Part IV – Faculty Council
IT EVALUATES THE EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES, AS WELL AS THE FORMAT AND METHODS
In response to the state, national, and global shortage of trained public health professionals, the UC Berkeley School of Public Health offers the On-Campus/Online Professional Master of Public Health (OOMPH) Degree Program. This online program enables midcareer professionals to continue their full-time careers while earning an MPH from one of the world’s leading
universities. The program enables its students to become public health leaders with the
interdisciplinary and multicultural perspective needed to protect and promote the well-being of individuals and communities.
The on-campus/online program offers the same quality and rigor as the School of Public Health’s on-campus MPH programs. Students earn their degrees over 7 semesters (2.5 years), taking 14 courses and earning 42 semester units. The program includes two mandatory 8-day on-campus experiences. Faculty participating in the program are encouraged to attend Teaching with Technology Workshops which offer the opportunity to re-visit and refine course-level goals, outcomes and assessment. The workshops explore ways in which each course contributes to the overall student learning expectation and provides assessment tools and information for
enhancing student learning and teaching. (See Resource Material List/ Section 2: 2.14b OOMPH Teaching Workshop)
Curriculum Overview
Designed for working professionals, the interdisciplinary program features expert faculty who develop the student’s understanding of the core areas of public health, including biostatistics, epidemiology, environmental health, social and behavioral science, and management of health services. Many of the faculty who teach in the online program are members of the School’s primary faculty and teach on-campus within their program. (See the program website for more information: http://onlinemph.berkeley.edu/) This public health education prepares the student to lead the effort to protect against environmental hazards, prevent the spread of disease,
encourage healthy behaviors, help communities recover from disaster, and advocate for quality and accessibility in health care.
Combining online learning, two on-campus sessions, and a required minimum 130 hour
practicum, the program creates opportunities for the students to connect face-to-face with faculty and classmates, and the employers who seek out UC Berkeley MPH graduates. (See website for course listing: http://onlinemph.berkeley.edu/curriculum/overview/)
Curriculum Requirements
14 required courses (a minimum of 42 semester units of course work)
At least a 3.0 (B) grade point average in all course work
A minimum 130 hour practicum
A written comprehensive proctored exam upon the successful completion of 42 units It is recommended that the student take two courses (6 units) per semester enabling them to complete the curriculum in seven semesters.
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On-Campus/Online Courses
Two courses - Health Policy and Management and Interdisciplinary Workshop - have on-campus and online components. These courses each include one week of intensive on-campus instruction.
While on campus the students engage in career services counseling and practice activities in public health advocacy and policy analysis. There is an extensive series of negotiation workshops and ethics case discussions related to public health practice.
Students meet not only their instructors, but senior administrative staff and faculty not normally teaching in the online program in small private faculty lunches.
The On-Campus/Online Professional MPH Degree Program's curriculum consists of the same core requirements as the on-campus MPH programs, as well as eight additional courses that provide a broad-based interdisciplinary background in public health. Competencies for the online course are carefully determined and articulated.
Online Student Experience
Online courses at UC Berkeley are not simply computer-based training or taped lecturers delivered on campus. Courses are structured online leaning modules delivered by SPH faculty, each with extensive supporting resources including graduate student instructors in a ratio of 27:1 to enhance the interactivity with the course material. Discussion assignments are mandatory and.
students study the same textbooks and take the same courses as the on-campus MPH programs (syllabi may be slightly different or in some cases more extensive), with the added value of being able to study and review multimedia lectures at any time, as many times as the student needs.
Online lectures include a combination of audio, text, graphics, video, and integrated-interactive discussion.
The online learning experience is primarily asynchronous with optional scheduled synchronous learning events and office hours.
Asynchronous class time means that the student can log in at his/her convenience anytime and participate in the multimedia lectures, view video clips, get reading
assignments, post questions, take quizzes, participate in discussion sessions, and submit homework. Course materials, as well as technical support, are available 24/7.
Synchronous class time means that the student, student peers, the instructor, and/or the GSI are interacting with each other live. Some discussion sessions are synchronous, allowing time for students to ask questions and clarify class materials, as needed. All discussion sessions are archived and can be reviewed throughout the duration of the course. Naturally, the On-campus learning is synchronous.
Instructors and GSIs hold synchronous office hours; however, students are also able to send questions to them at any time.
Library
Students have access to online resources made available by the UC Berkeley Library, including licensed resources such as journal article databases, online journals, and e-books. When on
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campus, students may use any networked campus computer or AirBears, the UC Berkeley wireless network. When off campus, students access licensed library resources via the proxy server or the campus VPN (virtual private network).
