Methods in Public Health III	4
PH.140.624	Statistical Methods in Public Health IV	4
International Health
PH.220.601	Foundations of International Health	4
PH.223.680	Global Disease Control Programs and Policies	4
Infectious Disease (choose one)
PH.223.663	Infectious Diseases and Child Survival	3
PH.223.682	Clinical and Epidemiologic Aspects of Tropical Diseases	4
Study Design and Implementation (choose one)
PH.223.664	Design and Conduct of Community Trials	4
PH.221.645	Large-scale Effectiveness Evaluations of Health Programs	4
PH.223.705	Good Clinical Practice: A Vaccine Trials Perspective	4
Vaccines Requirement
PH.223.662	Vaccine Development and Application	4
Environmental Health Requirement
PH.180.602	Environment and Health in Low and Middle income Countries	2
Management Sciences Requirement
PH.221.602	Applications in Managing Health Organizations in Low and Middle income Countries	3
Social and Behavioral Sciences - Qualitative Methods Requirement
PH.550.604	Qualitative Reasoning in Public Health	2
Social and Behavioral Sciences - Design Implementation
PH.224.689	Health Behavior Change At the Individual, Household and Community Levels	4
Leadership and Interprofessional Practice Requirement
PH.552.625	Building Collaborations Across Sectors to Improve Population Health	0.5
PH.552.623	Principles of Negotiation and Mediation for Public Health Professionals	0.5
PH.552.624	Applications of Negotiation and Mediation for Public Health Professionals	0.5
Capstone and Practicum Requirements (Year 2 only)
PH.223.810	Global Disease Epidemiology and Control Practicum (Students must complete a minimum of 28 credits of practicum)	28
PH.223.850	Msph Capstone Global Disease Epidemiology and Control (students must complete a minimum of 4 credits of capstone)	4
Recommended Courses based on student feedback and topic areas
International Health and Diseases
PH.221.627	Issues in the Reduction of Maternal and Neonatal Mortality in Low income Countries	4
Infectious Disease
PH.340.612	Epidemiologic Basis for Tuberculosis Control	2
PH.340.646	Epidemiology and Public Health Impact of HIV and AIDS	4
PH.340.627	Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases	4
PH.340.609	Concepts and Methods in Infectious Disease Epidemiology	4
PH.340.677	Infectious Disease Dynamics: Theoretical and Computational Approaches	4
Chronic Disease
PH.223.667	Chronic Diseases in Low and Middle income Countries: Prevalence and Epidemiology	4
Nutrition
PH.222.641	Principles of Human Nutrition in Public Health	4
PH.222.647	Nutrition Epidemiology	3
PH.222.649	International Nutrition	3
Population/Program Evaluation
PH.221.641	Measurement Methods in Humanitarian Emergencies	2
PH.380.600	Principles of Population Change	4
PH.380.603	Demographic Methods for Public Health	4
PH.223.866	Special Topics in Program Evaluation in International Health	1
PH.380.611	Fundamentals of Program Evaluation	4
PH.223.632	Methods for Planning and Implementing Evaluations of Large-Scale Health Programs in Low and Middle income Countries	4
Research Ethics
PH.306.665	Research Ethics and integrity	3
PH.306.655	Ethical Issues in Public Health	3
Vaccines
PH.223.867	Special Topics in Vaccine Science	1
PH.223.689	Biologic Basis of Vaccine Development	3
Data Management/Survey Design
PH.340.696	Spatial Analysis I: ArcGIS	4
PH.140.630	Introduction to Data Management	3
PH.340.697	Spatial Analysis II: Spatial Data Technologies	3
PH.340.717	Health Survey Research Methods	4
PH.223.600	Application of Spatial Analysis Tools to Inform Decision-Making in Lmics	4
PH.380.711	Issues in Survey Research Design	3
PH.140.632	Introduction to the SAS Statistical Package	3
Epidemiology Methods
PH.340.653	Epidemiologic Inference in Outbreak Investigations	3
PH.340.753	Epidemiologic Methods 3	5
PH.340.682	Pharmacoepidemiology Methods	3
Qualitative Methods
PH.224.690	Qualitative Research Theory and Methods	3
PH.224.691	Qualitative Data Analysis	3
Environmental Health
PH.180.611	The Global Environment, Climate Change, and Public Health	4
PH.182.626	Water and Sanitation in Low-Income Communities	2
PH.182.640	Food- and Water- Borne Diseases	3
Management Sciences
PH.221.722	Quality Assurance Management Methods for Developing Countries	4
PH.312.603	Fundamentals of Budgeting and Financial Management	3
PH.317.600	Introduction to the Risk Sciences and Public Policy	4
PH.305.607	Public Health Practice	4
PH.221.610	Pharmaceutical and Supply Chain Management: Realities from the Field	3
Social and Behavioral Sciences
PH.221.688	Social and Behavioral Foundations of Primary Health Care	4
PH.410.620	Program Planning for Health Behavior Change	3
PH.410.650	Introduction to Persuasive Communications: Theories and Practice	4
PH.410.651	Health Literacy: Challenges and Strategies for Effective Communication	3
PH.410.630	Implementation and Sustainability of Community-Based Health Programs	3
Crisis & Response
PH.300.650	Crisis and Response in Public Health Policy and Practice	3
Injury
PH.221.631	Evaluation Methods for Injury Interventions	3
PH.552.603	The Role of Qualitative Methods and Science in Describing and Assessing a Population's Health	0.5

plan of study example

Plan of Study Grid

First Year
First Term		Credits
PH.140.621	Statistical Methods in Public Health I	4
PH.220.601	Foundations of International Health	4
PH.220.841	International Health Masters Independent Goals Analysis (International Health Masters Individual Goals Analysis)	1
PH.221.602	Applications in Managing Health Organizations in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.223.801	Global Disease Epidemiology and Control Program Seminar 1	1
PH.340.751	Epidemiologic Methods 1	5
PH.550.860	Academic & Research Ethics at JHSPH
	Credits	18
Second Term
PH.140.622	Statistical Methods in Public Health II	4
PH.223.662	Vaccine Development and Application	4
PH.223.802	Global Disease Epidemiology and Control Program Seminar 2	1
PH.224.689	Health Behavior Change At the Individual, Household and Community Levels	4
PH.340.752	Epidemiologic Methods 2	5
	Credits	18
Third Term
PH.140.623	Statistical Methods in Public Health III	4
PH.180.602	Environment and Health in Low and Middle income Countries	2
PH.223.687	Vaccine Policy Issues	3
PH.223.803	Global Disease Epidemiology and Control Program Seminar 3	1
PH.552.623	Principles of Negotiation and Mediation for Public Health Professionals	0.5
PH.552.624	Applications of Negotiation and Mediation for Public Health Professionals	0.5
PH.552.625	Building Collaborations Across Sectors to Improve Population Health	0.5
	Credits	11.5
Fourth Term
PH.140.624	Statistical Methods in Public Health IV	4
PH.223.680	Global Disease Control Programs and Policies	4
	Credits	8
	Total Credits	55.5

