About the Dual Degree Program
The dual degree offers a synergistic integration of individual patient management with public health and the study of social determinants of health and disease that affect communities and populations domestically and internationally.
Arcadia’s College of Health Sciences has nationally recognized health care, public health, science and business programs that make the world a laboratory by providing real-world, experiential learning. Graduate programs use evidence- based research and project-based learning to prepare health care and public health professionals for a rapidly changing global environment. Applied and pro bono clinical research, clinical rotations, public health internships, optional international fieldwork, and multicultural assessment are incorporated into the curricula. Graduate students also have the opportunity to conduct research and may publish with expert faculty in many fields.
Dual degree candidates must be accepted into each of the programs in order to pursue dual degrees: Master of Medical Science (M.M.S.) and Master of Public Health (MPH).
This dual degree program prepares graduates for professional and leadership roles in meeting individual and community health needs. The master’s degree program in Medical Science (M.M.S.) is designed to produce graduates who are well-equipped to deliver high-quality, cost-effective primary health care in a wide variety of settings, including hospitals, clinics, physicians’ offices and other community settings. Arcadia has one of the largest Physician Assistant programs in the nation, with campuses in Glenside, Pa., and Christiana, Del.
The Master of Public Health (MPH) has a Community Health Concentration and is accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). The MPH degree, offered through the College of Health Sciences, extends clinical practice by incorporating broader knowledge and action related to preventing disease and disability and improving individual and population-level outcomes. Public health is centered in achieving health equity and reducing disparities, including understanding and addressing the social and community context of disease, illness, disability and recovery, as well as health promotion and health research. Our MPH trains students to work effectively as public health professionals in local and global communities through a wide variety of health-related organizations.
Highlights of our program curricula includes the following:
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Program planning and evaluation
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Healthcare and broader public health policy
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Epidemiology, research methods, and biostatistics
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Public health communication
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Capstone projects that integrate practice and research
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Internships that give students first-hand experience in public health settings
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Interprofessional education experiences
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Opportunities for domestic and international service projects
The MPH program educates future community public health professionals to promote the health of individuals, families, communities, and the environment. This is accomplished through a program that integrates education, research and practice in a globally-minded environment. Our goal is that our students:
- Understand community public health and develop the skills needed to succeed in a public health career.
- Are engaged in an academic, applied environment that integrates community public health education with research and practice.
- Recognize the connection between health status and human rights and act to improve outcomes.
- Translate knowledge into practice through collaborative service projects and internships, with community-based organizations, health facilities, government organizations, and local health departments.
- Employ scientific investigation to advance public health knowledge of the relationship between health and the structural environment within which individuals live and work.
Our program allows for broad interests in public health but we also encourage students to focus their coursework on a specific area of interest, choose an Internship experience that emphasizes their individualized interests, and plan a Capstone project focused in the same area. In this way, each student can develop a specialized knowledge base about public health issues related to his or her specific area of interest.
Our dual-degree programs train health professionals in the core areas of community-based public health. The application of the public health skill set added to the skills learned within the clinical and behavioral primary degree instills a public health perspective to blend and build an interdisciplinary career.
The dual degree program in public health and physician assistant studies is a three-year program. Students work towards their MPH degree at Arcadia’s Glenside, PA campus during the first year. Year two and three encompass the physician assistant studies and may be completed at either the Christiana, DE or Glenside, PA campus at the program’s discretion.
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