University Catalog 2023-2024

Public Health Special Courses (SPHL)

Public Health Special Courses (SPHL)

SPHL 6020  Foundations in Public Health  (3)  

PHL 6020 is one of five interdisciplinary courses that contribute to the foundational competencies required of graduates with professional degrees in public health. SPHL 6020 uses blended learning with online lessons that provide an overview of public health principles, concepts, and evidence-based approaches to global public health and the biological, environmental, behavioral, socioeconomic, and political determinants of health. Students will integrate these influences through case study and scenario analyses discussions. SPHL 6020 is a requirement for all graduate students pursuing any degree in the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine

SPHL 6050  Biostatistics for Public Health  (3)  

One of five interdisciplinary courses that contribute to the foundational competencies required of graduates with professional degrees in public health. Strong analytical skills in evidence-based practices are essential across all public health disciplines. In SPHL 6050, students learn how to collect, manage, and visualize a wide variety of data and appropriate biostatistical methods, including probability distributions, estimations, power and sample size, and regression. Interdisciplinary exercises, homework assignments, and data sets are drawn from real-world scenarios. The course also prepares those students who move on to advanced biostatistics courses. Biostatistics for Public Health is a requirement for all students in the MPH, MSPH, and MPH&TM professional degree programs.

SPHL 6060  Epidemiology for Public Health  (3)  

One of five interdisciplinary courses that contribute to the foundational competencies required of graduates with professional degrees in public health. SPHL 6060 introduces students to epidemiological methods and approaches for use across all public health domains. This includes measuring the occurrence of disease, outbreak investigations, incidence and prevalence, natural history of disease, study designs, and estimating risk. The course also addresses the interpretation of data analyses for research, policy, and practice. Epidemiology for Public Health is a requirement for all students in the MPH, MSPH, and MPH&TM professional degree programs.

SPHL 6070  Health Systems Policy and Management  (3)  

One of five interdisciplinary courses that contribute to the foundational competencies required of graduates with professional degrees in public health. SPHL 6070 exposes students to the complexities, scope, and impact of decisions affecting public health. It provides a survey of public health and health care systems, policy and management principles used in public health settings. Class discussion and exercises provide opportunities for students to apply principles and skills to their own areas and career interests. This course is a requirement for all students in the MPH, MSPH, and MPH&TM degree programs.

SPHL 6080  Design Strategies in Public Health Programs  (3)  

One of five interdisciplinary courses that contribute to the foundational competencies required of graduates with professional degrees in public health. SPHL 6080 equips students with the knowledge and skills to design, implement, and evaluate public health programs for diverse public health issues, populations, and settings. This course features active and collaborative learning and real-world application of course concepts. Ultimately, the course will illustrate that the effective design of public health programs is critical to improving community health. This course is a requirement for all students in the MPH, MSPH, and MPH&TM degree programs.

SPHL 6100  Health Equity  (3)  

This introductory-level course in health equity is designed for students in an MPH degree. Both synchronous and asynchronous activities will be used. Students will be introduced to the status of health equity in the U.S. according to race and ethnicity, sex and gender, and socioeconomic status. They also will explore causes of health inequities guided by a socioecological framework. Lastly, they will gain skills in cultural competency, including tools for addressing implicit biases individually and in organizations, as well as approaches for allyship with marginalized populations. Students will engage in peer discussions pertaining to topical areas, complete brief writing assignments to apply learning from the course, and conduct a literature review to synthesize knowledge in a chosen health equity topic.

SPHL 6110  Introduction to GIS for Public Health  (3)  

This course will introduce students to commercial and open-source GIS and digital data collection tools (ArcGIS, QGIS, Google Earth and OpenDataKit), and applications to global health program management. It is designed to build incremental skills in order to use these software and tools for spatial analysis related to programmatic issues including healthcare coverage, epidemic monitoring, and health services' accessibility. Case studies will invite students to think critically about appropriate use of technology in resource-constrained environments. In addition, the students develop an independent data collection and mapping project on a public health issue relevant to New Orleans.

