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Master of Public Health (In-Person)

MPH/MPA

The School of Public Health and the Watson School of International and Public Affairs offer a highly rigorous Master of Public Health (MPH) and Master of Public Affairs (MPA) dual degree program.

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MPH/MPA

The School of Public Health and the Watson School of International and Public Affairs offer a highly rigorous Master of Public Health (MPH) and Master of Public Affairs (MPA) dual degree program.

Emphasizing a learning-by-doing approach, this rigorous program will offer highly-qualified applicants the opportunity to gain training in public health and public policy to prepare them to address critical health policy issues in the United States and throughout the world. 

The dual degree program starts in the summer with the incoming MPA cohort and includes 17 courses as well as a practicum and an integrated learning experience (thesis or capstone course). Students will benefit from the rich academic resources at the School of Public Health and the Watson School. The program is typically completed in 2 years, though students can extend the program over a longer period of time. All degree requirements must be met within a 5-year period.

Course Requirements

Core courses12
Concentration courses3
Electives2
Total courses17

Applicants to the MPH/MPA dual degree program should apply via SOPHAS, a centralized application service used by the Brown University School of Public Health. Students from a variety of backgrounds and fields of study are welcome to apply; applications will be reviewed by the MPH/MPA Program Admissions Committee. 

Deadlines

Please visit the SPH admissions website for deadlines and additional admissions information.

NOTE: Dual degree students are not eligible for either the Health Equity Scholars program or the Watson Equity in Policy scholarship. If applicants want to be considered for either of those special programs, then they need to apply to the standalone MPH or MPA programs separately.

The dual-degree degree program includes 10 full credit and 4 half credit required courses (12 total):

10 Required Full Credit Courses:

  • MPA2160 Management and Implementation in Public and Non-Profit Organizations
  • MPA2445 Policy Analysis and Problem Solving
  • MPA2475 Policy Problems of the 21st Century
  • MPA Skill Based Elective (select 1)
    • MPA2015 Strategic Communication
    • MPA2020 Public Budgeting and Management
    • MPA2229 Principles and Practices of Stakeholder Engagement
    • MPA2603 Leading for Impact
  • PHP2120 (or 2140) Epidemiology
  • PHP2507 Biostatistics & Applied Data Analysis I or PHP2510 Principles of Biostatistics & Data Analysis*
  • PHP2508 Biostatistics & Applied Data Analysis II or PHP2511 Applied Regression Analysis
  • PHP2079 Public Health Leadership and Communication
  • PHP2078 Health, Law, Policy and Systems
  • PHP 2355 Fundamentals of Behavioral and Social Sciences

*Biostatistics courses must be taken as a sequence (2507/2508 or 2510/2511)

4 Required Half Credit Courses:

  • MPA2040 Statistics for Program Evaluation (Summer)
  • MPA2450 Economics of Government Intervention (Summer)
  • MPA2455 Statistics for Public Policy (Summer)
  • MPA2460 Economics for Public Policy (Summer)

Students in the MPH/MPA dual degree must complete three MPH concentration courses. They will complete coursework in accordance with their selected concentration. Students in the dual degree are strongly encouraged to select the Health Economics and Policy Analysis concentration.

In addition to the core and concentration courses, students complete two (2) elective courses. Students may count any PHP, BSS, EPI, HSP, or STAT course that is 1000 level or above as a general elective. Graduate-level courses at Brown (1000 level and above) that are outside of SPH may be taken as an elective, with approval. Please note that In-Person MPH/MPA students are not allowed to register for courses that are part of the Online Programs or the Executive Leadership Program (BHDS, GPHP or HCL classes).

If you are interested in taking an elective course that is not a public health course, please complete the MPH Elective Course Approval Request form

* Please note that dual degree students may request to take MPA2800 Policy in Action (PIA) Project as an elective, provided that they are in good academic standing. The PIA does NOT replace the MPH practicum experience.

All MPH/MPA students are required to complete either a thesis or a capstone.

MPH/MPA Sample Schedule

MPH/MPA

Have questions? Contact us.

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Brown University School of Public Health
Providence RI 02903 401-863-3375 public_health@brown.edu

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      • Qualitative and Community-Engaged Methods
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