MSN/MPH Public Health Nursing

Program
Overview

Program Overview

Leading Community Health Reform

The MSN-PHN/MPH program at the Johns Hopkins University prepares and inspires nurses to effectively deliver nursing services in community settings. Offered jointly through the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing and the Bloomberg School of Public Health, this degree option teaches advanced mastery of nursing theory and practice, as well as a population-based, multidisciplinary perspective.

You’ll learn to guide teams in the development of innovative, evidence-based, and culturally appropriate healthcare services for identified high-risk populations, and your management, knowledge, and experience will inform your contributions to public healthcare. In the ever-changing world of community health, you need a clear path to smart solutions. Let Johns Hopkins start you on the journey.

Those who earn a Hopkins MSN-PHN/MPH joint degree:

• Design, implement, and evaluate behavior change programs for health agencies
• Find jobs in local, state, and federal agencies, advocacy groups, academic institutions, and faith-based initiatives
• Influence local and global strategies for health promotion and disease prevention in vulnerable populations

Graduates of the program receive a single diploma signed by the Deans of the School of Nursing and Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Program
Requirements

Program Requirements

Students may apply for full- or part-time study.

The school seeks individuals who will bring to the student body the qualities of scholarship, motivation, and commitment. The Admissions Committee is interested in each applicant as an individual and will consider both academic potential and personal qualities. Therefore, school records, test scores, recommendations, and essays about goals and interests are important.

Recommendations about a student's character, intellectual curiosity, seriousness of purpose, and range of extracurricular activities are considered.

Selection factors include:

• Bachelor of Science degree in nursing
• Scholastic Grade Point Average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale from an accredited college or university
• Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores within the past five years (for MSN/MPH and MSN/MBA applicants only)
• Demonstrated commitment to nursing practice and scholarly pursuit
• Community service and professional commitment
• Interview with faculty member*
• Written expression of goals
• Letters of recommendation
• Applicants must submit evidence of current nursing licensure. Students must have or obtain Maryland Registered Nurse licensure for matriculation

*Interview with a faculty member may or may not be requested.

Additionally, applicants for the Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner program

• Will be exceptional students who are carefully chosen based on a number of factors including previous experiences.  Direct care acute care experiences will be required;
  OR 
• Will be required to attend part time during their first year in the program while working as a staff nurse in a critical care unit full time (more than 36 hours per week), and will not begin NP clinical courses until their second year.

Transfer of Credit

Transfer of credit is granted on an individual basis. The decision is based on equivalent content (for required courses), credit allotment and satisfactory completion of courses. You may petition for permission to substitute a course from another college or university by submitting a request to the Office of Admissions and Student Services along with the complete course syllabus.

Up to 6 credits of graduate course work taken at Johns Hopkins University or elsewhere may be accepted for transfer. Course work must have been completed within the last five years. Course work at the undergraduate level will not be considered for advanced standing credit.

Admissions
Procedures

Admissions Procedures

Start Early

Students are strongly encouraged to complete the application process early. Candidates for admission will be notified of a decision in writing after all the application documents are received and the Admissions Committee's review.

Note: The admissions committee for the Public Health Nursing, Nurse-Midwifery Track consists of representatives from both Johns Hopkins University and Shenandoah University.

Follow all instructions carefully to avoid delays in the processing of application materials. To expedite the application process, students may submit all supporting documentation, including official transcripts and recommendations, in sealed envelopes in one package (test scores excluded). Application supporting documentation may also arrive separately. Before a final admission decision can be made, all supporting documentation must be received.

Submit

• Completed and signed application form
• Signed statement acknowledging the School's Ethics Policy
• $75 non-refundable application fee
  (Make check or money order payable to "Johns Hopkins University")
• Goal statement
• Three recommendations:
  • At least one recommendation from an academic source (current or previous professor)
  • Remaining two recommendations may be from either an academic or professional source (employment/volunteer supervisor)
  • Recommendations should be enclosed in sealed envelopes with the recommender's signature across the envelope flap
• Official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended (including Johns Hopkins University)
• Current résumé
• Official GRE scores, if applying to the MSN/MPH or MSN/MBA programs, sent to the School of Nursing (School code: 5767)
• Verification of current RN license, all RN's must obtain a Maryland RN license and present verification by the time of matriculation

Note: Due to changing clinical site regulations, students are required to undergo a criminal background check prior to matriculation. The School will provide information about this process to accepted students.

Applicants Who Have Studied Abroad

International applicants and applicants who have completed courses outside of the United States must submit:

• Official course-by-course evaluation from the World Education Services (WES) or Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS)
  (If any academic credit was granted from an academic institution outside the United States, credits must be evaluated)
• Official Test of English as a Second Language (TOEFL) scores for international students whose native language is not English
• All international students seeking an F-1 visa are required to submit official documents in English showing proof of funding

More information for international applicants 
Office of International Student, Faculty, and Staff Services

Full
Curriculum

Full Curriculum

Core Courses

Joint Courses 

Qualtitative Sciences

PH.140.611-612 - Statistical Reasoning in Public Health
or
PH.140.621-623 - Statistical Methods in Public Health
or
PH.140.651-654 - Methods in Biostatistics in I-IV

Public Health Requirements

PH.300.645 - Making Changes Through Policy
PH.300.603 - Tools of Public Health Practice and Decision Making
PH.180.601 - Environmental Health
PH.340.601 - Principle of Epidemiology
PH.550.867 - Introduction to MPH Studies-MPH Individualized Goals and Analysis
PH.380.753 - Population Dynamics and Public Health
                   Quantitative Sciences Requirement - 3 options
                   Biological Sciences Requirements - 17 options 
                   Management Sciences Requirement - 8 options
                   Social and Behavioral Sciences Requirement - 10 options 

* Students work closely with faculty academic advisers in the School of Nursing and the School of Public Health to plan individual academic curriculum.
 ** Students must complete a total of 36 credits in the School of Nursing courses and 60 didactic (800 series courses in the Bloomberg School of Public Health are not considered didactic) units in Bloomberg School of Public Health (inclusive of joint core offerings).

