The Zilber School of Public Health and the Helen Bader School of Social Welfare collaboratively offer a program designed to provide students with theoretical, research- based policy and practice knowledge and accompanying skill sets, to address health inequities and inequalities and respond to the health and well-being needs of communities at the local, regional, national and international arenas.
Admission Requirements
Application Deadlines
Application deadlines vary by program, please review the application deadline chart for specific programs. Other important dates and deadlines can be found by using the One Stop calendars.
Admission
Students are admitted to each graduate program separately and based on admission requirements which are consistent with those specified by the UWM Graduate School, the MPH program in the Zilber School of Public Health, and the MSW program of the Department of Social Work.
Credits and Courses
Students accepted into this MPH/MSW program complete the following courses:
Master of Public Health (MPH)
Required Common Core Courses (24 Credits)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Common Core Courses | ||
| PH 702 | Introduction to Biostatistics | 3 |
| PH 703 | Environmental Health Sciences | 3 |
| PH 704 | Principles and Methods of Epidemiology | 3 |
| PH 705 | Principles of Public Health Policy and Administration | 3 |
| PH 706 | Perspectives on Community & Behavioral Health | 3 |
| PH 708 | Health Systems and Population Health | 3 |
| PH 791 & SOC WRK 823 | Leadership in Public Health and Coordinated Public Health and Social Work Field Education | 4 |
| PH 800 | Capstone in Public Health | 2 |
| Total Credits | 24 | |
Students specialize in one of five tracks of study:
- Biostatistics *
- Community and Behavioral Health Promotion
- Environmental Health Sciences
- Epidemiology *
- Public Health Policy and Administration *
* These tracks are currently not available in the Coordinated MPH/MSW
Biostatistics Track (22 credits)
In addition to the common MPH core classes, students complete:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | 13 | |
| Seminar in Biostatistics and Bioinformatics (1 cr) | ||
| Intermediate Biostatistics | ||
| Probability and Statistical Inference | ||
| Analyzing Observational and Experimental Data | ||
| Data Management and Visualization in R | ||
| “S”electives – Choose three (9 credits minimum) | 9 | |
| Introduction to Statistical Computing | ||
| Public Health Informatics | ||
| Statistical Genetics and Genetic Epidemiology | ||
| Applied Categorical Data | ||
| Applied Survival Analysis | ||
| Applied Longitudinal Data Analysis | ||
| Special Topics in Biostatistics: | ||
| Introduction to Translational Bioinformatics | ||
| Design, Conduct and Analysis of Clinical Trials | ||
| Total Credits | 22 | |
Community and Behavioral Health Promotion Track (24 credits)
In addition to the common MPH core classes, students complete:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | 15 | |
| Public Health Principles and Practice | ||
| Theories and Models of Health Behavior | ||
| Community Health Assessment | ||
| Program Planning & Implementation in Public Health | ||
| Program Evaluation in Public Health | ||
| Methods “S”electives- choose two | 6 | |
| Survey Research Methods in Public Health | ||
| Qualitative Approaches in Public Health Policy and Administration | ||
| Community Engagement and Participatory Research Approaches in Public Health | ||
| Electives | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 24 | |
Environmental Health Sciences Track (23 Credits)
In addition to the common MPH core classes, students complete:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | 11 | |
| Public Health Principles and Practice | ||
| Environmental Risk Assessment | ||
| Seminar in Environmental Health Sciences (1 credit x 2) | ||
| Environmental Epidemiology | ||
| Built Environment “S” elective – Choose one | 3 | |
| Special Topics: | ||
| Physical Geography of the City | ||
| Urban Sustainability | ||
or URBPLAN 880 | Urban Sustainability | |
| The Internal Structure of the City | ||
| Ergonomics | ||
| Introduction to Urban Geographic Information Systems for Planning | ||
| Other classes as approved by advisor | ||
| Chemical Environment “S” elective- Choose one | 3 | |
| Environmental Public Health Microbiology | ||
| Environmental Toxicology | ||
| Developmental Toxicology | ||
| Biological Environment “S” elective- Choose one | 3 | |
| Environmental Public Health Microbiology | ||
| Developmental Toxicology | ||
| Mechanisms of Infectious Disease | ||
| Elective – Choose one additional course | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 23 | |
Epidemiology Track (24 credits)
In addition to the common MPH core classes, students complete:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | 15 | |