Add in selections from the following to the Plan of Study Example:

• International Travel Preparation, Safety and Wellness

• Infectious Disease

• Applied Epidemiology/Randomized Trials

• Social and Behavioral Sciences

• Leadership and Interprofessional Practice

Health Systems

Coursework Requirements

All required courses must be taken for a letter grade with the exception of courses only offered for pass/fail. For additional information regarding policies and requirements, please view our departmental Academic Guide published August of each academic year. Updates regarding course availability can be found on the BSPH Course Directory System. 

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Year 1
General Degree Requirements
PH.220.600	International Travel Preparation, Safety, & Wellness	1
PH.220.601	Foundations of International Health	4
PH.220.841	International Health Masters Independent Goals Analysis	1
PH.550.860	Academic & Research Ethics at JHSPH
Biostatistics Requirement
PH.140.621	Statistical Methods in Public Health I	4
PH.140.622	Statistical Methods in Public Health II	4
PH.140.623	Statistical Methods in Public Health III	4
Epidemiology Requirement
PH.340.721	Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health I	5
Health Systems Program Requirements
PH.221.602	Applications in Managing Health Organizations in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.221.620	Applying Summary Measures of Population Health to Improve Health Systems	3
PH.221.638	Health Systems Research and Evaluation in Developing Countries	4
PH.221.646	Health Systems in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.221.650	Health Policy Analysis in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.221.661	Project Development for Primary Health Care in Developing Countries	4
PH.221.801	Health Systems Program Seminar I	1
PH.221.802	Health Systems Graduate Seminar 2	1
PH.221.803	Health Systems Graduate Seminar 3	1
PH.221.804	Health Systems Graduate Seminar 4	1
Qualitative Research Requirement (choose one)
PH.224.690	Qualitative Research Theory and Methods	3
PH.550.604	Qualitative Reasoning in Public Health	2
Capstone and Practicum Requirement (Year 2 only)
PH.221.810	Health Systems Practicum (Students must complete a minimum of 28 credits of practicum )	28
PH.221.850	Msph Capstone Health Systems (students must complete a minimum of 4 credits of capstone)	2 - 16

Health Systems Program Electives: Twelve (12) additional credits should be selected from the following list of elective courses. Courses below are organized under specific headings relevant to our program to facilitate selection, thus some courses may appear under more than one heading. These courses must be taken for a letter grade with the exception of courses only offered pass/fail. 

