Program Description
For qualified students at the College of Pharmacy, Mercer University provides an opportunity to pursue a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree concurrently with the Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree. The MPH degree is earned through Mercer’s College of Health Professions.
The MPH degree program is designed to transform students into competent, passionate professionals ready to tackle the complex and dynamic challenges of public health in neighborhoods and populations in the United States and beyond. The MPH degree will complement the PharmD degree in a manner that will broaden the occupational and professional opportunities of the prospective graduate in community, industry or institutional practice.
Outcomes/Objectives
The outcomes of the PharmD degree program also apply to the PharmD/MPH program. The MPH program is passionately committed to the educational development of public health professionals who are prepared to confront complex health issues, such as improving access to health care, controlling infectious diseases, and reducing environmental hazards, violence, substance abuse and injury.
Program Requirements
While completing the requirements for the Doctor of Pharmacy degree, students may take courses in the College of Health Professions toward the MPH degree. The prerequisite and core courses for the MPH degree are available in the Mercer Atlanta Campus Catalog.
MPH Program courses can be used to satisfy professional-level didactic elective hours
required for the Pharm.D. Program. This does not preclude students taking
professional-level electives in the Pharm.D. Program, and students are encouraged to
take advantage of elective courses offered by the College of Pharmacy that will further
develop their knowledge and skills in specific areas within the field of pharmacy.
One (1) three (3) credit hour course of the first professional year in the Pharm.D. Program fulfills a portion of the electives in the MPH Program: PHA 335 Health Care Delivery and Population Health.
Students must complete the other elective hours through one of two options:
Option 1: Student must complete two of the following College of Pharmacy electives: PHA 549 Introduction to Research, PHA 566 Women’s Health, or PHA 579 Global Health
Option 2: Student must complete one (1) three-credit hour elective offered by the College of Health Professions Department of Public Health. Please consult the Registrar’s Office and the Master of Public Health Curriculum for a list of available electives.
Both PharmD and MPH programs require students to complete service learning hours as part of each program’s curriculum. Service learning is intended to improve patient care and public health and expand upon the student’s existing patient caring and public health skills and knowledge.
Academic Advisement and Progression
Faculty in the College of Pharmacy and College of Health Professions provide academic advisement for students pursuing the PharmD/MPH program. Students admitted into the PharmD/MPH program must meet with the chair of the Department of Public Health, or a designee, to discuss the program requirements before enrollment in their first MPH course.
Pharm.D./MPH Program students must maintain a cumulative pharmacy GPA of 2.75 and maintain good academic standing in the Pharm.D. Program throughout their enrollment in the MPH Program. Students must maintain a grade point average of 3.0 or above in all public health courses.
While Doctor of Pharmacy students may opt to pursue the PharmD/MPH program at any time during their PharmD program enrollment and can complete the MPH coursework at their own pace, they must maintain full-time status in the PharmD program and must meet the MPH program within five (5) years of initial enrollment in the MPH program.
Admission Requirements
To apply for admission to the MPH program, a Doctor of Pharmacy student must have completed a bachelor’s degree or 120 hours of college credit. At 120 hours of college credit, the Doctor of Pharmacy student is considered to have the equivalent of a bachelor’s degree in terms of a focused study record.
Admission requirements for the MPH program follow those outlined on the College of Health Professions MPH program admissions website. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is optional for admission. At the time of application, students submit a completed application through SOPHAS Express, the centralized application service for public health.
Tuition and Financial Aid
PharmD/MPH students pay tuition for both PharmD and MPH. courses. More information about financial aid for the PharmD/MPH program can be obtained from the Office of Student Financial Planning.