Apply to our degrees

Public health is in demand now more than ever. The Division of Public Health offers master's and doctoral degrees and graduate certificate programs. MPH concentrations include generalist, community health, and global health. Graduate certificates include Public Health, Global Health, Emergency Health, and Statistics. We also offer an MStat-Biostatistics degree and a PhD in Public Health. Our MPH programs have a practice focus while our MSPH and PhD programs have a research focus. We also offer continuing education for public health professionals and community partners and are part of the Rocky Mountain Public Health Training Center.

The Department of Family and Preventive Medicine (originally Family and Community Medicine) has offered a master's degree in public health education since 1974, a MStat-Biostatistics degree since 1976, and a PhD since 2004.

The MPH program has been continuously accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) since 1978.

CEPH Letter 2023

CEPH Letter 2022

CEPH Site Visit 2022

CEPH Self-Study Report 2021

PhD Student Highlights

Emmanuel Adediran, MPH

Emmanuel Adediran, MPH, is a final year doctoral student in public health at the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine. Emmanuel also earned his master's in public health degree at Saint Louis University in Missouri. His scientific focus and research area are broadly described as improving hypertension management and prevention with an emphasis on leveraging primary care institutions, electronic health records (EHR), and community-capacity building. His research also addresses hypertension disparities in racial and ethnic minority populations, in particular, hypertension management in Black/African American individuals. Emmanuel is currently involved in several research projects at the institution, including investigating culinary medicine interventions for improving chronic health outcomes in racial and ethnic minority populations, exploring postpartum blood pressure screening in primary care, investigating hypertension management challenges in Black/African American adults with hypertension, and understanding the relationship between cancer and new-onset diabetes mellitus. For future career work, he will continue to develop innovative primary care-focused approaches to address hypertension disparities. His research will build upon strategies such as mobile health, barbershops, faith-based institutions, grocery store establishments, and community support groups.

Skyler Crouch, MPH, CPH

Skyler is a public health PhD student who is interested in incorporating health equity principles into epidemiology. He is currently a graduate research assistant for the ForeSITE Center and the instructor for the Public Health Nutrition course. Previously, Skyler has served as a health equity epidemiologist for the Department of Family & Preventive Medicine, a manager for the U of U COVID-19 Contact Tracing Team, and the COVID-19 vaccination coordinator for the main U of U campus. He has a B.Sc. in Nutritional Science from Brigham Young University and an MPH from the University of Utah. Skyler is actively involved with the Utah Public Health Association and has served the organization in many roles, including Board President, Conference Chair, and President of the Student Assembly. He is also an LGBTQ+ subject matter expert for the Rocky Mountain Public Health Training Center and an active member of the Healthy West Jordan Committee. He is an avid gardener and amateur botanist, a classical music fanatic, and an advocate for xeriscaping and incorporating native Utah plants into landscapes.

Md Imdadul Haque, BSS, MSS, MPH

Rachel Myrer

Rachel Myrer is a doctoral candidate in public health at the University of Utah, specializing in reproductive epidemiology. Her research focuses on conditions such as infertility, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and endometriosis. She holds a Master of Public Health (MPH) from the University of Utah and a Bachelor of Science in Public Health from Brigham Young University. Prior to her doctoral studies, Rachel gained extensive experience in public health program design, implementation, and evaluation, working with schools, universities, worksites, and nonprofit organizations. Her work has addressed a wide range of public health concerns, including physical activity promotion, chronic disease prevention, opioid harm reduction, and healthcare analytics using real-world data (RWD). Throughout her doctoral program, Rachel has collaborated with faculty in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine on projects examining environmental influences on child health, antimicrobial resistance through wastewater monitoring, and the connection between endometriosis and cardiovascular disease. In addition to her research, Rachel teaches courses in program planning and evaluation, health policy, and research methods at Westminster University. Upon completing her doctorate in 2025, she plans to continue teaching and conducting research on women’s and reproductive health.

Faculty Highlights

Lisa H, Gren, PhD, MSPH

August 12-18 (OSHA’s Safe & Sound Week)

[alternatively – with revision to paragraph 1 – October 10 is World Mental Health Day & May is Mental Health Awareness Month]

This is Public Health

August 12-18 is OSHA’s “Safe & Sound” week, emphasizing efforts to keep workers safe. The National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health (NIOSH) also recognizes that promoting wellness is important to overall health.