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Health Systems Electives
Digital Health
PH.223.621	Design and Implementation of Global Digital Health interventions	3
PH.223.622	Design and Implementation of Global Digital Health Interventions II	3
PH.223.626	Special Topics in Global Digital Health	1
Food Systems and Food Security
PH.180.620	Introduction to Food Systems and Public Health	4
PH.222.665	Planning for Food Systems and Public Health	3
Gender and Health
PH.221.621	Gender and Health: Foundational Theories and Applications	3
PH.221.701	Applications to Gender Analysis Within Health Research and Interventions	2
Health Economics
PH.221.617	Behavioral Economics in Health Decisions	2
PH.221.619	Introduction to Global Health Economics	3
PH.221.651	Econometrics I	4
PH.221.662	Health, Equity, and Economic Development	3
PH.221.663	Globalization and Health: Framework for Analysis	3
PH.313.601	Economic Evaluation I	3
PH.313.602	Economic Evaluation II	3
PH.313.603	Economic Evaluation III	3
PH.313.643	Health Economics	3
PH.313.644	Intermediate Health Economics	3
Health Policy and Politics
PH.221.614	International Political Science for Ph Practitioners	2
PH.223.687	Vaccine Policy Issues	3
PH.300.600	Introduction to Health Policy	4
PH.300.712	Formulating Policy: Strategies and Systems of Policymaking in the 21st Century	3
PH.300.713	Research and Evaluation Methods for Health Policy	3
PH.301.645	Health Advocacy	3
PH.308.610	The Political Economy of Social inequalities and Its Consequences for Health and Quality of Life	3
PH.380.771	Understanding and Changing International Reproductive Health Policy	3
Health Systems Strengthening
PH.221.637	Health Information Systems	3
PH.221.652	Financing Health Systems for Universal Health Coverage	3
PH.312.633	Health Management Information Systems	3
Humanitarian Health
PH.221.611	Food Security and Nutrition in Humanitarian Emergencies	2
PH.221.613	Introduction to Humanitarian Emergencies	3
PH.221.639	Health Care in Humanitarian Emergencies	3
PH.221.641	Measurement Methods in Humanitarian Emergencies	2
PH.221.642	Mental Health Aspects of Disaster: Public Health Preparedness and Response	2
PH.221.643	Armed Conflict and Health	2
PH.380.750	Migration and Health: Concepts, Rates, and Relationships	3
Management and Leadership
PH.312.603	Fundamentals of Budgeting and Financial Management	3
PH.312.604	Quantitative Tools for Managers	3
PH.312.617	Fundamentals of Financial Accounting	3
PH.312.621	Strategic Planning	3
PH.410.622	Strategic Leadership Principles and Tools for Health System Transformation in Developing Countries	4
PH.608.771	Non-Governmental Organizations and the Administration of Global Health Programs	3
Monitoring and Evaluation Methods
PH.221.645	Large-scale Effectiveness Evaluations of Health Programs	4
PH.223.632	Methods for Planning and Implementing Evaluations of Large-Scale Health Programs in Low and Middle income Countries	4
PH.380.611	Fundamentals of Program Evaluation	4
PH.380.612	Applications in Program Monitoring and Evaluation	4
Non-Communicable Disease and Injuries
PH.221.612	Confronting the Burden of Injuries: A Global Perspective	3
PH.221.653	Hospital-Based Injury/Trauma Surveillance in Low- and Middle-income Countries	3
Primary Health Care, Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child, and Adolescent Health Topics
PH.221.627	Issues in the Reduction of Maternal and Neonatal Mortality in Low income Countries	4
PH.221.635	Global Advances in Community-Oriented Primary Health Care	3
PH.221.688	Social and Behavioral Foundations of Primary Health Care	4
PH.224.689	Health Behavior Change At the Individual, Household and Community Levels	4
Program Design and Implementation
PH.221.654	Systems Thinking in Public Health: Applications of Key Methods and Approaches	3
PH.221.722	Quality Assurance Management Methods for Developing Countries	4
PH.410.620	Program Planning for Health Behavior Change	3
Research Methods
Advanced Qualitative Methods
PH.224.691	Qualitative Data Analysis	3
PH.224.692	Methods in Formative Research and Human Centered Design for Intervention Development	4
PH.410.631	Introduction to Community-Based Participatory Research: Principles and Methods	3
PH.410.710	Concepts in Qualitative Research for Social and Behavioral Sciences	3
Advanced Statistical Methods
PH.140.624	Statistical Methods in Public Health IV	4
PH.140.655	Analysis of Multilevel and Longitudinal Data	4
PH.140.656	Multilevel and Longitudinal Models - Data Analysis Workshop	4
PH.140.698	Spatial Analysis III: Spatial Statistics	4
PH.140.699	Spatial Analysis IV: Spatial Design and Application	3
PH.330.657	Statistics for Psychosocial Research: Measurement	4
PH.340.696	Spatial Analysis I: ArcGIS	4
PH.340.697	Spatial Analysis II: Spatial Data Technologies	3
PH.340.728	Advanced Methods for Design and Analysis of Cohort Studies	5
Health Services Research Methods
PH.140.664	Causal Inference in Medicine and Public Health I	4
PH.340.717	Health Survey Research Methods	4
PH.380.711	Issues in Survey Research Design	3
PH.380.712	Methods in Analysis of Large Population Surveys	3
Other Advanced Research Methods
PH.223.664	Design and Conduct of Community Trials	4
PH.340.606	Methods for Conducting Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses	4
PH.340.722	Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health II	4
PH.410.635	Applications of innovative Methods in Local and Global Health Equity Research	4
PH.550.601	Implementation Research and Practice	3
Other Key Topics
PH.180.607	Climate Change and Public Health	3
PH.180.611	The Global Environment, Climate Change, and Public Health	4
PH.182.626	Water and Sanitation in Low-Income Communities	2
PH.185.600	One Health Tools to Promote and Evaluate Healthy and Sustainable Communities	3
PH.221.605	History of International Health and Development	2
PH.221.616	Ethics and Global Public Health Practice	2
PH.221.624	Urban Health in Developing Countries	3
PH.224.694	Mental Health Intervention Programming in Low and Middle-Income Countries	3

Plan of Study Example

Plan of Study Grid

First Year
First Term		Credits
PH.140.621	Statistical Methods in Public Health I	4
PH.220.601	Foundations of International Health	4
PH.220.841	International Health Masters Independent Goals Analysis (International Health Masters Individual Goals Analysis)	1
PH.221.602	Applications in Managing Health Organizations in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.221.801	Health Systems Program Seminar I	1
PH.340.721	Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health I	5
PH.550.604	Qualitative Reasoning in Public Health	2
PH.550.860	Academic & Research Ethics at JHSPH
	Credits	20
Second Term
PH.140.622	Statistical Methods in Public Health II	4
PH.220.600	International Travel Preparation, Safety, & Wellness	1
PH.221.646	Health Systems in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.221.802	Health Systems Graduate Seminar 2	1
PH.221.627	Issues in the Reduction of Maternal and Neonatal Mortality in Low income Countries	4
PH.221.645	Large-scale Effectiveness Evaluations of Health Programs	4
	Credits	17
Third Term
PH.140.623	Statistical Methods in Public Health III	4
PH.221.638	Health Systems Research and Evaluation in Developing Countries	4
PH.221.650	Health Policy Analysis in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.221.803	Health Systems Graduate Seminar 3	1
PH.223.632	Methods for Planning and Implementing Evaluations of Large-Scale Health Programs in Low and Middle income Countries	4
	Credits	16
Fourth Term
PH.221.620	Applying Summary Measures of Population Health to Improve Health Systems	3
PH.221.661	Project Development for Primary Health Care in Developing Countries	4
PH.221.804	Health Systems Graduate Seminar 4	1
PH.221.624	Urban Health in Developing Countries	3
PH.380.612	Applications in Program Monitoring and Evaluation	4
	Credits	15
	Total Credits	68

Human Nutrition 

Coursework Requirements

All required courses must be taken for a letter grade with the exception of courses only offered for pass/fail. For additional information regarding policies and requirements, please view our departmental Academic Guide published August of each academic year. Updates regarding course availability can be found on the BSPH Course Directory System. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: Courses taken to meet one group of requirements may NOT be used to meet another group of requirements

