An option for Ph.D. students in clinical psychology is to concurrently pursue the Master of Public Health (MPH) degree in the Graduate School of Public Health. Students jointly enrolled must first be accepted into the clinical psychology program and then apply for admission into public health. For the MPH degree, students must complete all required core classes as well as requirements for a particular specialization (Epidemiology, or Health Promotion and Behavioral Science). Subsequent to coursework, MPH candidates generally complete a final project as well. This final project is most often a first-authored publication that has not been used to meet any other requirement. This project must be approved and accepted by a separate MPH committee.
The MPH option will add coursework and a thesis requirement to the student’s program. The procedure for this option is to discuss the matter first with the student’s guidance committee to be sure that the MPH fits with the overall education/career goals. If the student needs guidance in the application process, they may speak with Penelope (Jenny) Quintana in the School of Public Health.
Students must formally request recommendation from the SDSU Program Co-Director, along with a summary page explaining reasons for wanting an MPH.
A copy of your JDP application, undergraduate transcript, GRE scores, transcript since entry into the JDP, and personal information (SSN, contact information, etc.) will be forwarded for transmission into the MPH program.
Acceptance is decided by the MPH program.
Proposed Requirements and Course of Study with Concentration in Epidemiology (please contact the SDSU Program Coordinator)
Proposed Requirements and Course of Study with Concentration in Health Promotion and Behavioral Science (please contact the SDSU Program Coordinator)
IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT MPH REGISTRATION: If accepted into the MPH program, your designated major will change from Clinical Psychology to Public Heath in your SDSU WebPortal account since the system does not allow students to be enrolled in two programs at one time. Therefore, once you have registered for your MPH courses each semester, you will then have to contact Patrick Walls (patwalls2@sdsu.edu) to have him temporarily change your major back to Clinical Psychology in order to register for the necessary PSY courses. Make sure to include your Red ID in the email. Once you have registered for your PSY courses, you will need to contact Pat again to let him know so he can change your major back to Public Health. You will need to do this each semester until you have completed your MPH degree.
PLEASE NOTE: You must complete all required coursework for your MPH degree BEFORE you leave for internship. Also, it is not permissible to graduate with two different degrees in the same semester. Therefore, the latest you will be allowed to graduate with your MPH degree is during the Fall semester of your internship year.
Updated 01/14/2021