Workers agree. In 2022, the American Psychological Association conducted a survey, finding that 7 of 10 workers believe that employers are more concerned about employee mental health in the post-COVID period than they were pre-COVID. Additionally, 8 of 10 employees say that a workplace that supports mental health is an important consideration when they are looking for work.

Many organizations are now supporting mental well-being as a way to improve worker experience, as well as the employer’s bottom line (through lower rates of burnout and employee turnover). The Surgeon General has developed a Framework for Workplace Mental Health and Well-being, which relies on a number of public health principles to support health and well-being, such as (1) protecting people from harm, (2) building social support and community, and (3) creating opportunities for growth.

University of Utah faculty and students from the Division of Public Health are participating in multi-disciplinary research at one of ten NIOSH Centers of Excellence in Total Worker Health®. To learn more about their research, visit the Utah Center for Promotion of Work Equity Research (U-POWER) website.

LINKS:

Survey
https://www.apa.org/pubs/reports/work-well-being/2022-mental-health-support#:%7E:text=A%20majority%20%2881%25%29%20of,into%20their%20future%20job%20decisions

Framework
https://www.hhs.gov/surgeongeneral/priorities/workplace-well-being/index.html

U-POWER
https://medicine.utah.edu/occupational-environmental-health/research/u-power

Karen Schliep, PhD, MSPH

September 29 (World Heart Day)

This is Public Health

September 29th is “World Heart Day” (WHD), a global celebration of the heart. WHD was established by the World Health Federation in partnership with the World Health Organization to create a day that raises awareness and mobilizes international action against cardiovascular disease (CVD).

CVD—including heart attack, stroke, and heart failure—is the world’s number one killer. Over twenty million deaths occur each year due to CVD, with the majority of these deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. The good news is that 80% of premature deaths from CVD are preventable. And behaviors under our control, such as what we eat and drink, how much exercise we get, and how we manage our stress, can help prevent CVD.

Across six continents, individuals and communities celebrate World Heart Day in unique ways, including participating in the fun WHD Challenge. What is the challenge? Create your own heart shape route to walk, bike, or run. Share your route on social media with hashtag #WorldHeartDay and/or upload to WHD challenge wall. Three simple steps: 1) Plan your route; 2) Walk, run, or cycle your route on September 29th, alone or with friends; 3) Upload your route with a photo and route details to be added to WHD challenge wall.

University of Utah faculty and students from the Division of Public Health, Lifecourse Epidemiology Lab, are busy at work conducting research on how women’s reproductive health is linked to later CVD risk. Visit their lab website for more information on the work they are doing to help create better heart health for women in Utah and beyond.

Links:

World Heart Federation World Heart Day Challenge
https://world-heart-federation.org/world-heart-day/get-involved/world-heart-day-challenge/

University of Utah Division of Public Health Lifecouse Epidemiology Lab.
https://medicine.utah.edu/dfpm/research/research-groups/life-course-epi

Kimberley Shoaf, DrPH, MPH

October 17 is International ShakeOut Day.

This is Public Health

October 17 is designated as International ShakeOut Day, a day to practice earthquake safety guidance. The ShakeOut began in California as a result of an interdisciplinary team of scientists working together to create an evidence-based earthquake scenario. It was turned into a statewide exercise that has now grown to include exercises and drills across the United States, Canada, and numerous other countries.

A key component of the ShakeOut is to practice earthquake safety guidance such as Drop, Cover, and Hold On. Dr. Kimberley Shoaf, of the Division of Public Health, was one of the scientists that developed the original ShakeOut scenario and has done research on how people get injured in earthquakes. This led to the standardization of Drop, Cover, and Hold On as the practice recommended by all organizations in the United States.

Continued research on earthquake injuries as well as risk communication about earthquakes and other disasters is one component of the Rocky Mountains & High Plains Center for Emergency Public Health. The Center faculty and students focus on research and training to help public health agencies and communities prepare for, respond to, and recover from all types of disasters and public health emergencies. The Center houses one of 10 CDC funded Regional Centers for Public Health Preparedness and Response.