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Required Courses
General Degree Requirements
PH.220.600	International Travel Preparation, Safety, & Wellness	1
PH.220.841	International Health Masters Independent Goals Analysis (International Health Masters Individual Goals Analysis)	1
PH.222.860	Graduate Nutrition Seminar	1
PH.550.860	Academic & Research Ethics at JHSPH
PH.552.626	Systems Thinking: Concepts and Methods	0.5
Biostatistics Requirement (choose one of the following series for a total of 16 credits)
PH.140.621	Statistical Methods in Public Health I	4
PH.140.622	Statistical Methods in Public Health II	4
PH.140.623	Statistical Methods in Public Health III	4
PH.140.624	Statistical Methods in Public Health IV	4
OR
PH.140.651	Methods in Biostatistics I	4
PH.140.652	Methods in Biostatistics II	4
PH.140.653	Methods in Biostatistics III	4
PH.140.654	Methods in Biostatistics IV	4
Epidemiology Requirement
PH.340.721	Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health I	5
Nutrition and Health
PH.222.641	Principles of Human Nutrition in Public Health	4
PH.222.642	Assessment of Nutritional Status	3
PH.222.644	Nutrient Metabolism	3
PH.222.654	Food, Culture, and Nutrition	4
PH.222.655	Nutrition and Life Stages	3
PH.222.657	Food and Nutrition Policy	2
PH.222.658	Critical Thinking in Nutrition	1
Environmental Health (choose one option)
Option 1: Must take both courses
PH.187.610	Public Health Toxicology (must be taken in conjuncture with another Environmental Health course listed)	4
PH.552.612	Essentials of One Health	0.5
Option 2: Choose one of the courses below
PH.180.601	Environmental Health	5
PH.180.602	Environment and Health in Low and Middle income Countries	2
PH.180.611	The Global Environment, Climate Change, and Public Health	4
PH.182.640	Food- and Water- Borne Diseases	3
Budgeting (choose one of the following)
PH.552.621	Basic Resources Management for Public Health	1
PH.552.622	Creating, Implementing and Monitoring Budgets for Projects and Programs	1
Management Sciences (choose one of the following) The courses not chosen can be used to satisfy the elective requirement
PH.221.602	Applications in Managing Health Organizations in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.312.600	Managing Health Services Organizations (This course also fulfills the budget requirement )	4
PH.312.601	Fundamentals of Management for Health Care Organizations	3
PH.312.655	Organizational Behavior and Management	2
PH.410.622	Strategic Leadership Principles and Tools for Health System Transformation in Developing Countries	4
Leadership and Interprofessional Practice
PH.552.623	Principles of Negotiation and Mediation for Public Health Professionals	0.5
PH.552.624	Applications of Negotiation and Mediation for Public Health Professionals	0.5
PH.552.625	Building Collaborations Across Sectors to Improve Population Health	0.5
Capstone and Practicum Requirement (Year 2 only)
PH.222.810	Human Nutrition Practicum (Students must complete a minimum of 28 credits of practicum )	28
PH.222.850	Msph Capstone Human Nutrition (students must complete a minimum of 4 credits of capstone)	4
Recommended Electives: 18-23 Credits
Food Systems and Production
PH.180.606	Case Studies in Food Production and Public Health	4
PH.180.620	Introduction to Food Systems and Public Health	4
PH.180.635	Seafood and Public Health: Global Trade, Nutrition and the Environment	3
PH.180.655	Baltimore Food Systems: A Case Study of Urban Food Environments	4
Nutrition
PH.221.611	Food Security and Nutrition in Humanitarian Emergencies	2
PH.222.630	Nutrition, Infection and Immunity	3
PH.222.647	Nutrition Epidemiology	3
PH.222.649	International Nutrition	3
PH.222.652	Nutrition in Disease Treatment and Prevention	3
PH.222.661	Designing Healthy Diets	2
PH.222.664	Food insecurity and nutrition: Partnering with community organizations to make change	2
PH.222.665	Planning for Food Systems and Public Health	3
PH.222.671	Developing Skills in Clinical Nutrition I: Medical Terminology & Laboratory Value Assessment	0.5
PH.222.672	Developing Skills in Clinical Nutrition II: The Nutrition Care Process (NCP) and Nutrition Focused Physical Exam (NFPE)	0.5
PH.222.673	Developing Skills in Clinical Nutrition III: Nutritional Counseling Across the Life Span	1
PH.222.674	Developing Skills in Clinical Nutrition IV: Expanded Studies	1
PH.340.644	Epidemiology of Diabetes and Obesity	2
Research Methods
PH.221.660	Systems Science in Public Health: Basic Modeling and Simulation Methods	3
PH.223.664	Design and Conduct of Community Trials	4
PH.224.689	Health Behavior Change At the Individual, Household and Community Levels	4
PH.224.690	Qualitative Research Theory and Methods	3
PH.224.691	Qualitative Data Analysis	3
PH.340.717	Health Survey Research Methods	4
PH.340.722	Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health II	4
PH.410.690	Ethnographic Fieldwork	3
International Health and Disease
PH.220.601	Foundations of International Health	4
PH.221.627	Issues in the Reduction of Maternal and Neonatal Mortality in Low income Countries	4
PH.223.663	Infectious Diseases and Child Survival	3
PH.223.680	Global Disease Control Programs and Policies	4
Population, Behavior, and Health
PH.380.600	Principles of Population Change	4
PH.380.604	Life Course Perspectives on Health	4
PH.380.611	Fundamentals of Program Evaluation	4
PH.380.623	Adolescent Health and Development	3
PH.380.642	Child Health and Development	3
PH.380.740	Nutrition Programs, Policy and Politics in the United States: the Impact on Maternal, Child and Family Health	3
PH.380.744	Nutrition and Growth in Maternal and Child Health	3
Research Ethics
PH.306.655	Ethical Issues in Public Health	3
PH.306.665	Research Ethics and integrity	3

Plan of Study Example

Plan of Study Grid

First Year
First Term		Credits
PH.140.621	Statistical Methods in Public Health I	4
PH.220.841	International Health Masters Independent Goals Analysis (International Health Masters Individual Goals Analysis)	1
PH.222.860	Graduate Nutrition Seminar	1
PH.222.641	Principles of Human Nutrition in Public Health	4
PH.222.657	Food and Nutrition Policy	2
PH.222.658	Critical Thinking in Nutrition	1
PH.340.721	Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health I	5
PH.550.860	Academic & Research Ethics at JHSPH
PH.552.625	Building Collaborations Across Sectors to Improve Population Health	0.5
	Credits	18.5
Second Term
PH.140.622	Statistical Methods in Public Health II	4
PH.220.600	International Travel Preparation, Safety, & Wellness	1
PH.222.644	Nutrient Metabolism	3
PH.222.642	Assessment of Nutritional Status	3
PH.222.860	Graduate Nutrition Seminar	1
PH.552.623	Principles of Negotiation and Mediation for Public Health Professionals	0.5
PH.552.624	Applications of Negotiation and Mediation for Public Health Professionals	0.5
PH.552.626	Systems Thinking: Concepts and Methods	0.5
xxx.xxx Management Sciences option
	Credits	13.5
Third Term
PH.140.623	Statistical Methods in Public Health III	4
PH.222.655	Nutrition and Life Stages	3
PH.222.860	Graduate Nutrition Seminar	1
xxx.xxx Environmental Health option
	Credits	8
Fourth Term
PH.140.624	Statistical Methods in Public Health IV	4
PH.222.654	Food, Culture, and Nutrition	4
PH.222.860	Graduate Nutrition Seminar	1
	Credits	9
	Total Credits	49

