JD/MPH in Maternal and Child Health: Curriculum

Law School Curriculum

Law School JD degree requirements for students entering Fall 2009 include satisfactory completion of 88 semester credits, and six semesters of full-time enrollment (defined as 12 semester credits or more). First-year students are required to take a core curriculum totaling 30 credits and comprised of the following courses: Beyond that, all courses are elective, except that a student must take a course in Professional Responsibility (3 credits) and Constitutional Law II (3 credits) before graduating. In addition, each student must satisfy a second-year writing requirement (typically by participating in a moot court or serving as a staff member on one of the Law School's law reviews), as well as a third-year writing requirement (typically satisfied by taking a course meeting this requirement, completing an independent research paper meeting this requirement, which may be an MS thesis, Plan B paper, PhD dissertation, or capstone project, or serving as an editor on one of the Law School's law reviews).

To see requirements for students entering in years other than 2009, visit www.law.umn.edu/current/degreerequirements.html.

In addition, all students in the Joint Degree Program in Law, Health & the Life Sciences take a professional seminar. This 1-credit Proseminar is taught cooperatively by faculty involved in the Joint Degree Program, offered on a pass-fail basis, and required each Fall semester that a student is enrolled in the Joint Degree Program.

Maternal and Child Health (MCH) focuses on promoting and preserving the health of families, including mothers, children, and adolescents. Mothers and children have been among the most vulnerable populations and addressing their needs requires expertise in theories of human growth and development and in social ecology. This expert knowledge is combined with the skill areas of public health (epidemiology, biostatistics, environmental health, ethics, management, and behavioral sciences) to assess MCH needs; develop, manage, and evaluate MCH programs; and formulate and advocate for effective policies. MCH professionals work to identify and promote social and environmental conditions contributing to the health of families, mothers, and children. They develop public health programs that may include health promotion and disease prevention, as well as primary care services.

The MCH faculty is multidisciplinary, with expertise in epidemiology, medicine, nursing, psychology, nutrition, family studies, and health education.

Students qualify for the MPH in Maternal and Child Health through a two-year program consisting of 48 credits. In addition to the coursework, students must:

• Complete a 120-hour minimum supervised field experience, in which coursework is applied in a public health practice setting;
• Complete a master's project consisting of a critical literature review, research project, or technical field report; and
• Pass a final oral defense.

Combining Curricula

Students in the Joint Degree Program combine their Law and science/health curricula by cross-counting up to 12 Law credits in their science or health program and up to 12 non-law credits in their Law School program. For more details, click on "Cross-Counting Courses" above.

JD/MS or JD/PhD students are eligible for a minor in bioethics, bioinformatics, or human genetics.