Thomas Jefferson University (TJU) is a graduate health science university in downtown Philadelphia. TJU consists of six colleges including Sidney Kimmel Medical College, and the Colleges of Nursing, Health Professions, Biomedical Sciences, Pharmacy, and Population Health.

The mission of the Jefferson College of Population Health is to prepare leaders with global vision to develop, implement and evaluate health policies and systems that improve the health of populations and thereby enhance the quality of life.

Within the Jefferson College of Population Health (JCPH), the signature graduate program is the nationally accredited MPH program. JCPH includes graduate degree and certificate programs in health policy, quality and safety, and applied health economics and outcomes research, in addition to public health, and has a PhD program in Population Health Sciences.

Public Health is an interdisciplinary field of study and practice with two primary goals – to prevent illness, disease, and injury; and to promote and protect human health. Public Health achieves these goals while supporting human rights and respecting the dignity of the individual.

The core functions of public health practice include:

• Assessment and monitoring of the health of “at risk” communities and populations to identify health problems and priorities
• Formulating public policies in collaboration with community and government leaders
• Assuring that all populations have access to appropriate and cost-effective care, including health promotion and disease prevention services

Jefferson’s Master of Public Health (MPH) prepares diverse professionals to work in

• state and local public health departments or health centers
• non-governmental health organizations (NGOs)
• schools and universities
• professional health agencies
• related health care businesses, such as the pharmaceutical industry
• public health research
• global health environments.

MPH professionals track disease outbreaks, conduct community health assessments, plan public health education programs, develop public health policies to reduce adverse environmental exposures, advocate for government policy changes to increase public access to preventive health services, and direct campaigns to prevent infectious disease or reduce risk factors that encourage chronic conditions.

Program Audiences

Jefferson’s MPH degree program is intended for:

• Recent college graduates with majors in natural or social sciences;
• Students currently enrolled in a medical, nursing or law degree program who wish to earn an additional degree in public health;
• Practicing health professionals working in government, community health organizations, healthcare settings, health insurance companies, the pharmaceutical industry, and academic institutions
• Practicing health professionals working in government, community health organizations, healthcare settings, health insurance companies, the pharmaceutical industry, and academic institutions.

JCPH has a unique trimester program that runs ten months from September through June (sample schedule is attached). This allows students more flexibility in scheduling their courses as all required MPH courses and many elective courses are sequenced and offered in two of the three terms. This reduces the class size for graduate public health courses to typically 10-18 students, allowing for increased student involvement in problem-based learning and greater contact with our diverse and experienced MPH faculty.

Students are able to begin their MPH study in either the fall term in September or the spring term in January. The trimester system allows pre-professional students (primarily pre-med students) to complete all their MPH courses in a single academic year and enter professional school in the subsequent year. Such students receive a no-cost leave of absence for up to four terms in order to complete their MPH Capstone Research project and can do so anytime within 16 months after entering another graduate program anywhere in the world.

The schedule is also ideal for our dual degree students in medicine, nursing, law, social work, and pharmacy who complete their MPH course in a single year.

Capstone independent research projects are the culminating experience for the MPH as the comprehensive piece to the student’s public health portfolio. Students typically use a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods under faculty guidance and mentoring to complete their research project. Examples on titles of student research projects include:

• Attitudes, Behavior, and Barriers to Eating Healthy Across Race in Four Philadelphia Neighborhoods
• The Green Pursuit: Seeking Grants to Fund the Urban Farming and Environmental Health Education Program
• The Role of African-American Churches in Addressing HIV/AIDS in Philadelphia
• Functional Health Literacy and Diabetes Self-Care Adherence
• Using Community-Based Participatory Research to Maximize Volunteerism in Youth Shelters

Admissions Considerations

• Keen interest in public health and becoming a future leader in health
  
• Two years of paid or volunteer work in a public health-related role preferred

What We Look For

• Personal Statement – Interest, connection across the two disciplines
• Undergraduate Courses – natural and social sciences
• Graduate Exam Scores – writing, verbal, math, top 50%
• Personal experience – paid and volunteer
• Recommendation letters, at least one from a volunteer/paid community-based experience
• Interview – confident, prepared, passionate

Application Requirements

• Completion of online application
• Payment of application fee
• Official transcripts from all graduate and undergraduate institutions attended
• Submission of TOEFL scores, if applicable
• Three letters of recommendation
• Personal essay
• Interview by telephone or Skype