Public Health Practice

Students matriculating in Fall 2019 and thereafter, please review the information under Applied Practice Experience. Students who matriculated prior to Fall 2019, please review the information under Practicum Experience. 

Applied Practice Experience 

Applied Practice Experience (APEx) is the new applied learning experience required of all Master of Public Health (MPH) students, and is more than what we used to call “Practicum”. APEx is designed to help students apply the knowledge, skills, and theories learned in the classroom to real-world public health issues outside of the classroom. Guided by your departmental practice advisor, faculty, and preceptors, you will be able to demonstrate the attainment of MPH foundational and program-specific competencies, learn from public health professionals from a range of public and private sector disciplines. During the APEx, you will have the chance to build the relationships critical to a strong and engaged professional network, collaborate on interprofessional teams, and jumpstart your public health career (or career transition)!

To successfully fulfill the APEx requirement, students must complete a minimum of 120 hours at an approved public health organization (site) and produce at least 2 work products that benefit the APEx site and demonstrate the student’s attainment of the required competencies. Students will complete the APEx as part of PUBH 6022: Public Health Practice and Leadership 2 and should consult with their advisor regarding program-specific requirements for APEx.   

Practicum Experience 

The Practicum Experience is a planned, supervised, and evaluated project in which students gain practical skills and knowledge via a 120-hour real-world work experience. During the Practicum, you will work under the supervision of your department’s Practicum Advisor and a Site Preceptor to develop practical skills and confidence as a public health professional contributing to a community’s resources and to the solution of public health problems. 

Practicum Resources:

Practicum Equivalent Experience Waiver 

Students who matriculated before Fall 2019 and have 3 or more years of full-time, professional public health experience prior to beginning their MPH program, may qualify for a practicum waiver. If their practicum waiver is approved, students are required to replace the Practicum Experience credit hours (2) with an approved elective. To be considered for a practicum waiver, students must submit their completed Practicum Equivalent Experience Waiver Application to their departmental practicum advisor, director, or coordinator prior to the end of their second term.