Competencies for specific programs can be found in the Find a Program section.
UW SPH Core Competencies
The SPH is committed to the pursuit of equity, diversity and inclusion in all areas including academic preparation. Reflecting that commitment, the school-wide competency below is required of all degree programs.
- Recognize the means by which social inequities and racism, generated by power and privilege, undermine health.
In addition, SPH embraces the following competencies which were finalized by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) in October 2016.
Profession & Science of Public Health
- Explain public health history, philosophy and values
- Identify the core functions of public health and the 10 Essential Services
- Explain the role of quantitative and qualitative methods and sciences in describing and assessing a population’s health
- List major causes and trends of morbidity and mortality in the US or other community relevant to the school or program
- Discuss the science of primary, secondary and tertiary prevention in population health, including health promotion, screening, etc.
- Explain the critical importance of evidence in advancing public health knowledge
Factors Related to Human Health
- Explain effects of environmental factors on a population’s health
- Explain biological and genetic factors that affect a population’s health
- Explain behavioral and psychological factors that affect a population’s health
- Explain the social, political and economic determinants of health and how they contribute to population health and health inequities
- Explain how globalization affects global burdens of disease
- Explain an ecological perspective on the connections among human health, animal health and ecosystem health (eg, One Health)
The following competencies were finalized by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) in October 2016.
MPH FOUNDATIONAL COMPETENCIES
The Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) released its final version of new accreditation criteria for schools and programs of public health on October 30, 2016. The following competencies have been included for all MPH students. While many of these are already incorporated into core curricula, efforts are underway to assure that content addressing each of these will be available to future students.
Practicum projects must meet five of the below competencies.
Evidence-based Approaches to Public Health
1. Apply epidemiological methods to the breadth of settings and situations in public health practice
2. Select quantitative and qualitative data collection methods appropriate for a given public health context
3. Analyze quantitative and qualitative data using biostatistics, informatics, computer-based programming and software, as appropriate
4. Interpret results of data analysis for public health research, policy or practice
Public Health & Health Care Systems
5. Compare the organization, structure and function of health care, public health and regulatory systems across national and international settings
6. Discuss the means by which structural bias, social inequities and racism undermine health and create challenges to achieving health equity at organizational, community and societal levels
Planning & Management to Promote Health
7. Assess population needs, assets and capacities that affect communities’ health
8. Apply awareness of cultural values and practices to the design or implementation of public health policies or programs
9. Design a population-based policy, program, project or intervention
10. Explain basic principles and tools of budget and resource management
11. Select methods to evaluate public health programs
Policy in Public Health
12. Discuss multiple dimensions of the policy-making process, including the roles of ethics and evidence
13. Propose strategies to identify stakeholders and build coalitions and partnerships for influencing public health outcomes
14. Advocate for political, social or economic policies and programs that will improve health in diverse populations
15. Evaluate policies for their impact on public health and health equity
Leadership
16. Apply principles of leadership, governance and management, which include creating a vision, empowering others, fostering collaboration and guiding decision making
17. Apply negotiation and mediation skills to address organizational or community challenges
Communication
18. Select communication strategies for different audiences and sectors
19. Communicate audience-appropriate public health content, both in writing and through oral presentation
20. Describe the importance of cultural competence in communicating public health content
Interprofessional Practice
21. Perform effectively on interprofessional teams
**“Interprofessional” refers to engagement with professionals outside of public health (eg, architects, nurses), rather than to engagement with individuals from other public health disciplines ( eg, biostatisticians, health promotion specialists).
Systems Thinking
22. Apply systems thinking tools to a public health issue.