What aspects of the course would be particularly appealing to overseas students?
Medical sciences and medical care, with their related field of science and technology, have made remarkable progress lately. The related areas founding the basis of medicine are rapidly growing, expanding and diverging. Thus, integration of medicine-related sciences and technologies is strongly required. It is an important social need to cultivate professionals who are well educated in medicine-related sciences.
Our course was established to provide opportunities for students to obtain knowledge of medical sciences, and to develop the ability of its application. Graduates of this program are expected to contribute to the progress of research in the field of basic medical sciences, clinical medicine and community medicine. It is also the aim of this program to train professionals who can serve as experts in various medicine-related fields, such as preventive medicine, occupational medicine, medical welfare, medical engineering and medical administration.
The Master of Public Health course prepares students for careers in public health research and education, health policy and management and safety control. Courses offered includes biostatistics, epidemiology, health care policy and management, social and behavioral science, mental health, and environmental risk assessment and management. Given the Medical Sciences Departments’ wide-ranging faculty, a distinctive feature of the University of Tsukuba’s Master of Public Health course is that students study with experts not only of public health but also of basic and clinical sciences, and thus develop a comprehensive view.
Are there any special aspects to the course? For example, internships, or access to specialized facilities or equipment?
In order to meet the changing and growing demands of medical sciences, public health, health care and welfare, the curriculum has been structured to accommodate the diversity of backgrounds and future assignments of students of the Master's Programs. Therefore, the program requirements for all students admitted to the program are the same and do not differ according to the professional category. However, while emphasizing the need for a broad core curriculum in medical sciences, the program also provides the broad opportunity to pursue areas of interest for individuals.
Curriculum is comprised of:
- (1) Basic credit units including human anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, overview of clinical medicine, overview of social medicine and English in medical science.
- (2) Electives and advanced credit units including all of the basic medical science disciplines, biotechnology, pathology, clinical medicines, sports and health, social medicine, medical welfare, medical information technology and experimental animal sciences.
- (3) Thesis for the master’s degree. The thesis work should be carried out under the direction of an advisor.
- (4) Internship is not compulsory for the MPH course as most students already exposed in public health practice before the enrolment. However, a student who wants for credits for internship can be arranged.
What is the student to staff ratio of the course?
A more than 40 full time faculty represent major biomedical, clinical and public health disciplines. More than 10 academic research groups offer graduate training to prepare the candidates for professional positions in public health and other related fields. The student to staff ratio is 1 to 4.
What are the instructors’areas of interest and expertise, and what are some recent notable publications or projects within the department?
Faculty areas of interest divers among important issues in global public health, such as global aging, health equity, climate change impact on health and child welfare.Prof. Nanako Tamiya is a leading scientist on global aging and published a series of related articles (Lancet 2011). Prof. Yasushi Honda was a member of IPCC that was awarded a Nobel Prize and is continuously interested in climate impact and health. Prof. Masao Ichikawa published a notable article on injury control (Lancet, 2002). Prof. Yukiko Wagatsuma worked in various countries as a public health expert and her research area is child survival and developmental origins of health. She is a co-author of a randomized trial of nutritional supplementation of pregnant women in Bangladesh and there are a series of publications on the study (JAMA, 2012).