The Competencies of the RSPH Epidemiology Department

Welcome back to the Spring semester 2022 at the Department of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health. As we anticipate commencement at the end of this semester, I have been asked to describe what MPH and MPSH students should expect to be able to do by the time they graduate. In one respect, this question is easy for me to answer, because the Department and the Rollins School of Public Health have spent a lot of time describing the program competencies. These are the exact and complete answer to the question. The high level competencies for each degree program can be found in the student handbook, which is posted on the MPH/MSPH program Canvas page. For each high level competency, the department has a set of sub-level competencies, which go into greater detail.

For each competency, the department has a grid that ties the competency to specific courses, and even specific evaluation aspects of that course. For example, one high level competency that applies to all degree programs is “Formulate a research question and study aims.” This competency, and its sub-level competencies, then tie to specific degree requirements, including for this one completion of the Integrative Learning Experience. Every course syllabus must name the competencies it addresses and describe the specific sections of the course and evaluation methods that address them (this makes up the grid). All of these competencies and the grid were reviewed by a visiting committee put together by the Association of Schools & Programs of Public Health, (ASPPH) which sponsors the Council for Education for Public Health (CEPH). CEPH is the accrediting body for MPH, MSPH, and similar degree programs at schools and programs in public health in the United States and elsewhere. The Rollins School of Public Health went through its accreditation renewal in the fall of 2019, and was awarded the longest possible accreditation of seven years in 2020. The review found no educational aspects that required reconsideration, which is a remarkable achievement and indicative of the emphasis on education at RSPH. You can read the complete RSPH self-study and the accreditation report from CEPH at this link.

The evaluation of the curriculum is an ongoing effort. We regularly review changing methods and areas of educational emphasis in public health. For example, in 2020 the department reviewed its accredited competencies to see whether they adequately addressed racism as a public health crisis. Although the existing competencies did address the topic, our view was that the existing competencies should be improved. New competencies were developed by an ad hoc committee – we are fortunate to have on our faculty experts in this topic, and they contributed substantially to these competency revision. The competencies were reviewed and unanimously approved by the department faculty, and we are now implementing them into the curriculum requirements. As leaders in this development, the department was invited to present the new competencies to a joint meeting of the ASPPH curriculum and diversity & inclusion committees. They have also been shared with the CDC’s educational programs and with program directors and faculty at peer institutions. We hope that they will be influential as these colleagues develop their own competencies, and we know that our own competencies will undergo constant reevaluation and improvement.

I suspect that this column is not what was expected! You might have thought that I would provide a list of the knowledge, skills and philosophies that MPH and MSPH students should expect to master when they graduate. I would be remiss, though, to provide such a list as a single member of the faculty. Our department’s faculty and its committees have spent long hours considering this question and arriving at consensus views. A second group of faculty spent long hours arriving at the processes by which the competencies would be implemented and achieved in the curriculum. The school and department invested substantial time to prepare for the CEPH accreditation (the RSPH self-study document is 410 pages long!). CEPH spent long hours reviewing and evaluating the program, including a days long site visit (the CEPH report is 109 pages long!). And the process of self evaluation and improvement is ongoing, as illustrated by the recent revisions to competencies on racism as a public health crisis. I would be remiss to substitute my solo views for this body of completed work and ongoing effort. Hopefully this description of the effort provides an adequate substitute for the expected answer. I invite you to review the student handbook and accreditation documents, and we welcome your input as we continue to evaluate and improve the programs’ competencies.

Featured Image by Alvaro Reyes on Unsplash