Date: Mar 13, 2012

Hofstra University Launches Master of Public Health

Program features interdisciplinary curriculum and faculty from a variety of disciplines, including Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine

Hofstra University, Hempstead, N.Y. –   Hofstra University is launching an innovative, interdisciplinary Master of Public Health degree that combines the expertise and resources of its programs in Health Professions, the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine and the North Shore-LIJ Health System.

The new M.P.H. program, which is accepting applications for the Fall 2012 class, offers a curriculum that reflects a broad-based approach to the study of public health and a faculty that bring decades of experience in community, government and private sector-settings as clinicians, administrators, researchers and policymakers.

“This program is a strong complement to our School of Medicine, advances our efforts to become a leader in the sciences, and builds on our partnership with North Shore-LIJ Health System to train a new generation of physicians and health  professionals who take a holistic approach to medicine and public health,” said Hofstra President Stuart Rabinowitz. “Like our medical school, this program is about taking new, innovative approaches to existing health-care challenges.”

In less than a decade, the nation will be facing a shortfall of more than 250,000 public health workers, according to the Association of Schools of Public Health. To meet that projected need, schools of public health would have to train three times the current number of graduates, ASPH estimates show.

“Given the importance of the health professions and especially the importance of the Master of Public Health degree for leaders of the profession,” said Herman Berliner,  provost and senior vice president for academic affairs, “we are pleased to have developed such a distinguished MPH program with an especially strong group of faculty from throughout Hofstra, as well as the Hofstra North Shore LIJ School of Medicine, and the North Shore LIJ Health System.”

The program includes a part-time track for working professionals, which can be completed in less than three years, using a combination of distance learning, hybrid courses and traditional, classroom instruction. The program is working towards accreditation from the Council on Education for Public Health.

“Our MPH program is intellectually challenging and empowering,” said Program Director Corinne Kyriacou. “Students develop a solid foundation in public health principles, research methodology and real world application, and they devote considerable time to conducting research, analyzing data, and communicating findings.”

Hofstra University is a dynamic private institution of higher education where more than 12,000 full and part-time students choose from undergraduate and graduate offerings in liberal arts and sciences, business, engineering, communication, education, health and human services, honors studies, a School of Law, a School of Engineering and Applied Science and the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine.

 ###