Graduate programs
The School of Public Health graduate programs are designed to prepare students for professional work in the fields of community health, health promotion, health management, and health policy in a wide variety of settings. Students may also complete a plan of study that prepares them to pursue a doctoral degree in a health-related area.
The School of Public Health offers eight graduate degrees.
1. A Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree in Health Promotion.
2. A Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree in Health Management and Policy.
3. A Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree in Biostatistics
4. A Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree in Environmental Systems and Human Health
5. A Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree in Public Health Practice
6. A Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree in Epidemiology
7. A Master of Science (M.S.) degree in Biostatistics.
8. A Master of Arts/Master of Science (M.A./M.S.) degree in Health Studies - Not Currently Admitting
Students with a wide variety of undergraduate degrees and professional experience are admitted to the School of Public Health.
Health Management and Policy M.P.H.
The goal of the Health Management & Policy program is to develop and strengthen the knowledge and practice of the delivery and management of health services. The program prepares individuals for the exercise of competent and effective policy and administrative leadership in the health sector. The Health Management & Policy curriculum includes the core concepts of public health with specific instruction in management, finance, strategy, policy, economics, and ethics.
Program Competencies
Students graduating from this program will be able to:
- Apply ethical principles and behaviors that govern the practice of health management and policy.
- Apply theory in the development, implementation and evaluation of solutions to challenges in health management and policy.
- Represent cultural competency with diverse cultures and communities in the practice of health management and policy.
- Apply policy process knowledge and techniques to support development and implementation of health policy.
- Select and employ appropriate qualitative and quantitative techniques to evaluate and manage health system performance.
- Design and implement processes to assess and improve organizational and system performance.
- Solicit and integrate input from health system stakeholders to advance cooperative solutions to health system challenges.
- Design and deliver communication materials supporting the practice of health services leadership, management and policy.
- Demonstrate critical and self-reflective thinking in the practice of health management and policy.
Requirements
Students admitted to the health management and policy M.P.H. degree are required to complete 62 hours of coursework. Instruction is provided at Portland State University and Oregon Health & Science University. Students are required to pass the Certified in Public Health (CPH) examination before graduation.
Core courses (17)
Health management and policy required concentration (24)
| HSMP 541 | Organizational Behavior in Health Service Organizations | 3 |
| HSMP 571 | Health Policy | 3 |
| HSMP 573 | Values and Ethics in Health | 3 |
| HSMP 576 | Strategic Management of Health Care Organizations | 3 |
| HSMP 577 | Health Care Law and Regulation | 3 |
| HSMP 586 | Introduction to Health Economics | 3 |
| HSMP 587 | Financial Management of Health Services | 3 |
| HSMP 588 | Program Evaluation and Management In Health Services | 3 |
Elective Credits from the following list (15):
| PA 525 | Grantwriting for Nonprofit Organizations | 3 |
| PA 543 | Creating Collaborative Communities | 3 |
| PA 545 | Organizational Development | 3 |
| PA 549 | Cross-cultural Communication in the Public Sector | 3 |
| PA 553 | Sustainable Development Policy and Governance | 3 |
| PA 554 | Policy Analysis Research | 3 |
| PA 556 | Public Contract Management | 3 |
| PA 558 | Managing Public Projects and Programs: From Local to Global | 3 |
| HSMP 544 | Leadership and Governance in Health Services | 3 |
| HSMP 570/PAH 570 | Health Administration | 3 |
| HSMP 572 | Health Politics | 3 |
| HSMP 575 | Advanced Health Policy | 3 |
| HSMP 578 | Continual Improvement In Health Care | 3 |
| HSMP 579 | Health Information Technology and Systems Management | 3 |
| HSMP 580 | Health Services Human Resources Management | 3 |
| PHE 520 | Qualitative Research Design | 3 |
| PHE 541 | Media Advocacy and Public Health | 3 |
| Age 557 | National Long-term Care Policy | 3 |
Other courses may be approved by the adviser.
Field work (6)
Interprofessional Education course (1-2 credits), the 1-credit Applied Practice Experience seminar, the 4-credit Integrative Learning Experience
Total Credit Hours: 62