1.  Should I pursue an MPH?

The MPH is usually a one-year program that some medical students and physicians find is a great help in future years.  It can be helpful regardless of your chosen medical specialty and regardless of whether you plan to work as a community practitioner, an academic researcher, or in some other medical field.  We discuss some of these benefits in "The Value of an MPH," which we encourage you to read.

The idea of the MPH is to add a different perspective to your MD training, the perspective of understanding the health of groups of people as well as the health of individuals.  Having this perspective gives physicians ways of contributing to the health of their communities (or to the public at large) beyond providing individual medical care.  The MPH year is a time for reading, thinking, and discussing important issues in health care.  Most students have found it to be an important complement to their medical training.

If you have an interest in the MPH, we encourage you to discuss your interest in person with Dr. Russell Harris, the MD-MPH Program Director (rharris@med.unc.edu); Dr. Sue Tolleson-Rinehart, Co-Associate Program Director (suetr@unc.edu); Dr. Anthony Viera, Co-Associate Program Director (anthony_viera@med.unc.edu); or Dr. Georgette Dent, Associate Dean for Student Affairs in the School of Medicine (georgette_dent@med.unc.edu).

2.  If yes to #1, when should I pursue the MPH?

Most UNC medical students pursue the MPH between the third and fourth years of medical school.  A few do it between the second and third years and others do it between fourth year and internship/residency.  A good reason for doing it between the third and fourth years is that having clinical experience from the third year enhances the MPH experience, and still allows for returning to clinical work in the fourth year before starting internship/residency. 

Some students prefer to pursue the MPH later in their training, after residency.  This may work in some circumstances, but if students do not find themselves in a good MPH situation at that time (because of either being in a place without an MPH program or being in an inconvenient place in their lives), then the MPH may never be earned at all.  At UNC, students have available to them one of the best Schools of Public Health in the country, and the UNC Schools of Medicine and Public Health work together very well in the MD-MPH program.  Basically, we think the decision about when to pursue an MPH is an individual decision that people must think about along with other important considerations in their lives.

3.  If I decide to pursue an MPH during my time at UNC School of Medicine, which MPH program should I choose?

Medical students at UNC have available 5 different MPH programs from which to choose: (1) the Health Care and Prevention (HC&P) concentration within the Public Health Leadership Program; (2) Maternal and Child Health (MCH); (3) Health Policy and Management (HPAA); (4) Nutrition; and (5) Epidemiology.  The HC&P program is the most popular MPH program among UNC medical students, primarily because of its flexibility in allowing students to take courses in various departments within the entire school.  In addition, several HC&P courses have been designed with the MD-MPH student in mind. It is possible to complete the HC&P MPH program in 12 to 18 months.  Programs 2-5 are within departments in the School of Public Health and are specialized to their discipline.  They tend to allow students to go deeper into a single area of public health but are less flexible, offer fewer electives, and may take longer to complete.

4.  What is the coursework like in the MPH program?

Every MPH program in the US requires students to take 5 core courses: (1) Intro Epidemiology; (2) Intro Biostatistics; (3) Environmental Health; (4) Intro to Health Policy; and (5) Behavioral and Social Public Health.  Many of these introductory courses are large – although the HC&P program has redesigned several of them to be smaller and more interactive. 

After these core courses (usually taken during the fall semester), departmental MPH programs have additional departmental requirements.  The HC&P program provides more flexibility for these additional courses, with more electives.  There is a wide variety of elective courses available within the School of Public Health, including courses in health disparities, international health, health communication, health policy, critical appraisal, and epidemiology, as well as in special health conditions (e.g., HIV or STIs, cancer, heart disease) and special populations (e.g., underserved groups, adolescents, older people).

In the HC&P program, one may also do independent study or international study for credit.  We encourage students to take charge of their own education as adult learners.  We are interested in supporting them in doing this.

5.  What is a Master’s Paper?

A Master’s Paper is a big deal.  It is more than a long paper for a single course.  In the HC&P program, one can choose any population health topic for the paper, but it must show a rigorous analysis, a population perspective, depth of understanding, and clear communication.  The paper can be a research project (primary or secondary data allowed), a systematic review, a policy analysis, a program evaluation, or some hybrid of these.  The papers are typically 50 or more double-spaced pages long with multiple references; they require sustained work over a period of time to write.  Students work with 2 advisors and earn academic credit for writing the Master’s Paper.  Some papers are publishable.  By the end of the process, students have become an “expert” on a specific issue.  Looking back later, many students find this paper to be one of the most rewarding parts of the MPH. 

6.  What is a Practicum Experience?

A practicum is an experience of learning outside of the classroom, allowing people to learn to use their population perspective in the real world.  There is great flexibility in these experiences – they can be done in Chapel Hill or in another part of North Carolina or another part of the world.  The practicum experience starts with learning objectives – we help the student to decide “what do I want to learn?” and “from whom and in what situation could I best learn it?”   This often involves some combination of readings and activities with a knowledgeable person or group.  At the end, the student and his/her practicum mentor assess the extent to which the learning objectives were accomplished.  Students earn academic credit for doing the practicum, the amount of credit dependent on the number of hours involved.