SPHL 6900  Student Success & Academic Skills  (0)  

The Graduate Student Success and Academic Skills synchronous hybrid course is designed to help international graduate students take advantage of available on-campus resources, adjust to new expectations, gain awareness of cultural assumptions, and develop practical techniques for resolving both personal and academic issues. Students explore U.S. expectations for classroom behavior, academic integrity and communication with professors and classmates. They also practice graduate writing, presentation, and listening and notetaking skills. These unique workshops will ensure that students understand what is expected of them and how to build the skills they need to thrive academically during their graduate experience. This is a non-credit course. An appropriate score on an accepted English proficiency test is required for entry.

SPHL 7000  Special Topics  (1-3)  

Any TSPHTM course offered for credit in which the subject matter or content may vary within specific sections as indicated by that course's title and description in course inventory.


Maximum Hours: 99

SPHL 7020  Leadership Theory & Practice  (3)  

Leadership Theory and Practice is an advanced graduate level course that examines organizational leadership skills necessary for leadership positions within the public health system. Drawing from a variety of disciplines, this course provides students with a set of strategies, theoretical models and frameworks that are adaptable to the broad scope of experience in the field of public health, particularly as it relates to collaborative consensus building for purposes of influencing behavior and policies. Case studies will challenge students to analyze problems collaboratively and apply strategies to address real­-world dilemmas faced by decision-makers. This course also emphasizes development of a personal leadership model and philosophy for lifelong learning.

Prerequisite(s): (SPHL 6020 or minimum score of PASS in 'SPHL 6020 Exemption') and SPHL 6070 and 6080.

SPHL 7030  MI Program Internship  (0)  

Practicum during Peach Corps service for Master's Internationalsis students

SPHL 7800  Public Health Study Abroad  (9-12)  


Maximum Hours: 99

SPHL 7940  Transfer Coursework  (0-20)  

Transfer coursework at the 7000 level. Departmental approval required.


Maximum Hours: 99

SPHL 7950  Integrative Learning Experience  (0)  

All MPH, MSPH, and MPHTM students must complete an Integrative Learning Experience (ILE) that demonstrates the synthesis of foundational and concentration competencies and that contains a substantive writing component.

Course Limit: 2

SPHL 7990  Independent Study  (1-3)  

SPHL 7990 is the designation for a special (independent) study in a master’s program. Course may be repeated up to 6 credit hours.


Maximum Hours: 6

SPHL 8010  Budget and Financial Management  (3)  

This course provides foundational theory and practice in developing and managing budgets and financial operational plans. Topics to be covered include budgeting, financial statements, resource allocation, and financial management. Didactic content and case studies will be used as well as applications to different practice settings and situations.

SPHL 8070  Teaching Assistantship Educational Experience  (0)  

This course will provide students with an applied learning experience to strengthen their skills in teaching. The course will include an orientation, mid-course reflection, and faculty evaluation. The specific skill set of focus will depend on the needs of the student and the course instructor. Illustrative skills include effective communication, public speaking, assessing student learning, utilizing learning management systems, and teaching and learning strategies among others.

Course Limit: 2

SPHL 8080  Public Health Pedagogy  (3)  

This doctoral-level discussion-based course will equip doctoral students with the knowledge to think critically about their teaching practices and to enhance their pedagogical skills. Rooted in the scholarship of teaching and learning, the course will help novice instructors to gain teaching-self-efficacy and utilize pedagogical best practices while providing a supportive environment to develop and discuss diverse instructional approaches and materials. The course will also prepare students to assist with or teach future public health academic classes and other instructional activities. Course assessments include the development of a teaching philosophy, classroom observations, a research paper on a pedagogical strategy, a mock teaching session, a teaching and learning journal, and culminating course portfolio.

