Public Health Practice is an essential component of the MPH degree, providing students with the hands-on training necessary to be successful in the public health workforce.
The Office of Public Health Practice builds relationships between academia and the community for the purpose of establishing meaningful practice opportunities for our students. We offer advisement and support to students to ensure successful completion of the Applied Practice Experience (APE).
The Office of Public Health Practice is available to help students:
- Navigate the APE requirement
- Identify experiences aligned with their interests and career goals
- Plan and strategize their search
- Determine eligibility
- Assess appropriateness of the site
- Develop project proposals
- Prepare for their professional experience
Applied Practice Experience
One of the ways in which students engage in public health practice is through completion of the Applied Practice Experience, formerly known as the Practicum. The Applied Practice Experience is an integral part of the student’s learning experience, providing an opportunity for the student to demonstrate the application of theory into practice within a public health setting. All students are required to complete a minimum150-hour Applied Practice Experience under the guidance of a qualified preceptor.
Most students will complete the APE at the local health department, public health agencies, community based organizations, or non-governmental organizations. Students will be evaluated on application and achievement of selected Public Health Competencies. Often times, the APE will provide a framework for the final MPH culminating experience. The Applied Practice Experience must be approved by the preceptor, track advisor, and ISMMS Office of Public Health Practice.
In the past, students have met this requirement by working at the community level, for example, in East Harlem; at the city level, working with the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene; and at the international level, working on a disaster relief project in a foreign setting. Whatever the student’s choice, the focus is on immersion into the setting selected.
Examples of selected sites include:
- Center for Active Design
- Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC)
- Children’s Health Fund
- City Harvest
- Concrete Safaris
- Drug Policy Alliance
- Gay Men’s Health Crisis
- GBC Health
- Harlem Health Promotion Center
- Harlem United
- Health Equity Initiative
- International Rescue Committee
- MINDS Foundation, Gujarat, India
- Mount Sinai Health System
- National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS
- New York Academy of Medicine
- New York City Department of Health & Mental Hygiene
- New York Mobile Integrated Healthcare Association
- Northern Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center, Rapid City, South Dakota
- Public Health Solutions
- Pfizer, Inc.
- Regeneron Pharmaceuticals
- Teens for Food Justice
- The Trevor Project
- United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF)
- We Act for Environmental Justice
- William F. Ryan Community Health Center
For more information on the APE requirements, please refer to the Applied Practice Experience Guide.
Note: Students who matriculated prior to Fall 2018 should reference the previous version of the Applied Practice Experience Guide found on Blackboard.