This page lists California schools of public health, joint/dual medical and public health degree programs at either one university or two, independent MPH programs at other California schools, national online lists of dual degree programs, and a discussion of dual degree programs for medical students, as of January 31, 2022. An equal amount of detail was not available from every program. Links are included to the specific programs. This information is subject to change, so best to follow the links for further information, and to check with individual programs. Please submit any updates or corrections to info@capreventivemed.org.
CALIFORNIA SCHOOLS OF PUBLIC HEALTH:
The following are the only five universities in California that currently operate formal schools of public health as of the date of this posting. These offer the Master of Public Health (MPH) degree, and other graduate public health degree programs such as DrPH. See further information below on dual degree and inter-university programs, and on planned additional schools of public health.
Loma Linda University (LLU) This school offers the MPH and two other public health degrees, a PhD, and a Dr.PH. There is also a school of medicine, see below re the dual degree program. There is a special
concentration track of Population Medicine for medical students, residents, physicians in practice, and other healthcare providers. This and the Epidemiology track are offered in person and online. The school also offers a Preventive Medicine residency, discussed in a separate list, with the MPH obtained at the School of Public Health.
University of California, Berkeley (UCB)
This school has a full range of public health degree programs including the MPH, and collaborates with other universities and agencies. See more information below under dual degree programs involving two different universities.
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
This school offers masters degrees including the MPH, and
doctoral degrees. It also offers a Preventive Medicine/Internal Medicine residency, discussed in a separate list.
University of California, San Diego (UCSD)
The Max Wertheim SPH is the newest of the five California schools of public health. It offers the MPH and two other masters, doctoral programs, and a BS in public health. UCSD also has a medical school, so both an MD and an MPH can be separately obtained, but no integrated dual degree program on campus has been announced. The school also offers a Preventive Medicine residency, discussed in a separate list. This includes earning an MPH degree, but for historical reasons, the latter is obtained at San Diego State rather than on campus.
San Diego State University (SDSU)
This school offers MPH and PhD programs, and undergraduate courses for a minor in public health. See more information below about the dual degree program.
Future Plans:
See below re plans of University of Southern California and University of California, Irvine, to develop their own schools of public health.
CALIFORNIA MEDICAL SCHOOLS THAT OFFER MPH DEGREES AND DUAL MD OR DO/MPH
DEGREES ON CAMPUS (SEE ALSO PROGRAMS INVOLVING TWO UNIVERSITIES, BELOW):
Touro University offers a dual DO/MPH program
for students in the College of Osteopathic Medicine seeking a D.O. degree, as well as in the College of Pharmacy seeking a PharmD degree. The MPH degree can be added in as little as 4 years of full-time study for a dual degree. Students spend 10 units of the total 30 in a concentration track of either Community Health or Global Health, and 4 units of public health field study.
The MPH degree can also be sought separately at Touro.
University of California, Irvine (UCI) offers a dual MD/MPH program. The Keck School of Medicine partners with the Program in Public Health,
which offers BS, BA, MPH, MS and PhD degrees in Public Health. Plans are progressing for a School of Population and Public Health, which will initially be a “school within a school” as part of the School of Medicine, which in turn is part of the UCI Samueli College of Health Sciences. UCI medical students currently comprise approximately 10% of the entering MPH class each year, or about 2-4/year. Medical students interested in the joint degree program apply to the MPH program during their 3rd year of MD coursework. They spend 9 months in the MPH program at the conclusion of that year and complete an MPH practicum during their 4th year. The MPH is offered tuition-free to medical students.
The MPH degree can also be sought separately at UCI.
University of Southern California (USC) offers a dual MD/MPH degree program. A future school of public health has been proposed. Both in-person and totally online MPH degrees are offered. Six concentration tracks are available.
The MPH degree can also be sought separately at USC.
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) offers a dual MD/MPH program, with the MD earned at the Geffen School of Medicine and the MPH obtained at the university’s Fielding School of Public Health.
Loma Linda University (LLU) offers a dual MD/MPH program, which will takes 5 years. Most of the MPH
courses are taken between the 3rd and 4th year of medical school. The MD is from the School of medicine, the MPH from the School of Public Health at the same campus, utilizing the concentration track in Population Medicine, discussed above.
Future Plans:
University of California, Riverside (UCR)
is discussing the development of an inter-departmental MPH program, to begin in Fall, 2023. There are further plans to develop a dual MD/MPH degree program subsequently.
