Emerging School of Public Health

About the SOPH

On January 19, 2011, the Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center’s Chancellor, Christopher Colenda, MD, MPH, announced that West Virginia University will establish a new School of Public Health. Aided by support from the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation and the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, these plans are now well established. Five academic departments have formed to lead the pre-accreditation phase of development for the new School. On June 23, 2011, five interim department chairs and four planning committees, including about 50 faculty representatives from across the university, began to work on curriculum and organizational reform on the planning path to School status. An organizational chart can be seen here.

The emerging School is building upon a strong foundation, the existing Department of Community Medicine and its allies. There is already a CEPH-accredited program with over 100 MPH students and more than 20 PhD students. Our students have achieved success in professional placements. There is a dynamic interdisciplinary research enterprise. The mission has always been to provide primary prevention, intervention, and public health research to West Virginia communities and beyond. Now, the scale and scope of our MPH and PhD programs will increase.

The department faculty have performed nationally recognized work in competitive, externally funded centers, such as the West Virginia Rural Health Research Center, the Translational Tobacco Reduction Research Program, the Office of Health Services Research, the WVU Biostatistics Consulting Group, the Center on Aging, the Institute for Occupational and Environmental Health, and the West Virginia Prevention Research Center.

There is a strong community basis for our endeavors. It is common to see our students taking on community projects, or publishing research with their faculty mentors. These positive attributes will not change with growth. The opportunities will increase.

At least ten new tenure-track faculty will be hired, from entry-level to leadership positions. Advertisements can be seen here. Public agencies in West Virginia and beyond have expressed interest in educational, research, and service partnerships with the new School. Emerging partnerships include the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, which operated a major research facility adjacent to the WVU campus, and the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health.

We welcome your interest as well. You are welcome to contact me at aducatman@hsc.wvu.edu.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

• What are the advantages of changing to one of the new curricula?
• New (and improved) courses have been integrated into the new curricula, with changes in some instructors.   Current students may take some of these courses as electives, if desired.

• What are the disadvantages of changing to the new curriculum?
•  All of the new curricula require a higher number of credit hours (43 – 46).
•  The culminating experience requirements are changing (the number of applied hours and credit hours may differ).
•  A student’s planned graduation date could be delayed as some of the new courses may not be offered until the 2013-14 academic year. 

• Will changing to the new curriculum affect my projected graduation date?
• If you choose to switch to the new curriculum, you may have to take additional credits, which may affect your projected graduation date. Otherwise, you will graduate as planned as long as you make acceptable progress in your courses.

• Will my diploma be affected if I do not change to the new curriculum?
• All MPH diplomas will be from the WVU School of Public Health (from a specific department) no later than spring 2013.  (This may go into effect for December 2012 graduates.)
• Students in the generalist track will receive their diplomas from the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences.
• Students in the combined Biostatistics and Epidemiology track will receive their diplomas from the Department of Epidemiology.

• When will this change go in effect?
• SPH courses and the switch to SPH course numbers will begin in fall 2012, with new courses gradually added each semester until the full curriculum is available.  This will take 2 academic years (fall 2012 – spring 2014).  Students matriculating into the MPH program for fall 2012 will start with the new curricula.

• If I lack the specific requirements for admission (for a specific department in the School of Public Health) can I still change to the new curriculum?
• This is situational. If you do not meet the Departmental admission requirements, yet wish to switch, you will need to schedule a meeting with the department chair and/or your faculty advisor to discuss your situation.

• If I am currently in the Generalist Track, can I still finish under the current curriculum?
• All students may complete the program under the curriculum in place when they began the MPH program.  Students who become inactive will fall under a different set of requirements (see FAQ on that topic).

• If I remain in the Generalist Track, how will this affect my diploma? What department will I be under?
• In all likelihood, students completing the generalist track will receive their diplomas from the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, as the current generalist curriculum is most closely aligned with the courses offered in that department.

