This programme has been revised. Students who entered prior to 2016/17 follow the curriculum detailed on this page. Students entering from 2016/17 onwards follow the revised curriculum detailed here.

The Master's degree in Public Health (Online) (MPH) can be taken either full-time over 12 months or part-time over 24 months up to a maximum of 60 months from the date of first registration for the programme. It is designed to provide students, from a range of different professional backgrounds, with academic and experiential learning.

The key to this course is flexibility therefore a student can choose to do the course part-time over a longer period of time i.e. the students can commence the course in September of one year and complete it the following year, thus taking 24 months from the beginning to completion.  Specifically, there are Exit Awards at Postgraduate Certificate and Postgraduate Diploma level i.e. Postgraduate Certificate in Public Health (30 credits) and Postgraduate Diploma in Public Health (60 credits). Progression from either the Postgraduate Certificate or Diploma in Public Health to the Masters in Public Health is possible within a 5 year period from the time of first registration. In addition, any student who has completed the stand-alone Postgraduate Certificate in Health Protection, may enter the Online Masters in Public Health programme and proceed as described above i.e. exiting at Postgraduate Diploma or Masters level.

Prospective students must satisfy the following:

• Students accepted on the course would normally be expected to hold an Honours primary degree in a relevant subject (minimum Second Class Honours) or an Honours primary degree in any discipline (minimum Second Class Honours) and either possess a postgraduate qualification in a relevant field or show evidence of at least two years work experience in a relevant field;
• Decisions will be based on qualifications and quality of the application.

Note: In exceptional circumstances, applicants without a primary degree may be recommended for entry to the programme following an interview and review of their individual qualifications and experience by the course committee. Admission of such applicants will be subject to the approval of the College of Medicine and Health Executive Committee.

Technical Entry Requirements (Online):
To access and interact with the course content, assignments and assessments etc. students will require access to at least a PC/ Laptop running Windows 7 or later and Mac OSX 10.7.4. Common plug-ins such as Mircosoft Sliverlight, Java and Flash will also be required. Students must have access to MS Office or an equivalent suite of applications such as Libre Office. They must also have access to a modern standards compliant web browser. UCC recommends either Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox.

To engage productively and successfully with the content, basic technical computer skills such as familiarity with word processing, web browsing and email - recommended.

Fitness to Practise
Commencing with the 2013/2014 intake of first year students (including repeats), this programme will be subject to the University's Fitness to Practise Policy - full details may be found here.

Exemptions at point of entry:
Holders of the Postgraduate Certificate in Health Protection or the Postgraduate Certificate in Public Health or the Postgraduate Diploma in Public Health will be exempt from certain modules on the programme if passed as part of the Postgraduate Certificate/Diploma examination if he/she undertakes the MPH within five years from the date of successful completion of the aforementioned degrees.

Full-time:

Students take 90 credits as follows.

Part 1:
Core Modules (40 credits)
EH6075 Principles and Practice of Public Health (Online) (10 credits)
EH6076 Applied Research for Public Health I (Online) (5 credits)
EH6077 Applied Research for Public Health II (Online) (5 credits)
EH6078 Public Health Intelligence (Online) (5 credits)
EH6079 Introduction to Social Research in Public Health (Online) (5 credits)
EH6081 Introduction to Health Promotion Concepts, Principles and Practices (Online) (5 credits)
EH6082 Introduction to Health Protection (Online) (5 credits)

Optional Modules (30 credits)
Having completed the core curriculum students must select electives from the optional modules listed below. Selection of modules will be guided by the Course Coordinator in collaboration with each student.
EH6049 International Perspectives on Global Health (Online) (5 credits)
EH6055 Global and Environment Health (Online) (5 credits)
EH6057 The BIG Four: HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Tuberculosis and Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) (Online) (5 credits)
EH6063 Tobacco Control: National and International Approaches (Online) (5 credits)
EH6083 Advanced Health Protection (Online) (5 credits)
EH6084 Advanced Epidemiology (Online) (5 credits)
EH6085 Psychosocial Epidemiology in Public Health (Online) (5 credits)
EH6086 Public Health and Behavioural Change (Online) (5 credits)
EH6087 Public Health Advocacy (Online) (5 credits)
MB6009 Principles of Microbiology (Online) (5 credits)
ST6007 Advanced Biostatistics (Online) (5 credits)
ST6014 Survival Analysis (Online) (5 credits)

