[April 18, 2012]

UC Berkeley Launches Online Degree to Address Public Health Workforce Need

In direct response to the serious, growing need for educated public health leaders, the University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health announces its first online degree program. The On-Campus/Online Professional Master of Public Health Degree Program is an interdisciplinary program for midcareer health professionals, who can complete the degree program while working. The program prepares professionals to lead the effort to protect against environmental hazards, prevent the spread of disease, encourage healthy behaviors, help communities recover from disaster, and advocate for quality and accessibility in health care.

Students enrolled in the new program earn a master of public health (M.P.H.) degree by completing 85 prcent of their coursework online and 15 percent on campus.

"Offering coursework online makes a UC Berkeley-quality public health education accessible to a larger population of working professionals who cannot leave their full-time jobs to obtain a degree," says School of Public Health Dean Stephen Shortell. "The on-campus component of the program enriches the students' learning experience by allowing them to connect face-to-face with faculty, classmates, and other graduate students on campus." 

George W. Breslauer, UC Berkeley executive vice chancellor and provost, says, "This innovative, well-designed program reflects our principles of access and excellence."

The program is expected to expand the School of Public Health's capacity to address an estimated national shortage of 250,000 trained public health professionals, with a shortage of 25,000 to 30,000 in California alone. 

The inaugural class of ten students began in January. Dr. Nap Hosang, director of the school's interdisciplinary M.P.H. program and faculty director of the On-Campus/Online Professional M.P.H. Degree Program, notes that the first cohort "is a diverse mix of clinicians, physician-administrators, researchers, and health educators" drawn from across California and Alaska. 

The On-Campus/Online Professional M.P.H. Degree Program is a two-and-a-half-year program accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Schools, Western Association of Schools and Colleges. There are three admission cycles per year. Financial aid is available to those who qualify. At full capacity, the school expects to admit about one hundred students per year. 

For further information, visit onlinemph.berkeley.edu. 

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