Students are provided with resources via online access to the Sheldon Margen Public Health Library website and the Online MPH Library Orientation Session web guide. (See website:
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/PUBL/)
To help students get started with researching for course assignments, Michael Sholinbeck, Instruction/Outreach Librarian at the Public Health Library, has prepared 3 short tutorials:
Thinking about your research topic/choosing databases to search
Evaluating the information you find from a search
Using RefWorks to save citations and cite them in a Word document Students also have access to the following Public Health Library web pages:
Indexes and Databases: Key databases to search for articles and more
UC-eLinks Citation Linker: See if a known citation is available online
Electronic Public Health Resources: Online resources on numerous Public Health topics (environmental health, HIV/AIDS, statistics/data, etc.)
OskiCat: The UC Berkeley Library catalog
Instruction/Guides: Help pages on databases and literature searching, managing citations, and more
Technical Support
Information regarding the technical software needed for the On-Campus/Online Professional Master of Public Health is on the program’s website:
Minimum System Requirements: http://guides.instructure.com/m/4214/l/82542-what-are-the-basic-computer-specifications-for-canvas
Minimum Browser Requirements: http://guides.instructure.com/s/2204/m/4214/l/41056-which-browsers-does-canvas-support
In general, the operating system (PC, Mac) used on most computers will be sufficient for the course as long as one of the recommended browsers is used. Some of the courses require browser plug-ins which may already be installed on the student’s computer. If not, they are available for free download for both the Windows and Macintosh operating systems.
Academic Rigor
The On-Campus/Online Professional MPH Degree Program offers a rigorous and stimulating learning experience in a flexible format that allows the student to continue working full time while completing a MPH degree in seven semesters. Students learn from School of Public Health faculty instructors and actively engage with other students, course facilitators, and graduate student instructors (GSIs). The online format bridges geographic barriers, bringing together professionals with different backgrounds and expertise from all over the United States into a diverse learning community. Students actively engage with peers from a variety of fields - physicians, dentists, nurses, attorneys, journalists, engineers, business professionals, and public health practitioners - and learn from their rich experiences while sharing each student’s unique
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perspective. Through discussions, group projects, and collaboration, students develop a multidisciplinary approach to public health issues.
Required Practicum
The field practice (practicum) component of the On-Campus/Online Professional MPH
(OOMPH) program is a requirement for the MPH degree. The purpose of the field practicum is to provide a structured pathway for students to obtain practical experience within the field of public health and an opportunity to practice the skills they have acquired in the curriculum. The practicum experience may be made up of no more than three field placements. The program encourages students to use this practicum requirement to broaden their exposure to working opportunities in the field of public health and to expand their network of professional contacts.
Self-direction with structured guidance is the operating model. Criteria and deliverables for the practicum include:
A minimum of 130 hours total (110 on site engagement, 16 for searching and informational interviews and 4 for preparation of a final report).
A Proposal – A written document that outlines the skills and/or networking that the student intends to develop during each field placement experience and why the chosen placement is a good fit for those objectives. It should also include the total hours of engagement expected. Proposals must be approved by the OOMPH practicum adviser.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) - MOUs should be explicit about the number of hours per week or month the student commits for the field placement and the expected duration of the engagement. It should list the expectations of each party to the agreement and how conflicts will be resolved. OOMPH provides an MOU template.
Reflection papers - Students are required to submit a self-study reflection paper after every 16 hours of completed placement. This works out to about 6 reflection papers.
Final Placement Report – a report for each placement that reflects on the total experience summarizing briefly the work that was done. The placement report must explain the most valued learnings and the skills practiced or acquired during that placement. A comment about the networking value of the placement is recommended, but optional.
Preceptor Affidavit - a signed affidavit from each placement preceptor that the student completed the responsibilities agreed, including the time spent at the organization must be submitted to the practicum advisor.
Completion of all elements of the practicum requirement is required for advancement to candidacy for the MPH degree.
(See Resource Material List/Section 2: 2.14b OOMPH Practicum General Description &
Requirements)
Evaluation of Educational Outcomes
Combining online learning and two on-campus sessions, the program uses the same evaluation process as the on-campus MPH. Each course has a mid-course evaluation that is used to make mid-course adjustments; a formal evaluation tool is administered at the end of each course that is identical to the on-campus course evaluation. In addition there are questions related to the online tools and effectiveness of the online instruction. Students’ sophistication and expectations mature over the course of the program and by the end of the first year we begin to get very instructive and constructive feedback for improvement and innovation that is driven by the student suggestions. The program also has an open culture regarding instructional improvement
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and the students are regularly reminded to send suggestions and feedback real-time to the program director and/or the Director of Online Pedagogy rather than waiting for a formal evaluation. Students are required to maintain at least a 3.0 (B) grade point average in all course work. A written comprehensive proctored exam is given to each student in their final semester before graduation.
