The Learning Environment

Faculty. Department faculty and staff have diverse training and backgrounds in fields such as clinical nursing and medicine, epidemiology, demography, sociology, psychology, law, psychiatry, social work, program administration, and public health. Our faculty members pursue research and service in New York, throughtout the United States, and in several countries in Africa, South Asia, and Latin America.

Students. Arriving at HDPFH with at least two years of previous work experience, students themselves add depth and perspective to discussions within classrooms, and beyond.

Curriculum. The Departmental curriculum encompasses carefully crafted Learning Objectives delivered through a variety of Courses. Students are required also to complete web-based Technical Issues Modules, which permit professors to use class time to engage their topics in more depth. Students also complete practica, which can take place at one of the several Departmental service delivery programs ), or at an array of organizations throughout New York City. Students in the Forced Migration and Global Health Tracks complete their practica overseas. Finally, all students present their integrated public health learning in a Capstone Paper.

Columbia University. Students at the Mailman School of Public Health can draw upon the vast and varied academic resources available throughout Columbia University. Some HDPFH students pursue dual degrees with ten of the University's other graduate schools. All students can choose elective courses from any of Columbia's graduate schools.

New York City. The Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health provides an array of health services to the communities of Washington Heights and Harlem, enabling students to engage directly in community health service delivery. Equally important, students take advantage of opportunities offered by a range of humanitarian, international, and reproductive health organizations with headquarters located in New York. The Columbia University Medical Center Campus offers a web of connections to health care throughout New York City.