Social and Behavioral Interventions

Coursework Requirements

A minimum total of 96 credits of coursework is required. Of these, 64 credits are associated with academic coursework, generally completed within the first year of the program. During the second year, 28 credits are associated with a practicum experience and a minimum of 4 credits with a final capstone. Courses taken to fulfill program requirements must be taken for a letter grade unless a course is only offered as pass/fail. For additional information regarding policies and requirements, please view our departmental Academic Guide published August of each academic year.  

Updates regarding course availability can be found on the BSPH Course Directory System. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: A course taken to meet a requirement may NOT be used to meet another requirement

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
Required Courses
General Degree Requirements
PH.220.600	International Travel Preparation, Safety, & Wellness	1
PH.220.601	Foundations of International Health (Students must take the on-campus version)	4
PH.220.841	International Health Masters Independent Goals Analysis (International Health Masters Individual Goals Analysis)	1
PH.550.860	Academic & Research Ethics at JHSPH
Choose one of the following (method customization):
PH.221.645	Large-scale Effectiveness Evaluations of Health Programs	4
PH.222.654	Food, Culture, and Nutrition	4
PH.380.611	Fundamentals of Program Evaluation	4
Biostatistics Requirement
PH.140.621	Statistical Methods in Public Health I	4
PH.140.622	Statistical Methods in Public Health II	4
PH.140.623	Statistical Methods in Public Health III	4
Epidemiology Requirement
PH.340.721	Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health I	5
Leadership, Management, and Interprofessional Practice
PH.221.602	Applications in Managing Health Organizations in Low and Middle income Countries	3
Social and Behavioral Interventions Program Series
PH.224.689	Health Behavior Change At the Individual, Household and Community Levels	4
PH.224.690	Qualitative Research Theory and Methods	3
PH.224.691	Qualitative Data Analysis	3
PH.224.692	Methods in Formative Research and Human Centered Design for Intervention Development	4
PH.224.697	Qualitative Research Practicum I: Partnerships and Protocol Development	2
PH.224.698	Qualitative Research Practicum II: Collecting Qualitative Data	2
PH.224.699	Qualitative Research Practicum III: Analyzing and Writing Qualitative Findings	2
PH.224.860	Social and Behavioral Interventions Program Seminar I:Applied Social Science & Global Health	1
PH.224.861	Social and Behavioral Interventions Program Seminar II: Participatory Approaches and the Role of Community	1
PH.224.862	Social and Behavioral Interventions Program Seminar III: Intervention Case Studies	1
PH.224.814	SBI Program Seminar IV: Professional Skills Development	1
Public Health Policy (choose one of the following)
PH.222.657	Food and Nutrition Policy	2
PH.223.687	Vaccine Policy Issues	3
PH.318.623	Social Policy for Marginalized and Disenfranchised Populations in the U.S.	3
PH.380.667	Women's Health Policy	3
PH.380.771	Understanding and Changing International Reproductive Health Policy	3
PH.410.668	Policy Interventions for Health Behavior Change	4
Social & Behavioral Sciences Electives: Choose two to three courses (6 credits minimum) from the following options
PH.180.620	Introduction to Food Systems and Public Health	4
PH.222.657	Food and Nutrition Policy	2
PH.410.612	Sociological Perspectives on Health	3
PH.410.690	Ethnographic Fieldwork	3
PH.410.656	Entertainment Education for Behavior Change and Development	4
PH.410.733	Communication Network Analysis in Public Health Programs	4
PH.221.701	Applications to Gender Analysis Within Health Research and Interventions	2
PH.301.627	Understanding and Preventing Violence	3
PH.330.620	Qualitative and Quantitative Methods for Mental Health and Psychosocial Research in Low Resource Settings	3
PH.340.717	Health Survey Research Methods	4
PH.380.642	Child Health and Development	3
PH.380.720	Masculinity, Sexual Behavior & Health: Adolescence & Beyond	3
PH.410.615	Research Design in the Social and Behavioral Sciences	3
PH.410.631	Introduction to Community-Based Participatory Research: Principles and Methods	3
PH.410.650	Introduction to Persuasive Communications: Theories and Practice	4
PH.410.668	Policy Interventions for Health Behavior Change	4
PH.340.629	The Epidemiology of LGBTQ Health	3
PH.700.622	Bioethics, Human Rights, and Global Health	3
PH.180.655	Baltimore Food Systems: A Case Study of Urban Food Environments	4
PH.221.605	History of International Health and Development	2
PH.221.635	Global Advances in Community-Oriented Primary Health Care	3
PH.221.642	Mental Health Aspects of Disaster: Public Health Preparedness and Response	2
PH.221.650	Health Policy Analysis in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.221.688	Social and Behavioral Foundations of Primary Health Care	4
PH.224.694	Mental Health Intervention Programming in Low and Middle-Income Countries	3
PH.330.661	Social, Psychological, and Developmental Processes in the Etiology of Mental Disorders	3
PH.340.683	Human Rights in Public Health Practice	2
PH.380.623	Adolescent Health and Development	3
PH.380.663	Gender-Based Violence Research, Practice and Policy: Issues and Current Controversies	3
PH.380.665	Family Planning Policies and Programs	4
PH.410.613	Psychosocial Factors in Health and Illness	3
PH.410.654	Health Communication Programs I: Planning and Strategic Design	4
PH.410.651	Health Literacy: Challenges and Strategies for Effective Communication	3
PH.221.621	Gender and Health: Foundational Theories and Applications	3
PH.410.752	Children, Media, and Health	3
PH.180.636	Human Rights and Health Seminar	3
PH.221.616	Ethics and Global Public Health Practice	2
PH.222.654	Food, Culture, and Nutrition	4
PH.224.605	Indigenous Health	2
PH.300.652	Politics of Health Policy	4
PH.301.645	Health Advocacy	3
PH.308.610	The Political Economy of Social inequalities and Its Consequences for Health and Quality of Life	3
PH.380.668	International Perspectives on Women, Gender, and Health	3
PH.380.747	International Adolescent Health	3
PH.380.771	Understanding and Changing International Reproductive Health Policy	3
PH.410.630	Implementation and Sustainability of Community-Based Health Programs	3
PH.410.655	Health Communication Programs II: Implementation and Evaluation	4
PH.410.663	Media Advocacy and Public Health: Theory and Practice	3
PH.410.721	Translating Research into Public Health Programs and Policy	3
Evaluation-Related Research (choose one of the following)
PH.140.624	Statistical Methods in Public Health IV	4
PH.221.627	Issues in the Reduction of Maternal and Neonatal Mortality in Low income Countries	4
PH.221.638	Health Systems Research and Evaluation in Developing Countries	4
PH.221.645	Large-scale Effectiveness Evaluations of Health Programs	4
PH.222.647	Nutrition Epidemiology	3
PH.223.664	Design and Conduct of Community Trials	4
PH.300.713	Research and Evaluation Methods for Health Policy	3
PH.340.717	Health Survey Research Methods	4
PH.340.722	Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health II	4
PH.380.611	Fundamentals of Program Evaluation	4
PH.380.711	Issues in Survey Research Design	3
PH.313.790	Introduction to Economic Evaluation	3
Public Health Biology: Choose one from Group 1 and one from Group 2
Group 1
PH.260.600	Introduction to the Biomedical Sciences	4
PH.552.608	Biologic, Genetic and Infectious Bases of Human Disease	0.5
Group 2
PH.120.620	Fundamentals of Reproductive Biology	3
PH.182.640	Food- and Water- Borne Diseases	3
PH.340.646	Epidemiology and Public Health Impact of HIV and AIDS	4
PH.183.631	Fundamentals of Human Physiology	4
PH.187.610	Public Health Toxicology	4
PH.222.655	Nutrition and Life Stages	3
PH.223.662	Vaccine Development and Application (prerequisite for Vaccine Policy Issues)	4
PH.223.663	Infectious Diseases and Child Survival	3
PH.223.682	Clinical and Epidemiologic Aspects of Tropical Diseases	4
PH.223.689	Biologic Basis of Vaccine Development	3
PH.260.631	Immunology, Infection and Disease	3
PH.260.656	Malariology	4
PH.330.623	Brain and Behavior in Mental Disorders	3
PH.380.661	Clinical Aspects of Maternal and Newborn Health	3
PH.380.760	Clinical Aspects of Reproductive Health	3
PH.380.762	HIV Infection in Women, Children, and Adolescents	4
PH.550.630	Public Health Biology	3
Environmental Health (choose one of the following)
PH.180.606	Case Studies in Food Production and Public Health	4
PH.180.609	Principles of Environmental Health	4
PH.180.611	The Global Environment, Climate Change, and Public Health	4
PH.182.640	Food- and Water- Borne Diseases	3
PH.185.600	One Health Tools to Promote and Evaluate Healthy and Sustainable Communities (This course also fulfills the Management and Leadership requirement)	3
Year 2 Required Courses
PH.224.810	Social and Behavioral Interventions Practicum (Students must complete a minimum of 28 credits of practicum )	14
PH.224.850	Msph Capstone Social and Behavioral Interventions (students must complete a minimum of 4 credits of capstone)	4
Elective Courses
Recommended based on feedback from students (none required)
PH.221.612	Confronting the Burden of Injuries: A Global Perspective	3
PH.221.627	Issues in the Reduction of Maternal and Neonatal Mortality in Low income Countries	4
PH.221.639	Health Care in Humanitarian Emergencies	3
PH.221.646	Health Systems in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.221.605	History of International Health and Development	2
PH.410.622	Strategic Leadership Principles and Tools for Health System Transformation in Developing Countries	4
PH.221.608	Managing Non-Governmental Organizations in the Health Sector	3
PH.221.635	Global Advances in Community-Oriented Primary Health Care	3
PH.221.650	Health Policy Analysis in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.223.687	Vaccine Policy Issues	3
PH.380.750	Migration and Health: Concepts, Rates, and Relationships	3
PH.221.616	Ethics and Global Public Health Practice	2
PH.221.624	Urban Health in Developing Countries	3
PH.221.661	Project Development for Primary Health Care in Developing Countries	4
PH.222.649	International Nutrition	3
PH.223.680	Global Disease Control Programs and Policies	4
PH.340.639	Assessing Epidemiologic Impact of Human Rights Violations	2
PH.380.668	International Perspectives on Women, Gender, and Health	3
PH.380.747	International Adolescent Health	3