When the students are on campus during the summers, the program uses the opportunity to conduct focus groups around improvement questions. SPH faculty participating in the faculty lunches program take notes on lunch meeting discussions and ideas, passing them on to OOMPH program staff.
The program also conducted a side-by-side survey of student performance on one of its
quantitative courses taught with the same curriculum by the same professor. This activity will be done longitudinally to see how the on-campus cohort compares with the online over time. A plan to add a second more qualitatively focused course to the comparison set is in place for 2015/16.
Each course uses multiple modes to check for student learning so that immediate action can be taken by the instructional team. Reinforcement of student learning is accomplished by activities (problem sets, case studies, group projects) that allow practices with principles, concepts and skills to integrate the new knowledge acquired. Student progress is monitored closely and a student affairs officer is available to support students at the earliest sign of mal-performance, to see if there are non-academic issues playing a role in performance or if there is a need for more structured tutoring. For most of the courses the student must pass the proctored final to receive credit for the course.
Evaluation of educational outcomes is continuous and real time within courses. The
comprehensive examination is an integrative exercise that asks students to use their knowledge to problem-solve using core competencies delivered by the program. The program has
developed a competency matrix (modeled on the WASC template) that is slightly different from the CEPH model. It illustrates how the competencies develop from course to course over the duration of the MPH program. The program is studying how it can improve its assessments to measure mastery of competencies in a more precise manner over time.
2.14c THE SELF-STUDY DOCUMENT SHOULD INCLUDE DESCRIPTION OF THE PROCESSES THAT THE SCHOOL USES TO VERIFY THAT THE STUDENT WHO REGISTERS IN A DISTANCE EDUCATION OR CORRESPONDENCE EDUCATION COURSE OR DEGREE IS THE SAME STUDENT WHO PARTICIPATES IN AND COMPLETES THE COURSE OR DEGREE AND RECEIVES THE ACADEMIC CREDIT.
Crystal Saetern, Admissions/Recruitment Specialist for the UC Berkeley School of Public Health checks the applicants during the admissions process making sure GRE scores and transcripts match the information provided in the application. If GRE scores aren't automatically matched to the student’s application, a manual match using birthdates as the verifying mechanism is performed. Once an applicant is admitted, the information is sent to the UC Berkeley Graduate
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Division for processing. The Graduate Division does a similar verification requiring student’s official transcripts to ensure that the names/birthdates on the transcripts match the applicant's information.
Once a student gets a CalNet ID, the Library puts their licensed resources behind a CalNet authentication screen, meaning the student must login using CalNet ID and passphrase to access licensed (subscribed) library resources.
The two residential summer programs on-campus allows our instructional team to match online performance with what we observe on campus. When students arrive on campus their identity is verified with driver’s licenses or passports when they sign into class. Identity verification on campus, language proficiency, and participation characteristics are observed for anomalies.
Separately, students engage in group work online. They then meet these cohort “buddies” on campus. This acts as a deterrent for identity substitution during the online parts of the program.
In addition, each course has an exam which is physically proctored and picture ID verified by the proctor.
Our learning management system allows us to see granular detail of logon history and IP address interaction with the course materials, including which IP address submits assignments. In one instance, a GSI recognized submissions from an IP address that had not logged onto the course materials for that week. The student was counselled and the behavior ceased.
2.14d THE SELF-STUDY DOCUMENT SHOULD INCLUDE ASSESSMENT OF THE EXTENT TO WHICH THIS CRITERION IS MET AND AN ANALYSIS OF THE SCHOOL’S STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES AND PLANS RELATING TO THIS CRITERION.
This criterion is met.
Strengths: The UC Berkeley School of Public Health provides a robust On-Campus/Online MPH degree program for mid-career professionals. The program offers the same quality and rigor as the School of Public Health’s on-campus MPH programs, learning from School of Public Health faculty instructors and actively engaging with other students, course facilitators, and graduate student instructors. Evaluation procedures are in keeping with the School’s standards for its on-campus MPH programs. A field practice (practicum) component of the OOMPH program is a requirement for the MPH degree.
Challenges: To continue to increase the opportunity for participation in this outstanding degree offering.
Plans: The School and UCSF are working together to add a globally focused track to OOMPH in order to extend its reach, and have already raised $80K to support our efforts to do so. The jointly developed globally-focused courses will lead to a joint Masters in Global Health (an online version of the UCSF masters) and to a full MPH in Global Health (the global version of our existing online degree). The plan is to strengthen OOMPH and other online offerings in order for these programs to continue to be strong revenue generators for the School.
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