Practicum Experience in Population-Based Health

Meet our students
& alumni

Chuka Anude
Nigeria, MPH Alumnus 2007

I have always wanted to be a hand and a voice; a hand to help hurting people and a voice for the voiceless. This led me to medicine and now to public health... Read More

Priya Mehra
USA, MPH Alumnus 2010

For me the Bloomberg School is a place for greater self-discovery. My background in public health... Read More

Tom Edling
USA, Part-Time MPH

I have a BS in Industrial Engineering from Texas A&M University, DVM from Colorado State University, and a... Read More

Jennifer Cohn
USA, Part-Time MPH

I am currently an instructor in medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania... Read More

Somnazu Nwanze
Nigeria, Full-Time MPH

I am a medical doctor, who graduated from the University of Benin, Nigeria. My latest assignment was with the Nigerian Youth Corps... Read More

Olga Joos
USA, MPH Alumnus 2009

Born in Florida, but raised in both Europe and the U.S., I have a strong love for traveling which now compliments my interest in public health... Read More

Gregory Tung
USA, MPH Alumnus 2007

The online MPH is a versatile degree that has been key in my professional development. I entered the program while working full-time as a hospital administrator... Read More

Jung-Im Shin South Korea, MPH Alumnus 2010

Who would have thought that I would end up at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health? Certainly not me... Read More

Luca Passerini
Italy, MPH Alumnus 2010

I am an Italian Medical Doctor with a passion for global health and social entrepreneurship, focusing on poverty-related diseases, child health and humanitarian action... Read More

Marie Curry USA, Part-Time MPH

I began the part-time MPH program with the goal of using my research and analytical skills to further policies that improve health... Read More

Daniel Ehlman
USA, Alumnus 2005

I earned my MPH concentrating my coursework in Epidemiology and Biostatistics with a capstone project analyzing malaria data from Tanzania... Read More

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I want to effect change more than to study others’ efforts to do so.
-Sokhieng Au

The goal of the MPH mentored practicum is to have a practical public health experience that provides mentoring, contact with public health professionals and the opportunity to participate in a meaningful way.

All CEPH- accredited MPH programs require that students obtain a significant practicum experience in population-based health prior to graduation. Some students will have had significant experiences prior to becoming an MPH student. However, other students without such prior experience are expected to do so during their course of study.

The MPH Program will notify students without such prior experience once they matriculate into the program.

Students may earn academic credit for the practicum. All students who complete an experience must complete the Practicum Completion Form.

For students who are required to complete a practicum experience, some of the possible options are listed below. For questions regarding the MPH practicum, please contact Janet Carn (full-time students) or David Earle (part-time students).

Types of Practicum Opportunities

There are numerous opportunities to obtain a practicum experience. If interested in any of these specific opportunities, please follow-up with the contacts and websites listed below. Enrollment in various programs may be limited by the number of available internships or practica.

Customized Opportunities

Regardless of your geographic area, you may develop your own practicum opportunity. These customized opportunities are developed in collaboration with Bloomberg School faculty and a local onsite public health professional.

The practicum experience must be approved by the participating faculty member who oversees your work and awards special studies MPH practicum academic credit that counts towards your degree.

Steps for completing a customized experience are as follows:

1. Identify a potential project and a faculty practicum mentor. If you are having difficulty finding a practicum opportunity in your area, please contact the MPH office.
2. Submit a one-page proposal to your practicum mentor, including a description of the experience (name of organization, dates, work that you will do, dates of project, what PH skills you will use, what you hope to learn). Your faculty mentor will assess whether this experience is appropriate for meeting the MPH practicum requirement.
3. Complete the experience. You may register for academic credit in your practicum mentor’s department (course # PH.xxx.895) during the term when you will complete the experience.
4. Soon after the experience, submit a brief report to your practicum mentor about your experience. Please reflect upon what you learned from the experience and how it fits into your overall MPH program.
5. Document project completion by submitting the Practicum Completion Form.

Mentored Practicum with the Maryland Department of Health & Mental Hygiene and Local Health Departments

The Public Health Application for Student Experience or “PHASE,” is a structured internship running 2nd-3rd terms and 2nd-4th terms. PHASE provides Bloomberg School graduate students with real world public health practice experiences with state and local health departments in Maryland.

The application process and selection of students occurs in the 1st and 2nd terms. Course number 550.851. Faculty contacts:Beth Resnick and Dipti Shah; Practicum Navigator: Jennifer Le.

Mentored Practicum with Community-Based Organizations

The "Baltimore Community Practicum" course (BCP) is a structured internship which runs in both 2nd and 3rd terms and is organized by SOURCE (Student Outreach Resource Center). SOURCE provides opportunities for students to work with various Baltimore-based community organizations and local health departments in our region. The application process and selection of students occurs in the 1st term. Students must enroll in both 2nd and 3rd terms for 1-4 units each term and attend weekly seminars. Course number 550.864. Faculty contact: Mindi Levin.

Mentored Practicum in Health Care Epidemiology and Outbreak Investigation

A limited number of internships are available in infection control and outbreak investigation at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. Students enroll for at least 2 units of academic credit. Faculty contact: Trish Perl.

International or Domestic Public Health Practice Trips

Students have organized public health practice trips to work with various government and non-government organizations. In the past, these trips have occurred in January. There may be competitive grants to help partially defray costs of these trips, including the MPH Field Experience Award fund. Practice trips must have JHSPH faculty mentors.

Courses with Significant Practicum Component

Completion of any of the courses below could satisfy the practicum. A letter grade of "C" or better must be earned in order to fulfill the practicum requirement.

• Health and Homelessness, 410.610: Lee Bone, 3rd term, 3 units
• Ethnographic Fieldwork, 410.690: Deborah Gioia, 3rd term, 4 unit
• Health Survey Research Methods, 340.717: Vivian Go, 2nd term, 4 units
• Health Literacy: Challenges & Strategies for Effective Communication, 410.651: Debra Roter, 3rd term, 3 units
• Qualitative Research Theory & Methods, 224.690-691: Peter Winch & Caitlin Kennedy, 3rd & 4th terms, 5 units each
• Program Planning for Health Behavior Change Practicum, 410.868: Vanya Jones, 1st term, 2 units (does not apply to online or institute offerings of this course)

Registering for Academic Credit for the MPH Practicum

Students may earn two or more units of practicum special studies academic credit, if desired, for practicum work (students enrolled on a part-time basis at the time that they do the practicum may opt to not register for the credits, but must still document completion of the experience).

The MPH practicum special studies course numbers are xxx.895. The 3-digit prefix number is determined by the primary department of your faculty practicum supervisor (check with the course catalog and your advisor).

You can determine the department affiliation of any faculty in the Bloomberg School by going to the faculty directory. If your practicum supervisor does not have a primary appointment at the Bloomberg School, but has a joint appointment in a Bloomberg School department, then use that department affiliation. If there is no joint appointment or the appointment is outside Johns Hopkins, use your advisor’s department. If you are still uncertain, check with the contact the MPH program office.