Master of Public Health
The Bastyr Master of Public Health program is accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). Bastyr University is regionally accredited by Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). The MPH program also covers the competencies required for the Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES®) certification exam.
Expected Program Outcomes
A graduate of the Master of Public Health program will demonstrate competency in the following areas:
- Evidence-based approaches to public health
- Public health and health care systems
- Planning and management to promote health
- Policy in public health
- Inter-professional practice
- Leadership
- Systems thinking
- Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
- Planning health education strategies, interventions, and programs
- Implementing health education strategies, interventions, and programs
- Conducting evaluation and research related to health education
- Administering health education strategies, interventions, and programs
- Serving as a health education resource person
- Communicating and advocating for health and health education
- Applying human rights and social justice principles to public health problems to support improved quality in and accessibility to health care and health education
Admissions
For general information on the admissions process, refer to the General Admissions section in this catalog. Information below refers only to the public health program.
Prerequisites
Students must have a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college or university with a minimum GPA of 3.0 in undergraduate coursework and an introductory statistics or biostatistics course. Exceptional candidates who do not meet these requirements, including the minimum GPA of 3.0, will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Qualified students will be invited to interview.
Graduation Requirements
Master of Public Health students must complete a minimum of 63 credits. This includes 48 core course credits, 2 programmatic elective credits, 5 practicum credits, and 8 capstone credits. Students must complete 43 of these credits in residence at Bastyr University. Students must earn a minimum GPA of 3.0 and must complete their degree within five years following matriculation into the program.
The curriculum tables that follow list the tentative schedule of courses each quarter. Next to each course is the number of credits per course.
Year I
Fall
| PH5100 | Introduction to Community Health Education | 4 |
| PH5109 | Biological Determinants of Health | 3 |
| PH5130 | Intermediate Biostatistics 1 | 2 |
| PH5135 | Epidemiology 1 | 2 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 11 |
Winter
| PH5101 | Health Education: Program Planning and Implementation | 5 |
| PH5113 | Social Determinants of Public Health | 3 |
| PH5131 | Intermediate Biostatistics 2 | 2 |
| PH5136 | Epidemiology 2 | 2 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 12 |
Spring
| PH5102 | Research Methods in Health Education | 3 |
| PH5103 | Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods | 2 |
| PH5112 | Environmental Determinants of Public Health | 4 |
| PH5123 | Seminar in Social Justice and Health | 1.5 |
| PH5801 | Public Health Practicum Preparation | 1 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 11.5 |
Year II
Summer
| PH6800 | Practicum Experience in Public Health | 5 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 5 |
Fall
| PH6101 | Evaluation of Health Education Programs | 4 |
| PH6110 | Seminar in Social Justice and Health 4 | 0.5 |
| PH6810 | Introduction to Capstone Project | 1 |
| Public Health Electives | 2 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 7.5 |
Winter
| PH6102 | Public Health Systems Leadership and Administration | 4 |
| PH6105 | Effective Grant Writing | 2 |
| PH6111 | Seminar in Social Justice and Health 5 | 0.5 |
| PH6813 | Intermediate Capstone Project | 3 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 9.5 |
Spring
| PH6103 | Public Health Policy | 2 |
| PH6112 | Seminar in Social Justice and Health 6 | 0.5 |
| PH6814 | Capstone Project Completion | 4 |
| Total Credit Hours: | 6.5 |
Total Requirements
| Total Core Course Credits |
48 |
| Total Programmatic Elective Credits* |
2 |
| Total Practicum Credits |
5 |
| Total Capstone Credits |
8 |
| Total Requirements |
63 |
*Programmatic Electives
Courses will be offered on a rotating basis, and each course will not be available every year. Additional courses may become available as they are created. Courses that address public health issues offered by other departments may be taken with the prior approval of the Master of Public Health department chair.
| PH9100 | Cultural Health Communication | 2 |
| PH9101 | Public Health for Aging Populations | 2 |
| PH9104 | Current Health Issues and Interventions in the United States | 2 |
| PH9107 | Public Health Research | variable and repeatable |
Curriculum and course changes in the 2023-2024 Bastyr University Catalog are applicable to students entering during the 2023-2024 academic year. Please refer to the appropriate catalog if interested in curriculum and courses required for any other entering year.