Students pursuing the Public Health Minor, if qualified, may apply for advanced placement in the Master of Public Health (MPH) degree program, allowing them to satisfy MPH degree requirements in one year, rather than two. The primary component of the program is that a qualified undergraduate student may take up to 9 hours of approved graduate courses for their senior undergraduate electives and have them count toward both their undergraduate degree and the MPH degree. Any student pursuing a Bachelor of Science (BS) or Bachelor of Arts (BA) at UTK, who is also accepted into the Public Health Minor, and who meets the additional requirements described below, may apply for this pathway and begin the MPH program the summer after their senior year. Additional information, regarding MPH program concentrations, can be found in the Graduate Catalog.
The primary component of the program is that a qualified student may take up to 9 hours of approved graduate courses and have them count toward both the undergraduate degree and the MPH degree. With the approval of the department in which the student’s undergraduate degree is located, some or all of the 9 hours of graduate courses may be applied to specific curricular requirements in the undergraduate degree.
Approved graduate courses for students accepted into the program:
- Term 7 - PUBH 530 Biostatistics (3)
- Term 8 - PUBH 510 Environmental Health (3) and PUBH 520 Health Systems, Policy and Leadership (3)
The process of seeking admission to the program begins in the spring semester of the junior or third year of undergraduate study. Students will apply electronically using the program application form located on the Public Health undergraduate minor website (https://publichealth.utk.edu/5-2/ug-minor/) to indicate eligibility requirements are met and provide a brief statement of interest. This is a competitive admission process. Program applications must be submitted to the UT Department of Public Health by March 1 of the student’s junior/third year of undergraduate study and will be approved by the Director of the Undergraduate Public Health Minor by April 1.
Additionally, in order to be considered for the program students must:
- Have a minimum overall UT GPA of 3.3;
- A student must be a declared Public Health Minor and must have completed at least NUTR 100 , PSYC 110 or SOCI 110 , STAT 201 or MATH 115 , PUBH 201 , and PUBH 202 with a B or better in PUBH 201 and PUBH 202 , and
- Must have completed at least 90 hours of the 120 hours of coursework required for their Bachelor’s degree.
- A student may be considered for conditional admission if they have one elective course in process. Admission requires successful completion of the elective course.
Acceptance into the program must be obtained before taking a graduate course that is to be used to satisfy the requirements of the student’s bachelor’s degree and the MPH degree. Students must complete the Senior Requesting Graduate Credit form (https://gradschool.utk.edu/forms-central/senior-requesting-graduate-credit/) before registering for the graduate courses. This form must be approved by the graduate school. Students will be informed of the outcome of their application prior to the beginning of their fourth year of undergraduate study.
Acceptance into the program does not guarantee acceptance into the Graduate School or the MPH program. Students who have been admitted to the program must apply for admission to the Graduate School and to the MPH program during their fourth year of undergraduate study, following the standard application procedure. Students will be fully admitted to the MPH program after they have been accepted both by the Graduate School and by the MPH program.
Once fully admitted to the MPH program, students are required to complete the standard curriculum for the MPH program. A student will not be eligible for a graduate assistantship until the student has satisfied all of the requirements for their BS or BA degree.
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