Master of Public Health Accreditation

Values

The MPH program is an integral part of the university setting and adheres to the values that have been formed through the history and traditions of The University of Southern Mississippi. These values are widely and deeply held beliefs of our faculty, staff, students, and administrators both in the program and the University as a whole, and include the following:

• Education provides opportunities to improve the quality of intellectual, social, economic, and personal well-being. These opportunities should be available to all who are willing and able to meet our standards of excellence.
• Our success is reflected by the degree to which our students become well-read, articulate, creative, and critical thinkers. It is measured by their display of specialized knowledge and abilities suitable to the pursuit of careers and lives in our complex, ever- changing world.
• We cherish innovation in the creation and application of basic and applied research findings, creative and artistic expression, meaningful learning experiences, the scope of services provided to our students and the broader community that we sustain, and the continuing evolution of degree programs that both respond to and anticipate the evolving demands of our society, employers, and the labor market.
• Education encourages and advances the ideals of a pluralistic democratic society: civic responsibility, integrity, diversity, and ethical behavior.
• Academic freedom and shared governance are long-established and living principles at the university. We cherish the free exchange of ideas, diversity of thought, joint decision making, and individuals’ assumption of responsibility.
• We make efficient and effective use of our resources, for we are accountable to our university communities, the Board of Trustees, and taxpayers.

Additionally, the values that guide the MPH program’s mission are as follows:

• The development and enhancement of collegiality among the faculty members
• Innovation in approach to teaching, practice, and research
• Open-mindedness, respect, compassion, universal fairness, and equity
• Striving to increase population health, eliminate health disparities, and improve the health and safety of the general public by teaching and following public health principles
• Collaboration and team work among the faculty and the establishment of partnerships with communities
• Collective responsibility and the wise use of resources
• Diversity and support for individual autonomy and privacy
• Student centered approach to teaching and program development
• Continuously seeking quality and excellence in scholarship
• Teaching and practicing individual and professional ethics
• Enjoyment

Goals

The University of Southern Mississippi MPH program currently has three overarching goals regarding instruction, research, and service.

Instruction: To provide comprehensive public health education and professional development to students in the areas of biostatistics, epidemiology, health administration, health policy, social and behavioral aspects of health, and environmental health. Additionally, to provide specialized training beyond the core competency level in the emphasis areas of health education and health promotion, epidemiology and biostatistics, and health policy and administration. 

Research:  To develop an innovative, focused program of applied research that rewards scholarship and fosters collaborative research efforts with other academic programs, disciplines and practitioners to increase the knowledge in the field of public health practice. 

Service: To contribute to the development of public health policy and practice at the local, regional, national, and international levels through the active participation of our faculty and students with organizations which strive to improve the health of their community’s population.

Objectives

Goal 1: Instruction

1. 100% of MPH Program core competencies will be addressed by core and emphasis area courses.
2. 80% of full time MPH students will complete their degree requirements within 24 months of enrollment in the program.
3. 80% of MPH students will evaluate MPH core courses as ≥ 4 (high or highest) on a 5 point Likert scale as measured on end of semester course evaluations.
4. 80% of students in the Health Education emphasis will evaluate their emphasis area courses as ≥4 (high or highest) on a 5 point Likert scale as measured on end of semester course evaluations.
5. 80% of students in the Health Policy and Administration emphasis will evaluate their emphasis area courses as ≥4 (high or highest) on a 5 point Likert scale as measured on end of semester course evaluations.
6. 80% of students in the Epidemiology/Biostatistics emphasis will evaluate their emphasis area courses as ≥4 (high or highest) on a 5 point Likert scale as measured on end of semester course evaluations.
7. 90% of all traditional MPH students will demonstrate professionalism in the field of public health as evidenced by an overall internship/practicum preceptor evaluation of above average or better.
8. 90% of all traditional MPH students will demonstrate specialized knowledge in their emphasis area as evidenced by a passing grade on the required portfolio associated with their internship/practicum.
9. 75% of all traditional MPH students will pass comprehensive exams on the first attempt.
10. 95% of executive MPH students will score ≥ 3 using a 4 point scale (pass with distinction, pass, low pass, or fail) on the Capstone oral presentation.
11. 90% of executive MPH students will score above average or better on the Strategic Planning written report.

Goal 2: Research

1. 70% of program faculty will pursue and initiate collaborative public health research with agencies, organizations and foundations at the local, state, national, or international levels.
2. 60% of program faculty will pursue opportunities to conduct interdisciplinary, applied, and community-based scholarship with appropriate programs, agencies, and organizations.
3. 70% of program faculty will enhance public health science through the dissemination of research findings in publications and presentations.

Goal 3: Service

1. 70% of MPH program faculty members will serve as a resource for at least one public and/or private health care activity or organization at the local, state, national, or international level.
2. 70% of MPH faculty, with the assistance of MPH student organization groups, will provide community education and service projects that will have a positive public health impact at local, state, national, or international levels.