D.V.M./M.P.H. with Tufts University School of Medicine

• Introduction
• Program
• Application Process
• Tuition, Fees, and Financial Aid
• Degree Requirements, Curriculum, and Course Descriptions
• Curriculum
• Applied Learning Experiences (ALE)
• Lottery System
• Contact Information

Introduction

The DVM/MPH program is designed to prepare veterinary students for a career in public health, or to better apply the principles of epidemiology and public health to more traditional forms of practice or research. With its emphasis on human and animal diseases, accuracy in research, and rigorous application of statistical methods, the combined D.V.M./M.P.H. degree would provide an excellent foundation for students wishing to pursue public health positions in government and positions in research, international health, private industry, and academia.

The MPH degree complements students' clinical understanding of the individual with a population-based perspective. Upon completion of the program, students are better able to understand the roles of the biological sciences and health care services in improving the health of populations and linking to public health practice. The program helps graduates identify the public health implications of clinical work and research, and communicates these to other clinicians and public health professionals. Graduates of the program are able to apply population-based methods and perspectives to the design and practice of clinical services, describe the diverse roles that physicians, veterinarians, and other clinicians and public health professionals' play in public health practice and research, and demonstrate the ability to participate effectively in a public health team.

Program

The DVM/MPH program's public health curriculum was developed especially for the combined degree, and is tightly integrated with medical and/or veterinary coursework. This careful integration allows students in the DVM/MPH program to earn a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree in the same four years they earn a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM). The track provides the basics for understanding and practicing public health without compromising a complete DVM program. The MPH degree curriculum prepares generalists with a sound foundation in public health disciplines, including epidemiology, biostatistics, planning and management, international health, bioethics, public health law, environmental and occupational health, and the social and behavioral sciences.

Graduates of this program are equipped to become leaders in public health administration, policy and research, as well as superb clinicians. They are sought out by residency programs and other employers, and have many interesting career opportunities available to them.

The outstanding and well-established M.P.H. degree program has been offered to M.D. students as a simultaneous degree since 1986, and to veterinary students since 1994.

Application Process

Interested applicants must apply separately to each program and meet the respective admission criteria of each. DVM applicants receive information and an application for the MPH program in January, once they have been selected for an interview for admission to the DVM program. The MPH application for admission must be submitted by March 1 to the Office of Admissions at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. Applicants are informed of both admission decisions by the end of March.

Tuition, Fees, and Financial Aid

All students are charged an additional MPH tuition each semester of the four-year program. Tuition for the year is payable according to Tufts University guidelines. For a student enrolled in the program during the academic year 2004-2005, tuition was $3,744 ($1,872/semester). All tuitions are subject to yearly increases.

DVM/MPH students are eligible for a yearly MPH fellowship from laboratory animal and pharmaceutical industry sources. Since funds are limited, students must apply for this fellowship each year.

Degree Requirements, Curriculum, and Course Descriptions

Students must complete 48 credits of public health course work. With the program director's permission, Tufts' MPH course(s) offered outside the combined-degree track may be substituted for up to four elective course credits.

In the first two years, students take public health core courses on Tuesday afternoons in place of the weekly, pre-clinical field or research selectives pursued by other veterinary students. When necessary, special four-week blocks of time are reserved for elective MPH courses in the spring of the students' third and fourth years.

In addition, students participate in an eight-week summer field experience during the summer between their first and second years, and an in-depth practicum in public health (Applied Learning Experience) in the fourth year. Public Health Rounds, a seminar focusing on current public health topics, is offered each term.

Curriculum

Students in the DVM/MPH combined degree program take a required set of courses in the MPH program. Students take these courses at the Tufts University School of Medicine campus in Boston every Tuesday afternoon during the first two years of their DVM program.

Elective courses are available for third and fourth year students during two four-week periods generally starting the last week of March and ending the third week in April. Individual elective courses are offered, at most, once every two years. Usually six or seven electives are offered each spring, although course offerings in any given year may vary. Students receive elective course descriptions when registering for their elective courses in January of their third year. Generally one veterinary-related MPH elective course is offered each year. Specific courses are offered every other year so an MPH student has the ability to take at least two different veterinary-related MPH course electives during their four year program, one in their third year and one in their fourth year.

For more information regarding MPH degree requirements, curriculum, and course descriptions, visit Tufts University School of Medicine.

Applied Learning Experiences (ALE)

Students in this program are required to do an Applied Learning Experience (ALE) in their 4th year of study. This advanced-level public health practicum provides students with an opportunity to integrate and apply their knowledge and skills to propose a solution to a genuine public health problem. To address the problem, students must draw upon all of the public health core disciplines and become more familiar with public health practice. Five ALE orientation seminars during the evenings of the first four-week elective block provide faculty and peer support for students as they develop their projects. Interventions are evaluated by a panel of faculty. Due to the complexity of the DVM lottery process, an alternative ALE orientation can be arranged at the end of the DVM students' second year. This gives students in the DVM/MPH program time to figure out their project and plan the logistics before the lottery in November. For more information, contact the Graduate Studies Manager.

Lottery System

All DVM students are required to undergo a lottery selection process to select their end of third year and fourth year core and elective rotations. DVM/MPH students are required to reserve four weeks in their third year, and eight weeks in their fourth year for MPH-related coursework. Since DVM rotations begin during the first week of March of the third year, and the lottery system that decides the order of these rotations happens in November, students in this program need specific information regarding key times and places well in advance. Every effort is made to ensure that DVM/MPH students are able to fulfill requirements for both programs. However, this is tricky and students in the program should meet with the TCSVM Clinical Coordinator, well in advance. The last 7 weeks of the DVM rotation schedule consist of electives. In order to help solidify rotations in advance, it is easier for students in this combined degree program to use their last 8 weeks to fulfill their fourth year elective course block and ALE requirements.

Contact Information

For additional information or questions about this program, contact:

• Dr. Anthony Schlaff, Director of MPH program, TUSM
• MaryAnn Miller, Graduate Studies Manager
• Rebecca Russo, Director of Admissions