| Structures of Inequality and Population Health | ||
| Social Epidemiology | ||
| Intro to Regression for Understanding the SDOH | ||
| Epidemiology Field Methods | ||
| Epidemiology for Equity | ||
| “S”electives – Choose one | 3 | |
| Environmental Epidemiology | ||
| Cancer Epidemiology | ||
| Critical Perspectives on Nutritional Epidemiology and the Food System | ||
| Other classes as approved by advisor | ||
| Electives – Choose two | 6 | |
| Total Credits | 24 | |
Public Health Policy and Administration Track (24 credits)
In addition to the common MPH core classes, students complete:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | 18 | |
| Structures of Inequality and Population Health | ||
| Qualitative Approaches in Public Health Policy and Administration | ||
| Quantitative Research Methods for PH Policy & Administration | ||
| Public Health Administration | ||
| Principles of Public Health Economics | ||
| Content Elective- choose at least one | 3 | |
| Health Systems and Population Health | ||
| Violence and Health | ||
| Social and Economic Policy as Health Policy | ||
| Critical Perspectives on Nutritional Epidemiology and the Food System | ||
| Maternal and Child Health Foundations, Policy and Practice | ||
| Methods and Practice Elective- Choose at least one | 3 | |
| Community Health Assessment | ||
| Program Planning & Implementation in Public Health | ||
| Program Evaluation in Public Health | ||
| Survey Research Methods in Public Health | ||
| Intro to Regression for Understanding the SDOH | ||
| Epidemiology for Equity | ||
| Foundations of Community-Based Organizations | ||
| Proposal Writing and Fundraising Skills for Community-Based Organizations | ||
| Nonprofit Advocacy and Public Policy | ||
| Budgeting and Finance in the Public Sector | ||
| Introduction to Urban Geographic Information Systems for Planning | ||
| Concepts and Practice of Nonprofit Management | ||
| Other classes as approved by advisor | ||
| Total Credits | 24 | |
Total MPH Degree Credits Required: 46-48 Credit Hours
Comprehensive Examination
Not Required
Master of Social Work (MSW)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Foundation Curriculum | 20 | |
| Social Systems and Social Work Practice | ||
| Methods of Social Welfare Research | ||
| Cultural Diversity and Social Work | ||
| Individual Behavior and Social Welfare | ||
| Social Work Methods I: Individuals and Families | ||
| Social Work Methods II: Groups, Organizations and Communities | ||
| Field Instruction I | ||
| Advanced Practice Curriculum | ||
| Practice courses | 8 | |
| Direct Social Work Practice I | ||
or SOC WRK 713 | Community Organization, Planning and Human Service Administration I | |
| Direct Social Work Practice II: | ||
or SOC WRK 915 | Human Services Administration II | |
| Seminar in Social Work Practice: | ||
| Field Courses | 11 | |
| Field Instruction II | ||
| Field Instruction IV | ||
| Coordinated Public Health and Social Work Field Education and Leadership in Public Health | ||
| Human Behavior Content (Choose one) | 3 | |
| Adult Psychopathology | ||
| Development of the Family Over the Life Span | ||
| Social Gerontology | ||
| Trauma Counseling I: Theory and Research | ||
| Research | 5 | |
| Evaluation of Practice | ||
| Program Evaluation in Public Health | ||
| Social Policy | 2-3 | |
| Social Issue and Policy Analysis: | ||
| Electives selected from among successfully completed MPH courses | 6 | |
| Total Credits | 55-56 | |
Total Degree Credits Required:
(1) With BSW: 34 cr.
(2) Without a BSW: 56 cr.
Total Credits for Coordinated Degree Program:
(1) 65 - 82 cr. (with BSW)
(2) 87-104 cr. (non-BSW)
The credits for the coordinated program would typically be completed in both programs at the same time, rather than one program after the other. A student not completing the requirements for the coordinated degree program would need to complete all requirements for an individual program in order to receive a degree.
Additional Requirements
Faculty Advisor
All students will be assigned a faculty member to advise and supervise their studies as specified in Graduate School regulations. Students should develop, in consultation with the advisor, a written plan of study, including selection of the specialized concentration. Students may elect to change advisor contingent upon the new advisor’s appropriateness to the area of specialized concentration, the advisor’s acceptance of additional advisees, and formal notification to the MSW specialist in the MSW program.
Thesis
Not Required.
Comprehensive Examination
Not Applicable.
Time Limit
Students in the coordinated MPH/MSW degree program must complete all degree requirements within seven years of the first enrollment semester as a degree student.