Academic Policies

Program Requirements
The requirements for obtaining the M.P.H. degree are 42 semester credit hours of course work and satisfactory completion of a practicum and the Master’s research project. Up to 15 hours of course work from other schools at Vanderbilt or other schools can be applied to the required total (conditional upon the approval of the Program Director); other hours must be completed from Program offerings.

Admission
M.P.H. program candidates must have the M.D. or other equivalent professional degree and be supported by a sponsoring unit (Division or Department) of the School of Medicine or Nursing.

Individual classes in the Program may be taken for credit by students at the graduate level, at the individual course tuition rate. Students admitted for individual courses will need to meet the requirements for admission to the program, including sufficient clinical experience to participate in discussions based on the medical literature. Students wishing to take individual courses will need to apply for Priority Student status by contacting the Program coordinator. Admission to individual classes is also contingent upon availability of space in the course. Due to the strong emphasis on student participation in course work, auditors are not permitted.

Thesis Committee
Each MPH program student will have a Thesis Committee. The committee will work closely with the student to assist in completion of the research project. There will be at least two members of the Thesis Committee, a Clinical Research mentor and a Biostatistician; other mentors may be added to the Committee as deemed necessary.

Clinical Research mentors must be identified prior to a student's entry to the MPH program. In most cases, a Clinical Research mentor needs to have sufficient training and experience in clinical research and epidemiology to provide appropriate mentoring. Applicants are encouraged to talk with several potential mentors to discuss available projects prior to program entry.

The Clinical Research mentor will work with the student to identify the Biostatistician. Subsequent changes to the Committee must be approved by the Director of Students.

Grades
With the exception of the Master’s Research course, all courses will be graded with letter grades (A, B, C, F). The Master’s Research course and the elective courses are pass/fail and are not considered in calculation of GPA. Only courses with a grade of B or better will count towards the Program requirements. Students not enrolled in the M.P.H. Program may elect to take courses pass/fail.
For students with marginal performance in a course, the promotions committee and the course director will recommend either:

Independent remediation of course work with satisfactory performance on a
written examination prepared by the course director, or;

Repeating of the course.

For courses given in sequence (e.g. Epidemiology 1 & 2, Biostatistics 1 & 2), a student may not enroll in the second course in the sequence until a grade of B or higher is obtained for the first course.
Students may withdraw from a course without receiving a grade in the first week. At a later date, students may elect to receive an incomplete, but must demonstrate satisfactory mastery of course content prior to the start of the next academic session, or the grade will be converted to an F.
The Program faculty will carefully screen applicants to the program to assure they have adequate background. Faculty will closely monitor progress and seek to identify potential problems before they threaten completion of the Program.

Commencement Ceremonies
Graduates may take part in the University commencement program and the School of Medicine diploma-awarding ceremony.

Transcripts
Transcripts may be obtained from the University’s Office of the Registrar, following the established policies of this office.

Leaves/Withdrawal
With the approval of the sponsoring Division and the Program director, students may take a leave of absence from the Program. However, all program requirements must be satisfied within 4 years. Students who withdraw from the Program and then reenter may be required to repeat course work. In the case of withdrawals, a pro-rated refund of tuition paid in advance will be made. However, once a course begins, no tuition refunds for that course will be made.

Tuition
Entire Program* $39,240** ($26,160 year 1, $13,080 year 2)
Individual Courses, per credit hour $1090
*There is a $1090/hour rebate for up to 15 hours from courses taken outside the Program.
**Estimated tuition. Tuition is set anually by the Vanderbilt Board of Trust. Final tuition will be communicated to applicants at the time of acceptance.

Computer Requirements
Students will need a computer attached to the Medical Center Network that is compatible with course software. Students are expected to have course software loaded onto their computer in advance of the start of the academic session.

Combined MD/MPH Program
Selected medical students with an interest in public health will be accepted into the combined MD/MPH program. Students will apply to each program separately and must be accepted by both programs to pursue the joint degree. Medical students may elect to apply for admission to the joint degree program at any time during their first three years of medical school. Joint degree students will complete both degrees in five years, saving one year from each program. Students will need to identify a faculty mentor and project idea prior to applying to the combined program.

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