Plan of Study Example

Plan of Study Grid

First Year
First Term		Credits
PH.140.621	Statistical Methods in Public Health I	4
PH.220.601	Foundations of International Health	4
PH.220.841	International Health Masters Independent Goals Analysis (International Health Masters Individual Goals Analysis)	1
PH.221.602	Applications in Managing Health Organizations in Low and Middle income Countries	3
PH.224.860	Social and Behavioral Interventions Program Seminar I:Applied Social Science & Global Health	1
PH.340.721	Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health I	5
PH.550.860	Academic & Research Ethics at JHSPH
	Credits	18
Second Term
PH.140.622	Statistical Methods in Public Health II	4
PH.224.689	Health Behavior Change At the Individual, Household and Community Levels	4
PH.224.697	Qualitative Research Practicum I: Partnerships and Protocol Development	2
PH.224.861	Social and Behavioral Interventions Program Seminar II: Participatory Approaches and the Role of Community	1
PH.340.717	Health Survey Research Methods	4
PH.410.668	Policy Interventions for Health Behavior Change	4
PH.552.623	Principles of Negotiation and Mediation for Public Health Professionals	0.5
PH.552.624	Applications of Negotiation and Mediation for Public Health Professionals	0.5
	Credits	20
Third Term
PH.140.623	Statistical Methods in Public Health III	4
PH.182.640	Food- and Water- Borne Diseases	3
PH.224.690	Qualitative Research Theory and Methods	3
PH.224.698	Qualitative Research Practicum II: Collecting Qualitative Data	2
PH.224.862	Social and Behavioral Interventions Program Seminar III: Intervention Case Studies	1
PH.380.611	Fundamentals of Program Evaluation	4
	Credits	17
Fourth Term
PH.220.600	International Travel Preparation, Safety, & Wellness	1
PH.222.654	Food, Culture, and Nutrition	4
PH.223.682	Clinical and Epidemiologic Aspects of Tropical Diseases	4
PH.224.691	Qualitative Data Analysis	3
PH.224.692	Methods in Formative Research and Human Centered Design for Intervention Development	4
PH.224.699	Qualitative Research Practicum III: Analyzing and Writing Qualitative Findings	2
PH.224.814	SBI Program Seminar IV: Professional Skills Development	1
	Credits	19
	Total Credits	74

