Public Health

Do you want to develop programs that make a difference to the health of the population as a whole? Are you interested in how disease and society interact?

The ANU Master of Public Health will equip you with the foundations of public health practice, provide you with an understanding of contemporary public health issues relevant to Australia and teach you practical techniques for analysing public health problems.

This program provides real experience in public health through core courses designed to give you the skills you need and electives that suit your additional interests. Workplace-related learning can be readily incorporated for those who work in relevant public health jobs.

Career Options

Employment Opportunities

The MPH program is designed for health professionals seeking a qualification to equip them for management, graduates wanting a qualification in public health practice and health administrators and policy workers needing a qualification to assist their career.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the skills and knowledge to:

1. Explain and apply an understanding of the socioeconomic, behavioural, biological, and societal determinants of health and disease.
2. Understand the factors affecting the aetiology, incidence, and prevalence of major health problems in populations
3. Understand the factors affecting the need, demand, and use of health care and public health services
4. Critically read and evaluate quantitative and qualitative research findings contained in medical, public health and social science journals.
5. Apply analytic tools to defining and describing public health problems.
6. Demonstrate creativity, inquisitiveness, and evidence-based rigour in the application of public health problem-solving skills.
7. Communicate effectively and persuasively, both orally and in writing.
8. Integrate knowledge and research methods skills to address a research question.

The Master of Public Health requires the completion of 96 units, which must consist of:

24 units from completion of the following compulsory courses:

POPH8103 Introduction to Health Policy and Administration

POPH8104 Contemporary Issues in Public Health

POPH8100 Fundamentals of Epidemiology

POPH8101 Biostatistics in Population Health

A minimum of 6 units from completion of courses from the following list:

CHMD8004 Qualitative Methodologies for Health Research

POPH8105 Epidemiology Literature Research Project

POPH8315 Methods in Applied Epidemiological Research

A maximum of 66 units from completion of courses from the following list:

ANTH8046 Introduction to Australian Indigenous Development

CHMD8001 Directed Readings in Culture, Health and Medicine

CHMD8004 Qualitative Methodologies for Health Research

CHMD8005 Representing Medicine: Performance, Drama and Identity

CHMD8006 Global Health and Development

CHMD8008 Medicine and Society in History

CHMD8009 Anthropological Approaches to Health Interventions

CHMD8010 Anthropological Concepts for Health Research: From Risk to Suffering

CHMD8011 Refugee Health: From Displacement to Resettlement

DEMO8008 Principles of Population Analysis

DEMO8079 Health Demography

EMDV8001 Environmental Sustainability, Health and Development

IDEC8007 Aid and Development Policy

LAWS8237 Health Law and Bioethics in Global Context

MEDI8115 Fundamentals of Health Protection and Health Promotion

MEDI8116 Public Health disasters, catastrophes and recovery

MEDN8000 Translational Medicine: From Discovery to Healthcare

MGMT7030 Foundations of Management

NSPO8001 Australia's National Security Community

NSPO8013 Disease, Security and Biological Weapons

POGO8029 Health Policy in a Globalising World

POPH8313 Analysis of Public Health Data

POPH8316 Outbreak Investigation

POPH8317 Public Health Surveillance

POPH8318 Human Health, Environment and Climate Change

POPM8001 Mental Health

A Bachelor degree or international equivalent with an average mark of at least 70%.

All applicants must meet the University's English Language Admission Requirements for Students.

Applicants with a Bachelor Degree or Graduate Certificate in a cognate discipline may be eligible for 24 units (one semester) of credit.

Applicants with a Graduate Diploma or Honours in a cognate discipline may be eligible for 48 units (one year) of credit.

Cognate disciplines

Health, Medical Sciences, Biological sciences, Psychology, Social sciences

ANU offers a wide range of scholarships to students to assist with the cost of their studies.

Eligibility to apply for ANU scholarships varies depending on the specifics of the scholarship and can be categorised by the type of student you are.  Specific scholarship application process information is included in the relevant scholarship listing.

With the approval of the MPH Program Convenor, other electives may be chosen from postgraduate courses offered across ANU and other recognised universities; for example, see courses listed under the Master of Culture, Health and Medicine Program, Master of Public Policy and Master of Environment. Relevant courses offered by the International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU) may also be selected.