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Master of Public Health

Competencies

Foundational CEPH Core Competencies

  1. Apply epidemiological methods to settings and situations in public health practice. (CEPH CC1)
  2. Select quantitative and qualitative data collection methods appropriate for a given public health context. (CEPH CC2)
  3. Analyze quantitative and qualitative data using biostatistics, informatics, computer-based programming and software, as appropriate. (CEPH CC3)
  4. Interpret results of data analysis for public health research, policy or practice. (CEPH CC4)
  5. Compare the organization, structure and function of health care, public health and regulatory systems across national and international settings. (CEPH CC5)
  6. Discuss the means by which structural bias, social inequities, and racism undermine health and create challenges to achieving health equity at organizational, community and systemic levels. (CEPH CC6)
  7. Assess population needs, assets and capacities that affect communities’ health. (CEPH CC7)
  8. Apply awareness of cultural values and practices to the design, implementation, or critique of public health policies or programs. (CEPH CC8)
  9. Design a population-based policy, program, project or intervention. (CEPH CC9)
  10. Explain basic principles and tools of budget and resource management. (CEPH CC10)
  11. Select methods to evaluate public health programs. (CEPH CC11)
  12. Discuss the policy-making process, including the roles of ethics and evidence. (CEPH CC12)
  13. Propose strategies to identify relevant communities and individuals and build coalitions and partnerships for influencing public health outcomes. (CEPH CC13)
  14. Advocate for political, social or economic policies and programs that will improve health in diverse populations. (CEPH CC14)
  15. Evaluate policies for their impact on public health and health equity. (CEPH CC15)
  16. Apply leadership and/or management principles to address a relevant issue. (CEPH CC16)
  17. Apply negotiation and mediation skills to address organizational or community challenges. (CEPH CC17)
  18. Select communication strategies for different audiences and sectors. (CEPH CC18)
  19. Communicate audience-appropriate public health content, both in writing and through oral presentation to a non-academic, non-peer audience with attention to factors such as literacy and health literacy. (CEPH CC19)
  20. Describe the importance of cultural humility in communicating public health content. (CEPH CC20)
  21. Integrate perspectives from other sectors and/or professions to promote and advance population health. (CEPH CC21)
  22. Apply a systems-thinking tool to visually represent a public health issue in a format other than standard narrative. (CEPH CC22)

Track-specific Competencies

  1. Compare the strengths and weaknesses of observational study designs and select an appropriate observational study design for population-based research. (VU Epi1)
  2. Evaluate sources for confounding; selection and information bias from a causal-inference perspective and through the use of directed acyclic graphs. (VU Epi2)
  3. Build of multivariable regression models and interpret statistical output from these models to make appropriate statistical inference.(VU Epi3)
  4. Perform regression diagnostics, including residual analyses to assess how well models fit the data, inspect the presence of outliers, and assess the fulfillment of model assumptions.(VU Epi4)
  5. Develop a study protocol that addresses a research question and includes appropriate selection of a study design and adequately accounts for potential sources of bias. (VU Epi5)
  1. Identify historical and emerging issues of significance in global health from an interdisciplinary vantage point. (VU GH1)
  2. Apply a research method(s) and/or programmatic intervention(s) used to ameliorate health and developmental problems, particularly in low-resource settings. (VU GH2)
  3. Describe fundamentals of organizational behavior and change, particularly in low-resource settings. (VU GH3)
  4. Collaborate on a team with partners from multiple countries to develop a tool(s) that address an identified international public health need. (VU GH4)
  5. Integrate knowledge of cultural humility and health equity into global health research, policy, practice, or advocacy efforts. (VU GH5)
  1. Identify the main features and challenges related to the financing, incentives, and delivery of health care services and public health systems in the United States. (VU HP1)
  2. Describe the complementary roles of individualized health care services and population-based interventions in maintaining and improving health status. (VU HP2)
  3. Evaluate policies and apply theories of health insurance and the incentives that various approaches to coverage and provider payment create in the health system. (VU HP3)
  4. Analyze the impact of changes in public health policy and health care financing and service delivery on elements such as health care cost growth, quality of care, and access to services. (VU HP4)
  5. Conceptualize the data and research methods necessary to address questions of significance to policymakers and other relevant system actors. (VU HP5)