MSPH Departmental Requirements

Residency Requirement 

The total number of course credits to be earned depends upon individual program requirements. But, to meet the Residency requirement, students must complete a minimum of 64 credits of didactic courses in four consecutive terms. When general and program-specific requirements total less than 64, the difference may be made up in electives. Only those special studies earning credit that are part of a program’s requirements (840 series) are admissible. The Residency requirement is usually fulfilled in a master’s student’s first year.

General Requirements 

Individual Goals Analysis (IGA): During the first term of enrollment, students will register for one credit of Special Studies (Individual Goals Analysis) with their adviser in order to define specific educational objectives and to work out a program of study consonant with those objectives. 

Ethics Requirement: All master’s students are required to take course 550.860.82 Academic and Research Ethics at BSPH in their first term of matriculation. Failure to complete this course will prevent students from matriculating for the next term and continuing their program. 

Students who are being funded by an NIH training grant must also take one of the following two courses: 550.600 Responsible Conduct of Research offered first term OR 306.665 Research Ethics and Integrity: US and International Issues, offered third term.

All students must complete the Online Human Subjects Training Module prior to the end of the 4th term. However, for students wishing to work on research projects part-time for faculty during the academic year, it would be advisable to take this module in the 1st term as the training is required for such research work. For information on the Training module go to https://publichealth.jhu.edu/offices-and-services/institutional-review-board-irb/training.

International Travel Preparation, Safety, and Wellness: All IH students are required to take this course (220.600.81) during their first year and before traveling overseas for any academic reason, regardless of whether their research is conducted within or outside of the United States. This course is offered three times a year, and students must only take it once.

Registration 

MSPH students must register for a minimum of 16 credits of courses each term until they graduate to be full-time students in the IH department. Students do not register for summer or winter intersession. Summer and winter intersession courses may be available to students with the understanding that students pay 100% of the tuition. 

Courses taken for audit do not count towards this 16-credit minimum. Failure to register for a term results in automatic withdrawal. A withdrawn student must be formally readmitted before resuming a program of study. Upon readmission, a student must be registered for a minimum of two consecutive terms prior to completing degree requirements.

Students must be registered in the term they complete their capstone. If a student does not complete all requirements by the last day of the fourth term of their second year and wishes to graduate in August, they are required to register for 2 credits during the summer term. Students are responsible for their full tuition and fees during the summer. If students are unable to complete in August, the student must register full-time in the first term and in each term until they complete. 

Important Information about Registration

1. Registration below 16 credits is not allowed and violates the terms of a student’s tuition scholarship. 

2. Any student registering below 16 credits during any term could be in violation of their scholarship requirements resulting in a loss of their tuition scholarship. 

3. Courses taken for Audit do not count toward the 16 credits per term requirement but do count toward the 22 credit maximum.  

During their 2nd year, students register in their Program Area’s MSPH Practicum course and for their Capstone requirements. When a student takes Special Studies, they must register for Special Studies in their specific Program area. The following course numbers correspond to the different program areas:

Practicum

• 221.810 Health Systems Practicum
• 222.810 Human Nutrition Practicum
• 222.815 Human Nutrition Registered Dietitian Practicum
• 223.810 GDEC Practicum
• 224.810 SBI Practicum 

Capstone 

• 221.850 MSPH Capstone Health Systems
• 222.850 MSPH Capstone Human Nutrition (including Dietitian)
• 223.850 MSPH Capstone GDEC
• 224.850 MSPH Capstone SBI 

Special Studies 

• 221.840 Special Studies in Health Systems
• 222.840 Special Studies in Human Nutrition
• 223.840 Special Studies in GDEC
• 224.840 Special Studies in SBI 

These are pass/fail credits and a passing grade is only provided if program requirements are met within the corresponding term.

Students each term can register for 14-16 credits of Practicum or a combination of Practicum, Capstone, and didactic courses. If they audit a course, they must have 16 additional credits for a letter grade or pass/fail. Within a term, a maximum of 22 credits is allowed, combining Practicum, Capstone, and other didactic courses (audited courses are also counted within the 22 credit maximum). A sample schedule for year 2 is below.

SAMPLE SCHEDULE 

• Complete at least 2 terms of practicum in the second year by completing at least 28 credits of practicum (22X.810). A student can register and earn more than 28 credits, but not less.

• Students should register for 22X.850 during the term in which they will complete their Capstone requirement. A student must register for a minimum of 4 credits. 

Courses taken at other schools within Johns Hopkins University must be considered carefully. If a student is interested in taking courses outside of the Bloomberg School of Public Health, students must meet with the Academic Program Administrator (Elisabeth Simmons) prior to registering to discuss if the credits count toward their degree and or toward registration requirements.

Time of Completion Requirements 

Students are expected to complete all requirements for the degree within two years of matriculation. Delays may be considered in special circumstances but in no case may the time in the program exceed four years, regardless of the residence status of the student (other than a leave of absence). Responsibility for tracking and adhering to the graduation timelines belongs to the student. If requirements are not met by the dates posted (see graduation schedule), registration for subsequent terms is required. 