• If I do not change to the new curriculum, will I be able to take some of the new courses as electives?
• Yes, students may take the new courses as electives as long as they meet all prerequisite requirements for them. 

• When will the new courses (and new course numbers) be offered?
• The new courses will be offered gradually over the next 2 academic years. However, the new course numbers will go into effect fall 2012.  Most course numbers have been changed.  However, the content of existing courses with new numbers remains largely unchanged.    

• If I change to the new curriculum will my faculty advisor change?
• If you move from a track to a completely different department, you will be assigned a new faculty advisor.  If you stay in the same department, you may remain under your current faculty advisor, or switch if you desire.

• How will this change affect dual degree program students?
• Most dual degree students are completing the generalist track in the MPH program.  In most cases, these students will be best served by remaining with the current curricula.
• We are in the process of updating the course sequences of all existing dual degree programs, as well as developing new ones. 

• If I am an international student, will this affect my visa?
• No, you will still have up to 3 years to complete the MPH degree.

• If I stay with the old curriculum, will my degree still be accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH), the national accrediting agency for public health programs and schools?
• Yes, the MPH degree is currently accredited through 2015 (and has been since its inception in 1995).  We fully expect to transition to an accredited School of Public Health in 2015, at which time all public health degrees offered by the School will be accredited.

• Will changing to the new curriculum affect tuition costs?
• No.  The tuition and fees for the School of Public Health will remain constant with current charges.  However, any increases in tuition and fees approved by the WVU Board of Governors will be reflected in the SPH tuition and fees.
• MPH students, whether in the new curricula or the old, will pay the same tuition and fees. There may be slight differences in tuition and fees for off-campus versus on-campus students.  

• How long do I have to complete my MPH degree?
• You have 8 years to complete your degree, starting with the date of the first course taken toward the degree (includes extra-departmental courses and courses taken as a non-degree student that are transferred into the MPH program). 
• If you become inactive (see below), you will have to:
  a). reapply to become a WVU graduate student (and pay the application fee) and
  b). reapply to the MPH program.  You will not be required to submit new GRE scores or letters of reference. However, you will need to meet departmental admission requirements and complete the MPH program under the curriculum in place at the time of readmission.

• When does a student become inactive? 
• Students automatically become inactive if they do not register for any courses for more than 1 calendar year (US citizens) or 2 calendar years (students with international visas).
  

• I am unsure of what to do, who shall I contact for more information?
• You may contact any of the following for additional information.
  
  
• Janet Hunt, Interim Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs       
  jhunt@hsc.wvu.edu            
  
  
• Leah Adkins, Senior Program Coordinator
  leadkins@hsc.wvu.edu

Course Numbering (Old Course # → New Course #)

Informational Documents

If you have general questions about the accreditation process, new course numbers, curriculum transitions, the school's transition timeline, diplomas and more, please view the following:

• Informational PowerPoint
• Department Requirement Comparisons
• MPH Culminating Experience Requirements
• Organizational Chart
• Strategic Plan

SOPH News

• 01/19/2011 - Health News - WVU plans to establish new School of Public Health
• 01/19/2011 - WVU Today - WVU plans to establish new School of Public Health
• 01/24/2011 - WBOY - WVU Proposes School of Public Health
• 02/10/2011 - WBOY - Planning to Create Public Health School at WVU
• 03/28/2011 - Health News - WVU School of Public Health a step closer to reality
• 05/20/2011 - WVU Today - Robbins' gift to create Center for Global Business and School of Public Health professorship
• 06/03/2011 - WVU Today - WVU Board also endorsed planning for a new School of Public Health
• 06/23/2011 - WBOY - WVU School of Public Health Plan Moves Forward
• 09/09/2011 - WVU Today - WVU BOG hears Fiscal 2011 was a “good year”
• 10/01/2011 - West Virginia Medical Journal - The Importance of a School of Public Health to West Virginia