Part 2:

Dissertation/Final Project
EH6088 Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (Online) (5 credits)
EH6089 Dissertation in Public Health and Epidemiology (Online) (15 credits)

Part-time:

Students taking the programme on a part-time basis should discuss their selection of modules with the course coordinator in the first instance and must pass all modules within 60 months of the date of first registration of the programme.

Individual Modules 
As part of UCC's commitment to Continuing Professional Development (CPD), healthcare professionals may take a one-off module from the list available in this course.

Module Semester Information may be found here. Module Descriptions may be found here.
Examinations
Full details and regulations governing Examinations for each programme will be contained in the Marks and Standards 2017 Book and for each module in the Book of Modules 2016/2017.

See also General Regulations for the Degree of Master.

Postgraduate Certificate in Public Health (Online) (NFQ Level 9, Minor Award) exit award:
Upon successful completion and passing of core modules to the value of 30 credits (EH6075, EH6076, EH6077, EH6078, EH6079), students may opt to exit the programme and be conferred with a Postgraduate Certificate in Public Health. A student who subsequently applies to continue to Postgraduate Diploma and/or Master's level must do so within 5 years from the date of successful completion of the Certificate Examinations. Students will be granted exemption for modules passed.

Postgraduate Diploma in Public Health (Online) (NFQ Level 9, Major Award) exit award:
Upon successful completion and passing of modules to the value of 60 credits, students may opt to exit the programme and be conferred with a Postgraduate Diploma in Public Health. A student who subsequently applies to continue to Master's level must do so within 5 years from the date of successful completion of the Postgraduate Diploma Examination. Students will be granted exemptions for modules passed.

Programme Learning Outcomes for Master of Public Health (Online) (NFQ Level 9, Major Award)
On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• Critically analyse theories and issues related to public health;
• Construct arguments around the social, political and economic factors determining the health of populations;
• Demonstrate competence in the key underpinning disciplines and theories of public health including epidemiology, communicable diseases including health care associated infections, biostatistics, social and behavioural sciences and social policy;
• Analyse and synthesise evidence and apply it to public health;
• Demonstrate enhanced knowledge in specific Public Health areas e.g. Health Promotion, Health Protection, Epidemiology and Biostatistics in Public Health;
• Demonstrate logical reasoning in written work and discussion;
• Employ a range of appropriate research and analysis methods with confidence and expertise;
• critically reflect on their own and others' learning and practice.

Programme Learning Outcomes for Postgraduate Diploma in Public Health (Online) (NFQ Level 9, Major Award)
On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• Critically analyse theories and issues related to public health;
• Construct arguments around the social, political and economic factors determining the health of populations;
• Demonstrate competence in the key underpinning disciplines and theories of public health including epidemiology, communicable diseases including health care associated infections, biostatistics, social and behavioural sciences and social policy;
• Analyse and synthesise evidence and apply it to public health;
• Demonstrate enhanced knowledge in specific Public Health areas e.g. Health Promotion, Health Protection, Epidemiology and Biostatistics.

Programme Learning Outcomes for Postgraduate Certificate in Public Health (Online) (NFQ Level 9, Minor Award)
On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• Critically analyse theories and issues related to public health;
• Construct arguments around the social, political and economic factors determining the health of populations;
• Demonstrate competence in the key underpinning disciplines and theories of public health including epidemiology, communicable diseases including health care associated infections, biostatistics, social and behavioural sciences and social policy;
• Analyse and synthesise evidence and apply it to public health.