CALIFORNIA DUAL MD OR DO/MPH PROGRAMS INVOLVING COLLABORATION OF TWO DIFFERENT UNIVERSITIES:
The following medical schools have linked with a separate university to offer a dual degree program.
Stanford University School of Medicine/University of California Berkeley (UCB) School of Public Health These schools offer a dual MD/MPH degree program for Stanford medical students, with the MPH obtained at UCB across the Bay over a 10-12 month dedicated year. There are multiple concentration areas available for the MPH.
University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine/San Diego State University (SDSU) School of Public Health These schools offer a dual MD/MPH program, for UCSD medical students, obtaining the MPH at SDSU.
The MPH is pursued in a dedicated year during or after medical school, so that the total
program lasts 5 years. There is a special concentration track for medical students. (SDSU also offers similar
dual degree programs with other disciplines.) The degrees can also both be pursued separately at UCSD.
UCSD and SDSU also co-sponsor a Preventive Medicine residency program, discussed in a separate list, with the MPH similarly obtained at SDSU.
University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine/University of California, Berkeley (UCB) School of Public Health These schools offer a dual MD/MPH program for UCSF medical students, with the MPH studies at UCB across the Bay. There are multiple concentration areas available for the MPH. There is also a joint Preventive Medicine/Internal Medicine residency at UCSF, discussed in a separate list, with the MPH similarly obtained at UCB.
University of California, Berkeley (UCB)/UC San Francisco (UCSF) In addition to the above, these schools offer a 5-year “Joint Medical Program,” which starts at UCB then transfers to UCSF, 2 ½ years each. The
standard extra degree is an MS in Health and Public Policy from UCB rather than an MPH, although some
students have managed to obtain an MS/MPH spending 3 years at UCB..
Western University of Health Sciences College of Osteopathic Medicine/Claremont Graduate University School of Community and Global Health (CGU) Since 2021, these schools have offered a popular dual enrollment DO/MPH degree program for Western University medical students, with the MPH at nearby CGU (see separate school listing below). MPH courses are taken concurrently (virtually, with plans to evolve to a hybrid on campus/online design) and both degrees can usually be obtained in 4 years. CGU tuition is high but the medical students get a 30% discount.
Future Plans:
Kaiser-Permanente School of Medicine has plans to offer its medical students the option of taking a year to obtain an MPH at UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health.
OTHER CALIFORNIA SCHOOLS OFFERING MASTER OF PUBLIC HEALTH (MPH) DEGREES
The following universities do not have formal schools of public health or of medicine, but do independently offer MPH degree programs.
California Baptist University offers an MPH program.
California State University, Fresno offers an MPH program.
California State University, Fullerton offers an MPH program.
California State University, Long Beach offers an MPH program.
California State University, Los Angeles offers an MPH program.
California State University, Northridge offers an MPH program with concentrations available in Community Health Education and Applied Epidemiology.
California State University, Sacramento offers an MPH program with an emphasis on health
promotion, policy, and leadership.
California State University, San Bernardino offers an MPH program.
California State University, San Francisco offers an MPH program with a concentration available only in Community Health Education.
California State University, San Marcos offers an MPH program with four areas of
concentration.
Claremont Graduate University, School of Community and Global Health offers an MPH program, and as noted above, collaborates with an osteopathic medical school to offer a dual enrollment degree program. Concentrations are available in Applied Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Health Promotion/Education/Evaluation, and Leadership and Management.
Charles R. Drew University offers an MPH program with a concentration in Urban Health Disparities.
National University offers an MPH program online that can be completed in 18 months.
University of California, Davis (UCD) offers an MPH degree program based in the School of Medicine’s
Department of Public Health Sciences. It offers concentration tracks in General Public Health and
Epidemiology, and includes a practicum experience in a public health setting. This program is utilized among others by Preventive Medicine residents, including some from the nearby California Department of Public Health, discussed in a separate list. There is as yet no dual degree program at the medical school.
University of San Francisco Concentrations available in Community and Public Health Practice (San
Francisco, Orange County, or online), Health Policy Leadership (Sacramento), and Behavioral Health (San
Francisco)
NATIONWIDE LISTS OF DUAL MD/MPH PROGRAMS:
The Association of American Medical Colleges maintains a list of dual MD/MPH programs throughout the U.S., listed by state.
Healthguide USA maintains a nationwide alphabetical list of dual MD/MPH programs.
GENERAL DISCUSSION OF DUAL MD/MPH PROGRAMS:
The American Student Medical Association posts an excellent discussion about whether to pursue combining an MD or a DO with an MPH degree.