Athens, Ga. – The University of Georgia’s College of Public Health and Terry College of Business have partnered to create a dual degree program for students interested in pursuing high-level management careers in health care organizations and agencies.
Graduates of the three-year, full-time program will be awarded both the Master of Business Administration and Master of Public Health degrees.
The aim of the MBA/MPH program is to supplement a student’s professional education in business administration with training in public health, and vice versa, said Dr. Neale Chumbler, UGA professor and head of the department of health policy and management in the College of Public Health.
“There are career opportunities where both business administration and public health expertise are required,” Chumbler said. “With the MBA/MPH, we are capitalizing on the signature graduate degree program of each college to provide a fast track for the specialized training now in demand for positions in health care management and consulting.”
During the first year of the MBA/MPH program, students will take courses in health economics, policy analysis and public health fundamentals in the department of health policy and management in the College of Public Health. In the second year, courses in leadership, accounting, and financial, strategic and operations management will be taken through the Terry College of Business. Directed study and capstone projects from both colleges are addressed during the program’s third year. At least one summer internship is also required.
“With the growth of the health care sector of our economy, we are seeing intense pressure on hospitals, insurance companies, government and other health care organizations to improve results, increase quality and lower costs,” said Dr. Rich Daniels, director of MBA programs in the Terry College. “These are business problems with a twist, a health care twist, and our new MBA/MPH program offers students an excellent pathway for developing the integrated skillset expected of business professionals desiring a career in health care management or consulting.”
The program is currently accepting applications for fall semester 2014. Applicants must apply and be admitted to both colleges in order to be eligible for the program.
The MBA/MPH program is one of five joint MPH programs offered by the College of Public Health. These include: the PharmD/MPH (with the UGA College of Pharmacy); the MSW/MPH (with the UGA School of Social Work); the DVM/MPH (with the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine); and the MD/MPH (with Georgia Regents University).
To learn more about the MBA/MPH program, contact Colin Porter in College of Public Health Admissions at cporter@uga.edu or 706-583-0885.