SPHL 8200  Public Health & Social Policy  (3)  

The course will advance your abilities to utilize public health principles, practice, and policy to improve population health using liberatory public health frameworks. We will look at policy and practice from a diversity of spaces, including federal, state, and local government (policy with a big P); international laws and bodies (policy with a big P); as well as institutional, organizational, and regulatory policy (policy with a small p). Students in this course will advance their skills in conducting policy analyses, evidence synthesis, communicating and advocating for public health policy; and framing policy problems and solutions all in support of advancing equitable population health.

SPHL 8250  Study and Evaluation Methods in Public Health  (3)  

The course will focus on designing a study or evaluation project to address a public health issue using ethnically-sound, rigorous sampling, recruitment, data collection and data management methods. Building on prior coursework, methods covered in this course will support the design of quantitative, qualitative, mixed, and program evaluation projects. For the final project, students will design a qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods, or evaluation project to address a public health issue of their choosing. This course is intended for DrPH students.

Prerequisite(s): SPHL 6050, 6060 and 6080.

SPHL 8400  Public Health Grant Writing  (3)  

This course is designed to provide doctoral students the knowledge and skills to prepare clear, effective, and persuasive grant applications to biomedical and public health funding agencies. All important aspects in the academic funding process will be covered. They include identifying the right funding opportunities, asking significant and innovative research questions, communicating the application effectively to tell your scientific story, and understanding the merit review process to make reviewers your research advocates. Students will develop a NIH grant application for a research project including specific aims, research strategy, human subject protection, budget, and biographic sketch. In addition, students will learn how to critically review and revise a grant application.

SPHL 8500  Interdisciplinary Doctoral Seminar  (1)  

Interdisciplinary seminar for doctoral students.

SPHL 8990  Independent Study  (1-3)  

SPHL 8990 is the designation for a special (independent) study in a doctoral program. Course may be repeated up to 12 credit hours.


Maximum Hours: 12

SPHL 9920  Practice Based Portfolio: Background  (3)  

The course will focus on establishing the background and rationale for the focus of the Practice Based Portfolio for rising second year doctoral students in the DrPH program in Leadership, Advocacy, and Equity. Students will conduct a background and literature review, and develop a prospectus for their portfolio that includes priority population, topic of interest, fieldwork site and preceptor descriptions, timeline, objectives, scope of work and proposed products. Completion of this course provides the foundation to advance successfully into the advanced course series of the doctoral program and the development of the portfolio.

Prerequisite(s): (SPHL 7020, 8080, 8200 and SBPS 8220) and (SPHL 8010* and 8250*).
* May be taken concurrently.

SPHL 9940  DrPH Integrative Learning Experience  (1)  

The Integrative Learning Experience generates field-based products consistent with advanced practice designed to influence programs, policies or systems addressing public health. It includes the following products and activities: an in depth mixed methods analysis of health needs of a chosen population or community, with an emphasis on the impact of how SDH affect health disparities or inequities; priority setting of greatest needs and challenges for the population or community; advocacy plan with map of strategic partners and stakeholders; development of a proposed program or intervention to improve health outcomes; a cost benefit analysis of the proposed program; and a full grant application including budget for an appropriate and currently available grant mechanism.

SPHL 9970  Dissertation Research  (0)  

Doctoral students who have completed course work but not defended their prospectus. Course may be repeated up to 3 times.

Course Limit: 3

SPHL 9980  Applied Practice Experience  (0)  

The Applied Practice Experience (APE) (formerly practicum) is a supervised practice experience conducted in an agency or organization external to the university to gain practical experience. The APE allows students to demonstrate attainment of at least five competencies, including at least 3 from the foundational competencies (CEPH Criterion D2). The APE is conducted after completion of the foundational courses. After identifying the APE setting and defining the competencies, students enter the information into Terra Dotta. An APE written report is required that summarizes the field experiences. Course may be repeated up to unlimited credit hours.

Course Limit: 2

SPHL 9990  Dissertation  (0)  

Doctoral candidates who have defended their prospectus and are engaged in research. Course may be repeated up to 9 times.

Course Limit: 9