Background
Public Health is an important field which is significant to ensuring provision of high-quality health care services within the health system. In South Africa, public health is concerned with addressing health problems created by huge burden of infectious and non-communicable diseases; political, social, economic injustices, health inequalities and climate change; pandemic preparedness and response; and developing interventions and policies to ensure efficient and effective provision of high-quality health care services for all the people living in the country
The Division of Public Health (DPH) in the Office of the Dean of Health Sciences is dedicated to recognising and responding to complex national and global public health challenges through high quality research, teaching and learning, and engaged scholarship. The core values of the DPH are transparency, ethical, innovative, excellence, socially responsive and care. The Division’s academic staff have extensive public health expertise and experience, who have published in a wide range of topics, including health professions education, health systems strengthening, epidemiology of infectious and non-communicable diseases, maternal and child health, and health research ethics. The staff are members of a wide range of academic bodies including the HPCSA, Public Health Association of South Africa, Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, John Snow Society, AFREhealth, AMEE and SAAHE among others. The Division has the academic capacity and infrastructure to deliver programmes of high quality.
The Public Health Programme serves multiple purposes: - To develop qualified human resources for public health that can serve in various roles within the health system to enable them to handle various health needs of populations and health challenges as well transitioning burden of diseases facing South Africa, Africa and globally.
- To develop qualified public health experts that will be able to continue with the health professions education through further production of health professionals in academic environments as teachers and researchers.
- To equip public health professionals already working in the health system or health related fields with relevant and advanced training to make them more efficient and competent in their respective occupations.
- To provide public health knowledge and skills to graduates from other disciplines who need to be competent in public health to enable them to discharge their responsibilities more efficiently and effectively.
Academic qualifications offered:
1. Master of Public Health
The MPH is a research-based Programme that focuses on the application and integration of a scientific and specialised level of knowledge and skills within the field of research. The application of knowledge and skills will take place against the background of responsible ethical and professional Public Health research practices and enable students to use a wide range of specialised skills in identifying, conceptualising, designing and applying methods of enquiry to address complex and challenging research problems within the field of Public Health. The students will conduct research that will result in scientific documents in the form of publishable manuscripts and/or a research dissertation.
The MPH graduates will exit the programme as knowledgeable, skilled graduates with competence in performing research, being able to communicate and defend substantial ideas that are the products of research to a wide range of audiences, interact effectively within the professional group with different levels of knowledge or expertise, appreciate the components of scholarly writing and evaluate its quality.
Successful graduates of the MPH programme will become trained researchers who can contribute to the development of knowledge at a high level.
Duration of the programme
The programme extends over one-year full time study and three-years part time study (180 credits).
2. Doctor of Philosophy in Public Health
The PhD (Public Health) programme focuses on the application and integration of a scientific (research-based) and specialised level of knowledge and skills within the field of research. The application of knowledge and skills will take place against the background of responsible ethical and professional Public Health research practices and enable students to use a wide range of specialised skills in identifying, conceptualising, designing and applying methods of enquiry to address complex and challenging research problems within the field of Public Health. The students will conduct high-quality research that will result in scientific documents in the form of publishable peer-reviewed manuscripts and/or a research thesis.
The PhD (Public Health) graduates will exit the programme as knowledgeable, skilled graduates and/or researchers with competence in scientifically-founded and research-based reasoning, being able to communicate and defend substantial ideas that are the products of research to a wide range of audiences, interact effectively within the professional group with different levels of knowledge and expertise, who appreciate the components of scholarly writing and evaluate its quality.
Successful graduates of the PhD (Public Health) programme will become trained researchers who can contribute to the development of knowledge, at a high and/or expert level, within the field of Public Health and a broad range of competencies to ensure a significant impact on the subject field and community of practice.
Duration of the programme
The programme extends over two-year full time study and four-years part time study (360 credits).
Staff profile
Contact details for inquiries purposes
Sindiswa Montoeli
Public Health Division
Telephone number: +27 51 401 3919
Email: PublicHealth@ufs.ac.za