Course of Study

The dual degree offers a synergistic integration of individual patient management with public health and the study of social determinants of health and disease that affect communities and populations

health and disease that affect communities and populations domestically and internationally.

Arcadia’s College of Health Sciences has nationally recognized health care, public health, science and business programs that make the world a laboratory by providing real-world, experiential learning. Graduate programs use evidence- based research and project-based learning to prepare health care and public health professionals for a rapidly changing global environment. Applied and pro bono clinical research, clinical rotations, public health internships, optional international fieldwork, and multicultural assessment are incorporated into the curricula. Graduate students also have the opportunity to conduct research and may publish with expert faculty in many fields.

Dual degree candidates must be accepted into each of the programs in order to pursue dual degrees: Master of Medical Science (MMS) and Master of Public Health (MPH).

This dual degree program prepares graduates for professional and leadership roles in meeting individual and community health needs. The master’s degree program in Medical Science (M.M.S.) is designed to produce graduates who are well-equipped to deliver high-quality, cost-effective primary health care in a wide variety of settings, including hospitals, clinics, physicians’ offices and other community settings. Arcadia has one of the largest Physician Assistant programs in the nation, with campuses in Glenside, Pa., and Christiana, Del.

The Master of Public Health (MPH) has a Community Health Concentration and is accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). The MPH degree, offered through the College of Health Sciences, extends clinical practice by incorporating broader knowledge and action related to preventing disease and disability and improving individual and population-level outcomes. Public health is centered in achieving health equity and reducing disparities, including understanding and addressing the social and community context of disease, illness, disability and recovery, as well as health promotion and health research. Our MPH trains students to work effectively as public health professionals in local and global communities through a wide variety of health-related organizations. 

Highlights of our program curricula includes the following: 

• Program planning and evaluation

• Healthcare and broader public health policy

• Epidemiology, research methods, and biostatistics

• Public health communication

• Capstone projects that integrate practice and research

• Internships that give students first-hand experience in public health settings

• Interprofessional education experiences

• Opportunities for domestic and international service projects

The MPH program educates future community public health professionals to promote the health of individuals, families, communities, and the environment. This is accomplished through a program that integrates education, research and practice in a globally-minded environment. Our goal is that our students:

• Understand community public health and develop the skills needed to succeed in a public health career. 
• Are engaged in an academic, applied environment that integrates community public health education with research and practice. 
• Recognize the connection between health status and human rights and act to improve outcomes. 
• Translate knowledge into practice through collaborative service projects and internships, with community-based organizations, health facilities, government organizations, and local health departments. 
• Employ scientific investigation to advance public health knowledge of the relationship between health and the structural environment within which individuals live and work. 

Our program allows for broad interests in public health but we also encourage students to focus their coursework on a specific area of interest, choose an Internship experience that emphasizes their individualized interests, and plan a Capstone project focused in the same area. In this way, each student can develop a specialized knowledge base about public health issues related to his or her specific area of interest.

Our dual-degree programs train health professionals in the core areas of community-based public health. The application of the public health skill set added to the skills learned within the clinical and behavioral primary degree instills a public health perspective to blend and build an interdisciplinary career. 

(152 total credits, with 3 shared credits)

• Master of Medical Science (Physician Assistant) (116 credits)
• Master of Public Health (42 credits) with 3 shared credits

• PBH 501 Achieving Health Equity: From Individuals to Systems
• PBH 530 History, Theories, and Core Functions of Public Health
• PBH 600 Introduction to Epidemiology
• PBH 620 Introduction to Biostatistics

• PBH 510 Health Care Systems and Public Health Policy: An Integrated Approach to Population Health
• PBH 565 Effective Communication Strategies for Public Health Impact
• PBH 630 Program Planning and Evaluation
• PBH 640 Research Methods and Design for Health Professionals
• PBH 689.1 Public Health Internship Planning (0 credits)
• PBH 695 Capstone Research Project Seminar I

• PBH 560 Environmental Health: Impact of Community Health
• PBH 645 Developing Leadership and Practice Skills for Program Evaluation
• PBH 689.2 Public Health Internship
• PBH 696 Capstone Research Project Seminar II

• PA 509A Professional Practice I (1 credit)
• PA 510 Medical Interview and Counseling Skills (2 credits)
• PA 517 Human Gross Anatomy (5 credits)
• PA 522 Biomedical Science (3 credits)
• PA 524 Mechanisms of Disease (6 credits)
• PA 526A Pharmacology and Therapeutics I (1 credit)

• PA 504 Evidence-Based Practice (2 credits)
• PA 509B Professional Practice II (1 credit)
• PA 514 Physical Diagnosis I (5 credits)
• PA 526B Pharmacology and Therapeutics II (3 credits)
• PA 528 Behavioral Health (3 credits)
• PA 532A Diagnostics and Clinical Procedures I (3 credits)
• PA 536A Medicine I (8 credits)

• PA 509C Professional Practice III (1 credit)
• PA 526C Pharmacology and Therapeutics III (3 credits)
• PA 530 Physical Diagnosis II (3 credits)
• PA 532B Diagnostics and Clinical Procedures II Certification (3 credits)
• PA 536B Medicine II (6 credits)
• PA 540 Emergency Medicine (3 credits)
• PA 541 Surgery (3 credits)
• PA 542 Clinical Decision Making in Primary Care (3 credits)

(Summer, Fall and Spring, 48 weeks)

• PA 581 Clinical Year Seminar (8 credits) (8 credits)
• PA 561 Emergency Medicine (4 credits/weeks)
• PA 562 Family Medicine (4 credits/weeks)
• PA 564 Internal Medicine (4 credits/weeks)
• PA 565 Women’s Health (4 credits/weeks)
• PA 566 Pediatrics (4 credits/weeks)
• PA 567 Surgery (4 credits/weeks)
• PA 577 Clinical Elective I (4 credits/weeks)
• PA 578 Clinical Elective II (4 credits/weeks)
• PA 579 Clinical Elective III (4 credits/weeks)
• PA 580 Behavioral Medicine (4 credits/weeks)

Note: This rotation is taken in place of PBH elective (3 credit) for dual degree MPH/MMS students.)