Introduction to Online Learning 

The School of Public Health offers courses in various formats, including a number of online courses. In order to be eligible to take an online course, students must complete the Introduction to Online Learning, which is offered through the Center for Teaching and Learning at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. This non-credit mini-course is a prerequisite for all courses offered by this division and must be completed prior to the start of the term in which a student wishes to enroll in an online course. Since the School does not permit conditional and/or concurrent enrollment (that is, a student must take the online course prior to enrolling in a distance education course), we require all incoming students to take this non-credit course during the first term they enroll. For course dates and enrollment information, please visit the CoursePlus website. 

Capstone 

The culminating experience of the MSPH program is the production of an MSPH capstone that provides a meaningful contribution to the knowledge of the health of underserved populations. The capstone is not a thesis in that it need not contain original research findings for review by an academic committee. However, it should provide tangible evidence of expertise on a specific applied topic of international health relevance. The capstone must be reviewed and approved by two faculty readers. Detailed, step-by-step, guidelines for the MSPH capstone content, format, and submission for each program area can be found in the Final Capstone Guide.

Capstone Deadlines 

Students must select one of four graduation timelines. Each task must be completed by the due dates indicated or students will be required to register for the next academic term until all requirements are met. The deadline for a cohort will be similar to the deadlines for the previous cohort. Students should familiarize themselves with the capstone deadlines for the previous cohort, to view these deadlines please see the academic guide. The timeline for the second year will be distributed at the end of the first year. 

MSPH Students must also abide by the complete list of additional tasks and deadlines, which may be set by each program area and will be given to students by their respective Program Coordinators by the date of the Comprehensive Exam, typically the end of May or early June of the student's 1st year. 

Practicum

In addition to completing the requisite coursework, students must gain practical experience in the application of the principles and methods learned. Often the experience is acquired through field placement (practicum) in a work setting that may be the route to permanent employment, though such long-term implications are by no means essential. Alternatively, the student may undertake within the School environment the investigation and analysis of a significant issue related to the health of underserved populations. Students begin their full-time practicum sometime between June and September of their second year. Practicum requirements are a minimum of two terms full-time (4 months) and up to 11 months. Detailed information on the requirements for the practicum, including IRB requirements can be found in the Practicum Guide.

Departmental Written Comprehensive Examination 

Satisfactory performance is required on a written comprehensive examination. The date for the Departmental Comprehensive Exam is TBD. The student should take the exam after completing the required coursework because the questions will cover all required fields of study. Although most of the material for the exam is covered in specific courses, graduate education involves much more than the accumulation of specific course credits. Thus, students are responsible for the material on the exam regardless of the particular curriculum they have taken.

A minimum overall passing grade of 70/100 is required. Those scoring below this level may retake the entire examination in January of the following year. A January examination sitting is offered only for students who fail the May examination. Only one reexamination is permitted. Students failing twice are terminated from the MSPH program.

Students must NOT pass along exam questions to future generations of students, NOT post questions and/or answers online, NOT seek, solicit, accept, or consult content from prior comprehensive exams, and NOT share or publicize any content from the comprehensive exam in any form with anyone at any time. Failure to adhere to these rules could result in termination from the program.

Master's Degrees Specific Policies

For a full list of program policies, please visit the MSPH in International Health webpage where students can find a link to our most recent Academic Guide.

Program Concentration Learning Outcomes

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.

Specific concentration competencies are listed below.

GLOBAL DISEASE EPIDEMIOLOGY AND CONTROL

1. Examine and recommend programs and policies to improve global public health, with a focus on low-and-middle income settings and under-resourced populations;
2. Design epidemiologic studies to define and measure public health problems in low-resource settings including the design, ethical considerations, and implementation of the studies;
3. Assess and recommend interventions to prevent and control major causes of morbidity and mortality (or their risk factors) in low- and middle-income settings and under-resourced populations;
4. Examine and differentiate the types, the processes of development, and the guidelines of use for globally-available public health interventions including vaccines, behavioral, environmental and/or technologic interventions;
5. Identify and critique sources of large-scale public health data used to describe, illustrate and interpret the state of health at a population level; and
6. Analyze large-scale data from low-and-middle income settings or from global health agencies to illustrate and interpret a public health priority.

HEALTH SYSTEMS

1. Interpret knowledge of public health problems pertinent to disadvantaged populations and health systems and develop solutions through assessment, planning, management, implementation, and control;
2. Apply concepts and principles of management and finance to the operation of health system projects in resource-poor settings;
3. Analyze and synthesize data relevant to the management and control of health systems problems and their solutions within resource-poor settings;
4. Apply appropriate research methods (quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods) to assess health systems outcomes of interest of a policy, program, or intervention; and
5. Formulate learnings and findings related to health systems problems, their gaps, potential solutions, and implementation across various contexts.

HUMAN NUTRITION

1. Explain the roles of energy, macronutrients, and micronutrients in biological processes and functions;
2. Examine the biological, social, cultural, and behavioral influences on nutrition in the different stages of human development;
3. Examine appropriate measures and indicators of dietary intake, physical activity, nutritional status, and metabolic dysfunction to characterize the nutritional health or risks of individuals or populations;
4. Propose policy options to address specific food and nutrition problems in a given setting or context; and
5. Apply cultural information to the development, implementation, and evaluation of nutrition intervention programs.

SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS

1. Identify major global health problems of underserved populations in lower resource contexts, and understand important issues in the international community’s response, including the historical tensions of whether to approach them vertically or horizontally, the challenges of programmatic and environmental sustainability, the complex evolution of major global health initiatives, and to examine examples of past and ongoing interventions;
2. Describe conceptual tools from the social and behavioral sciences to understand multi-level factors influencing health behavior, apply appropriate combinations of theoretically based intervention modalities to scenarios, and apply these tools and modalities to design social and behavioral interventions;
3. Examine methodologies for qualitative inquiry, formulate appropriate qualitative research questions, collaborate with community partners, and collect qualitative data using multiple methods appropriate to address a real-world public health challenge;
4. Distinguish and apply context-appropriate inductive and deductive qualitative data analysis methodologies to qualitative data sets, manage and interpret qualitative data, and present findings in audience-appropriate formats to collaborating community partners; and
5. Develop theory-driven, integrated formative research and user-centered design protocols to inform the development of appropriate, feasible, acceptable, and sustainable social and behavioral interventions in lower-income contexts.