7.  When does the MPH program start?  Should I choose to start in early July (Summer Session II admission) or in mid-August (fall admission)?

HC&P students have the option of starting in either early July (Summer Session II admission) or mid-August (fall admission).  On the application form, you MUST specify which entry date you prefer.  It is difficult to change the entry date after you are accepted.

We encourage students, if they can, to start in the second summer session (SSII).  The advantage of starting in Summer Session II is that, for HC&P, you can get credit for activities done in the summer, allowing you a head start on earning the 42 credit hours required for the MPH degree.  This can either be a summer course (HC&P has an excellent summer policy course that students often take)* or a practicum experience of some kind (practicum plans must first be approved by the program directors).  For various reasons, however, some students prefer to start with the fall semester, which is also fine.

*NOTE: The starting date for the HC&P summer policy course is early July, later than the SSII beginning date on the university’s academic calendar, in order to accommodate the schedules of medical students and fellows who are completing School of Medicine commitments in June.

8.  What is the deadline for applying?

Each MPH program has its own deadline.  For the HC&P program the deadline is March 15 for second summer session (SSII) admission and April 1 for fall admission.  By these dates, the application form and fees must be received; recommendation letters and transcripts can be received up to two weeks later.  The full application includes submitting the application form for the UNC Graduate School (including sending in the application fee), previous MCAT scores (you do not need to take the GRE exam – MCAT is fine), a resume, transcripts from college and medical schools, 3 recommendation forms, and a 2-page personal statement about why you want to pursue an MPH.

9.  How do I apply?

Follow these steps to apply to the Health Care and Prevention MPH program:

Step 1: Review application deadlines

• Summer Session II admission (encouraged) – March 15
• Fall admission – April 1

Step 2: Review admission requirements and collect application materials

MPH program admissions requirements for the HC&P concentration include:

• Submission of completed application materials by March 15 (for Summer Session II admission) or April 1 (for fall admission)
• CV/Resume
• Personal statement/Statement of professional goals
• Three letters of recommendation (for UNC medical students, one of the letters must be a letter of support from Associate Dean Georgette Dent.)
• Official transcripts for all completed coursework and each degree received
• MCAT scores taken within five years of application
• TOEFL and completed financial certificate for international students

Step 3: Complete an application form

Applications are processed centrally through the UNC Graduate School. The application forms and fee information are available online. Create an account to begin the process. Further information, including fee and other requirements, is available on the Graduate School webpage.

NOTE: In completing the application form, HC&P applicants should choose “Public Health Leadership Residential” as their intended major and “Health Care and Prevention” as their area of interest (concentration).

Step 4: Submit application materials to the Graduate School

Submit the following items to the Graduate School, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Bynum Hall, CB# 4010, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-4010:

• Application fee (information available on the Graduate School’s webpage)
• Transcripts
  An official transcript is required from each institution where you studied after high school bearing the signature of the registrar and the seal of the institution (even if credits earned at one institution appear on another institution’s transcript as credits transferred).
• MCAT scores
• North Carolina Residency application* (for applicants claiming NC residency for tuition purposes). Applicants are encouraged to use the online residency application. If you have specific questions regarding residency, you can email Trish Bunn (tbunn@unc.edu). 

*NOTE: In-state residency status does not transfer from the School of Medicine to the School of Public Health. Students applying to the Health Care and Prevention program must complete a new North Carolina Residency application.

Step 5: Submit other application materials to the Public Health Leadership Program in the School of Public Health (the umbrella program for HC&P)

Send the following items to Sue Robeson, Registrar, Public Health Leadership Program, 4111 McGavran-Greenberg Hall, School of Public Health, CB# 7469, The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7469:

• Transcripts
  An official transcript from each institution where you studied after high school bearing the signature of the registrar and the seal of the institution.
• MCAT scores
• Three letters of recommendation, at least one of which must be an academic reference and, for UNC medical students, one of which must be a letter of support from Associate Dean Georgette Dent. The Graduate School has cover letter forms for you to give to  recommenders.
• CV/Resume
• Personal statement
• Financial certificate (international students only)

If you have questions about the application process, please contact Sue Robeson at 919-966-5305 or by email at robeson@email.unc.edu.

(NOTE: For other MPH programs, students should review requirements on departmental websites, as application requirements and deadlines vary by department.)

10.  Is there scholarship money available?

Unfortunately, we do not have scholarship funds available at this time.  In-state tuition at UNC, of course, is much less expensive than most other Schools of Public Health.

11.  How do I deal with the financial issues of pursuing an MPH?

You can remain with the financial aid office in the UNC School of Medicine while you are in the School of Public Health.  Most students will be able to keep their same financial aid package during their MPH year.  The FAFSA form must be submitted prior to April 1.  For additional information on financial aid, please contact Sheila Graham, Financial Aid Officer, UNC School of Medicine, at 919-962-6117 or by email at Sheila_Graham@med.unc.edu.

12.  If I pursue an MPH, when should I take STEP II?

There is not one answer to this question.  Former students suggest that you take it as soon as possible after the end of your third year.  Some students find that that they would like to study for STEP II between the end of the Summer Session II policy course (late July) and the beginning of the fall semester (third week of August), thus taking STEP II toward the end of August.