Master of Public Health
The Master of Public Health program provides a rigorous curriculum to help students develop the analytic and critical reasoning skills to improve population health. Students gain the skills needed for employment in a broad range of positions in local, state and national public health agencies as well as private and academic research.
Fully accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH), the VCU MPH program is closely linked with local, state and national public health agencies, organizations, and professionals in order to enhance the student's appreciation and understanding of the application of public health principles to practice and research.
Concentrations
- Applied public health
- Epidemiology
- Cancer health equity science
- Health policy - New, Fall 2025
Dual-Degree Programs
MPH students may choose from dual-degree programs offered in partnership with the schools of Medicine, Pharmacy, and Social Work at VCU:
Accelerated Degree Program
Earn both a BS in Health Physical Education and Exercise with a health science or exercise science concentrations and MPH on an accelerated timeline, with 12 shared credits in the senior year that count towards upper level electives in BS and MPH core classes.
Students should declare BS and MPH accelerated program in their junior year. Contact your academic advisor.
Honors College Preferred Applicants
VCU University Honors graduates and VCU Honors students may apply to the MPH via the Preferred Applicant Track without competing via general admissions for acceptance into the MPH. Students must apply by November 1st of the year prior to entry into the MPH program.
Are you a current VCU undergrad? Don't forget about the RAM Opportunity!
About the MPH Program
Admission requirements:
- Applied public health
- Epidemiology
- Cancer health equity science
- Health policy (more details coming soon)
Tuition and fees: Choose "Masters - Public Health" in the "Select a Program" drop-down menu
The Graduate Education Innovation Program (GEIP) offers a distinctive tuition and fee structure for out-of-state and international students, designed to make our prestigious graduate programs more accessible and affordable.
Each candidate shall complete a minimum of 45 credit hours toward the degree. This includes core courses in biostatistics, environmental health, epidemiology, health policy, interprofessional collaboration, and social and behavioral health. All students complete an internship at a community-based public health agency or organization and an integrated learning experience, the MPH capstone project.
The program offers concentrations in:
In addition to core degree course requirements, each concentration requires a minimum of 9 credits of concentration-specific courses and a minimum of 10 credits of elective courses.
For full-time students (9 or more credits per semester), the average time to degree completion is two academic years. For part-time students (fewer than 9 credits per semester), the average time to completion ranges from three to five years. VCU requires a master's level degree to be completed within six academic years.
Please see below for detailed information on the M.P.H. program's plan of study:
The public health internship requires students to work 180 hours in a non-university, professional public health setting such as the Virginia Department of Health or the Institute for Public Health Innovation. Students must have completed at least 18 credit hours of coursework in the program before enrolling in the public health internship.
In addition, all students are required to complete 20 hours of community-based service-learning.
The capstone experience is an integrated learning experience designed to synthesize knowledge gained through the classroom and practical processes and is the degree’s culminating work. Students typically complete the capstone project during the last one to two semesters of study. Students address multiple MPH program competencies through the work as they synthesize the literature, apply theory, and integrate knowledge gained in situations that approximate some aspect of professional practice. This mentored experience allows students to both broaden their skills and hone their proficiency in a specific area of public health.
Examples of typical capstone projects include:
- Manuscript suitable for publication in a peer-reviewed journal
- Comprehensive disease-related report
- Policy analysis report
- Health promotion materials (e.g. brochures/posters/fliers, educational video games, website content, etc.), on a specific disease area
- Needs assessment for a specific population
- Development, implementation, and analysis of target population surveys
- Program evaluation
In fulfilling the capstone requirement, each candidate must:
- Submit a formal written paper of sufficient depth and rigor; and
- Satisfactorily complete an oral presentation of the project chosen as the basis for the written paper at an appropriate venue (e.g. stakeholder meeting, departmental seminar, research forum, etc.) approved by program administration.
MPH Career Stats:
- More than 90% of MPH graduates in the last five years are employed or pursued further study within six months of graduation.
- More than half of our students find positions in a university or government setting.
- Approximately one-fifth pursue further education.
- The remainder find jobs in nonprofit organizations, health systems, or private companies.
Job placements include:
- State or local health department offices in positions such as district epidemiologist, drug overdose communications coordinator, or city research scientist
- University or healthcare systems, as members of research teams
- Non-profit organizations, including national organizations like the American Heart Association and local ones like Early Impact Virginia, Virginia Healthcare Foundation, and Virginia Health Catalyst
- Other governmental organizations, such as the Richmond Behavioral Health Authority
- Private companies, such as Booz Allen Hamilton, The EI Group, or the Lewin Group
- Fellowships with the Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Health and Human Services, or the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists
Some alumni pursue doctoral degrees in epidemiology, psychology, nursing, and more, while others pursue clinical study in medicine, nursing, therapy, or social work.