Sample Courses
of Study

Sample Courses of Study

Full-time

The curriculum includes core courses from each master’s program; elective courses allow students to pursue specific interests. The program includes 500 clinical hours and begins each July. Credit for joint courses and quantitative sciences are applied to both the MSN (credits) and MPH (units) requirements.

Summer I (18 units)

Principles of Epidemiology (5 units)
Environmental Health (5 units)
Introduction to MPH Studies (1 unit)
Making Change through Policy (4 units)
Population Dynamics and Public Health (2 units)
Tools of Public Health Practice and Decision Making (1 unit)

Fall I (7 credits/22-25 units)

Context of Healthcare for Advanced Practice Nursing (3 units)
PHN: Theory and Practice (3 credits/5 units)
Statistical Reasoning in Public Health I (2 credits/3 units)
Statistical Reasoning in Public Health II (2 credits/3 units)
Management Sciences Elective (3-5 units)
Social and Behavioral Sciences Electives (3-4 units)
Public Health Elective (2 units)

Spring I (11-12 credits/7-11 units)

PHN: Leadership and Management in Nursing and Healthcare (3 credits/5 units)
Applications of Research to Practice (3 credits)
Population-Based Public Health Nursing Interventions Practicum (2-3 credits)
Biologic Sciences Elective (2-6 units)
Nursing Elective (3 credits)

Summer II (5 credits/5 units)

PHN: Theory and Practice Practicum (3 credits/5 units)
Program Development and Evaluation in Healthcare (2 credits)

Fall II 12 credits/7-13 units)

PHN: Leadership, Management, and Evaluation Capstone Practicum (3 credits/5 units)
Philosophical, Theoretical, and Ethical Basis for Nursing (3 credits)
Advanced Practice Nursing (3 credits)
Public Health Electives (2-8 units)
Nursing Electives (3 credits)

Part-time

Summer I (9 units)

Making Change Through Policy (5 units)
Introduction to MPH Studies (1 unit)
Population Dynamics and Public Health (2 units)
Tools of Public Health Practice and Decision Making (1 unit)

Fall I (3 credits/8-9 units)

Principles of Epidemiology (5 units)
Context of Health Care for Advanced Practice Nursing (online) (3 credits)
Social and Behavioral Sciences Elective (3-4 units)

Spring I (3 credits, 2-6 units)

Biologic Sciences Elective (2-6 units)
Nursing Elective (3 credits)

Summer II (3 credits/5 units)

Environmental Health (5 units)
Philosophical, Theoretical & Ethical Basis of Adv. Practice Nursing (3 credits)

Fall II (7 credits/14-15 units)

PHN: Theory and Practice (3 credits/5 units)
Statistical Reasoning in Public Health I (2 credits/3 units)
Statistical Reasoning in Public Health II (2 credits/3 units)
Management Sciences Elective (3-4 units)

Spring II (8-9 credits/5 units)

PHN: Leadership and Management in Nursing and Healthcare (3 credits/5 units)
Application of Research to Practice (3 credits)
Population Based Public Health Nursing Interventions Practicum (2-3 credits)

Summer III (5 credits/5units)

PHN: Theory and Practice Practicum (3 credits/5 units)
Program Development & Evaluation in Health Care (2 credits)

Fall III (6 credits/5-11 units)

PHN: Leadership, Management and Evaluation Capstone Practicum (3 credits/5 units)
Nursing Electives (3 credits)
Public Health Electives (0-6 units)

Tuition
 

Tuition

Tuition and Other Costs

*Full-time: 16 credit hours per semester
**All students must have health coverage.  Purchase of the School’s plan is optional.
***Amounts for other expenses  vary based upon student's selection of books, supplies, and living arrangements.

Billed expenses are subject to change without prior notice.

More
Info

More Information

Program begins in July of each year combining the one-year Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) with a focus in Public Health Nursing and the 11-month Master of Public Health (MPH) into 18 months of full-time study. Part-time study is also available.

The MSN/MPH is designed for nurses seeking to integrate advanced nursing practice with population-based public health perspectives and link their clinical and managerial interests with public health to improve delivery of nursing services in various settings.

With the joint degree, students acquire complementary skills, knowledge, and perspectives of both disciplines. Graduate work in nursing equips students with advanced mastery of nursing theory and practice, while public health training provides a population-based, multi-disciplinary team perspective.

Two-thirds of the program includes core courses from each master's program; the remaining elective courses allow students to pursue curriculums customized to their specific interests. Graduates are eligible to sit for certification as a clinical nurse specialist.