Graduate Field
Public Health and Planetary Health
Program Description
The Cornell University Master of Public Health Program offers a Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree through
the Graduate School. Concentrations for the Cornell M.P.H. degree include:
- Emergency Preparedness & Management
- Environment, Climate & Health
- Food Systems & Health
- Infectious Disease Epidemiology
M.P.H. program is made up of three types of courses: Core, Concentration, and Integrative. All students take Core courses at the same time, in a prescribed sequence. All concentration cohorts take their Concentration courses at the same time, in a prescribed sequence. All students must complete applied practice and Integrative learning courses to complement their concentration course work. The entire program takes two academic years to complete (52 credits of in-person study). Alternative course of study pathways exist for students matriculated into the Accelerated or Part-time programs.
Core courses: Students must take 30 credits of required core courses for graduation, reflecting the Program’s commitment to broad, generalizable professional public health education and training. A number of these courses are community engaged – students will work on real-life projects with and for community and government partners. Accelerated students take 28 credits of core courses.
Concentration courses: Students must take 12 credits of required concentration-specific courses for graduation, reflecting the Program’s commitment to development of expertise in one area of public health.
Applied Practice and Integrative Learning: Students complete up to 4 credits of courses that prepare them for applied practice experiences; as a part of this, students engage in extra-curricular project work under the supervision of a public health mentor, and develop products of benefit to the field of public health. In addition, students complete at least 3 credits of courses that facilitate integrative learning related to the student’s concentration area; this results in a high-quality written document that is of benefit to the field of public health.
Electives: Elective courses offer students an opportunity to pursue their individual interests through a system of structured choices. Most students take at least 6 credits of elective courses. (accelerated students are exempt)
Program Information
- Instruction Mode: In Person
- Location: Ithaca, NY
- Minimum Credits for Degree: 52; 43 for Accelerated
Program Requirements
Core Courses
Course List | Code | Title | Hours |
| VTPEH 6100 | Public Health Colloquium 1 | 1 |
| VTPEH 6101 | Public Health Foundations I 1 | 3 |
| VTPEH 6102 | Social Epidemiology Principles and Multilevel Influences on Health | 3 |
| VTPEH 6103 | Public Health Policy 1 | 3 |
| VTPEH 6104 | Epidemiology in Practice | 3 |
| VTPEH 6105 | Biostatistics for Health Sciences 1 | 3 |
| VTPEH 6107 | Public Health Writing Lab | 1 |
| VTPEH 6108 | Public Health Data Analysis Lab 2 | 1 |
| VTPEH 6181 | Public Health Practice - Assessment | 3 |
| VTPEH 6182 | Public Health Practice - Planning | 3 |
| VTPEH 6183 | Public Health Practice – Monitoring, Evaluation, and Quality Improvement | 3 |
| VTPEH 6184 | Strategic Public Health Communication | 3 |
Concentration Area Requirements
Must complete 1 Concentration Area
Emergency Preparedness & Management
Course List | Code | Title | Hours |
| VTPEH 6131 | Disaster Policy and Politics | 3 |
| VTPEH 6132 | Public Health Emergency Management | 3 |
| VTPEH 6133 | Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication | 3 |
| VTPEH 6134 | Vulnerability Analysis and Hazard Mitigation | 3 |
Environment, Climate & Health
Course List | Code | Title | Hours |
| VTPEH 6141 | Planetary Health | 3 |
| VTPEH 6142 | Health, Wellbeing, and The Environment | 3 |
| VTPEH 6143 | Health Impact Assessment | 3 |
| VTPEH 6144 | Leading Change for Health Equity, Sustainability, and Justice | 3 |
Food Systems and Health
Infectious Disease Epidemiology
Course List | Code | Title | Hours |
| VTPEH 6111 | Infectious Disease and Health | 3 |
| VTPEH 6113 | Advanced Epidemiologic Methods | 3 |
| VTPEH 6115 | Pandemic Prevention Preparedness and Response | 3 |
| VTPEH 6116 | Infectious Disease Epidemiology Applications 1 | 3 |
Applied Practice & Integrative Learning
Must complete Applied Practice & Integrative Learning courses.
Course List | Code | Title | Hours |
| VTPEH 6191 | Professional Skills and Explorations in Public Health 1 | 1 |
| VTPEH 6192 | Public Health Ethics, Leadership and Interprofessional Collaborative Practice | 1 |
| VTPEH 6194 | Public Health Toolkit: Applied Practice, Negotiation, and Presenting Transferable Skills | 2 |
Graduate School Milestones
Students must:
- Achieve at least a C in each course. Failure to achieve a C will require repeating the course until a C is achieved.
- Be assessed as Competent in each competency area (40). If competence is not achieved, student must work with M.P.H. faculty or designee to build and demonstrate competence anew. In some cases, achieving competence may require repeating the course.
- Complete one or more Applied Practice Experience under the supervision of a public health practitioner.
- Develop and submit a portfolio to document competence.
- Complete an Integrative Learning Course resulting in a high-quality written document that has value to the field of public health.
If sufficient concern exists at the end of the first or second semester about student performance and/or competence mastery, students will meet with Program leadership about the appropriateness of continuing to the next phase of the program.
Other Requirements
To receive the Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree, candidates must successfully: complete all curricular requirements, achieve a grade of C or above in each class, demonstrate competence in all 40-defined areas in their Portfolio, pay all fees, and be recommended for graduation by the faculty of the Program.
University Graduation Requirements
Requirements for All Students
In order to receive a Cornell degree, a student must satisfy academic and non-academic requirements.
Academic Requirements
A student’s college determines degree requirements such as residency, number of credits, distribution of credits, and grade averages. It is the student’s responsibility to be aware of the specific major, degree, distribution, college, and graduation requirements for completing their chosen program of study. See the individual requirements listed by each college or school or contact the college registrar’s office for more information.
Non-academic Requirements
Conduct Matters. Students must satisfy any outstanding sanctions, penalties or remedies imposed or agreed to under the Student Code of Conduct (Code) or Policy 6.4. Where a formal complaint under the Code or Policy 6.4 is pending, the University will withhold awarding a degree otherwise earned until the adjudication process set forth in those procedures is complete, including the satisfaction of any sanctions, penalties or remedies imposed.
Financial Obligations. Outstanding financial obligations will not impact the awarding of a degree otherwise earned or a student’s ability to access their official transcript. However, the University may withhold issuing a diploma until any outstanding financial obligations owing to the University are satisfied.
