Graduate Course Directory and Schedules

The key culminating step for each MPH student is the Integrative Project (IP). Through the IP, a high-quality written product is produced, which we call the “IP paper.” Through the IP paper, students demonstrate their academic learning and public health practice skills through the synthesis of foundational and program competencies and application of those competencies to complex public health issues. The paper will take the form of a substantial written product such as a program evaluation, policy or economic analysis, grant proposal, health promotion or community engagement program plan, publishable manuscript, or other written product that demonstrates integration of three foundational (one must include Foundational Competency #6) and three program competencies. Appropriate types of written products vary by program, type of practice experience (if the two are integrated), and the student’s career goals. We recommend (but do not require) that the IP paper build upon work conducted in the Practice Experience. For example, students may write a high-quality written paper using the findings from a statistical analysis performed in support of a research project that is separate from their Practice Experience.

More information about the Integrative Project

The student identifies a faculty member to develop a course of study consistent with the student’s interest and degree objectives.

Prerequisite

Matriculation into the MPH Epidemiology program.

This course will involve a series of public health/epidemiology seminar sessions with a presentation-discussions format focused on issues of interest to both clinicians and public health practitioners, particularly those relevant to the interface between medicine and public health.

Epidemiology I introduces the concepts, principles and methods of epidemiology to graduate students in the School of Public Health. Epidemiology is one of the fundamental sciences used by public health professionals to identify, prevent and control health problems in communities. Specifically, epidemiologic methods are used to investigate the distribution of health-related states or events (e.g. disease, health conditions, etc.) in populations and identify the factors or characteristics that influence or determine these distributions. In addition, epidemiology is used to aide in the implementation and evaluation of public health programs and policies designed to control or ameliorate health problems in populations. In this course, students will learn how to apply epidemiological methods to address questions about the distribution of disease, death, disability and risk exposures in populations, as well as those relating to causal associations between exposures and health outcomes.

Slash Listed Courses

Doctoral students register for the EPI 612 section.

This course is the second in a three-course sequence designed for the MPH Epidemiology and Biostatistics majors. Students will develop skills in recognizing strengths and weaknesses of various epidemiological study designs, describing sources of bias that can distort measures of effect/association, and designing case-control studies, cohort studies, and randomized clinical trials. The class will also explore additional study designs used less frequently, such as nested case-control studies and case-crossover studies. Students will gain experience in recognizing and evaluating the roles of bias, confounding, and interaction (effect modification) in data derived from epidemiological studies. Problem-solving exercises will focus on study designs and analysis. Written homework assignments and problem-oriented learning will occupy a central role in facilitating mastery of epidemiologic methods and issues.

Prerequisites

:

• EPI 512/612 Epidemiology I
• BSTA 525 Intro to Biostatistics

Slash Listed Courses

Also offered as Epi 613

This course introduces students to the causes and consequences of traumatic injury and violence and the public health approach to injury and violence prevention. Conceptual frameworks that consider behavioral and environmental approaches to injury prevention will be discussed as well as the upstream socio-economic underpinnings of injury and violence causation. EPI 521 is primarily designed for students in a Master’s in Public Health (MPH) program, in EPI or related field, in the OHSU-PSU School of Public Health. EPI 621 is designed for PhD students from EPI or other related PhD program.

Slash Listed Courses

Also offered for doctoral students as Epi 621 and may be taken only once for credit.

Students will apply epidemiologic and biostatistical principles to the analysis of National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (NHANES) data. Hypotheses are formulated based on the NHANES variables and a brief literature review of the public health need for the research. Students work in pairs to plan, organize, and conduct analyses leading to final oral and written presentations of their findings. Class time allows for hands-on experience with data quality assessment, preparation of datasets and variables for analysis, and multivariable modeling. Emphasis is on planning and communicating analytic plans that reflect the causal models generated by students and allow for assessment of confounding and interaction (effect measure modification).

Prerequisites

:

• EPI 512 Epidemiology I
• EPI 513/613 Epidemiology II
• EPI 514/614 Epidemiology III
• BSTA 512 Linear Models
• BSTA 513 Categorical Data Analysis
• BSTA 525 Intro to Biostatistics

Slash Listed Courses

Also offered as Epi 636 – Epidemiological Data Analysis & Interpretation

This course is designed for MPH Epidemiology and MPH and MS Biostatistics program majors, as well as PhD candidates in Epidemiology. The course is intended to give students an understanding of the epidemiology of major chronic diseases in developed countries. It covers three aspects of chronic disease: 1) epidemiology methods used in their study, 2) epidemiologic findings and current status of epidemiologic research into various chronic diseases, and 3) the epidemiology of the major risk factors for chronic diseases. The course is based on presentations by researchers and public health practitioner experts on specific chronic disease topics. Students will gain familiarity with some of the important epidemiologic studies and study innovations that have contributed to our knowledge of chronic diseases and their control.

Slash Listed Courses

Doctoral students register for the EPI 676 section.

Prerequisite

EPI 512 – Epidemiology I

This advanced doctoral-level course synthesizes across students’ prior training in epidemiology, biostatistics, applied research, and the disciplines/content areas that are required for students’ doctoral research. Building on this foundation, and drawing from doctoral students’ and the instructor’s expertise, this course aims to facilitate the intellectual development required to conduct and present original epidemiologic research.

Prerequisite

EPI 610 – Epidemiology Doctoral Seminar