Online Master of Public Health in Urban Health

Urban Studies and Public Health Online Master Degree

Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health’s online MPH in Urban Health trains you in the foundational principles of urban health practice. Rooted in the concept of health as a human right, this program will teach you to develop culturally competent programs, policies, and solutions to contemporary urban health challenges, including built environment, healthy housing, and ecological concerns.

Program Features

• 56 quarter credits
• This program can be completed 100% online and has no residency component
• Along with a focus on urban health, you can delve deeper into topics like maternal child health, health disparities, LGBT health, or infection prevention and control
• Learn from well-respected Drexel Dornsife faculty who are experts in the field of urban health
• Drexel Dornsife is proud to be the first school in Philadelphia to earn CEPH accreditation
• Ranked #1 in Philadelphia and in the top 15% nationally for Best Graduate School of Public Health by U.S. News & World Report
• No GRE required

MPH Experiential Learning Opportunities

Applied Practical Experience
Drexel Dornsife believes in providing real-world practical knowledge and skills as a part of your education. This requires creating opportunities to build in-depth understanding and a diverse breadth of knowledge that you can immediately apply in your career. You will be required to complete the Applied Practical Experience (APE) and breadth activities. The APE is a hands-on practical experience you receive through either a project with your current employer, an outside organization, or in an online course-based setting. The experiences can be completed remotely or near your home, which means you never have to come to campus. Drexel Dornsife will even assist you in making connections for these opportunities with public health organizations and beyond.

Through the program, you can pursue the APE and breadth activities in urban and global settings, working with Drexel’s partners around the globe or seeking out opportunities in the U.S. with diverse communities.

Integrative Learning Experience
As an MPH student nearing program completion, you’ll be required to enroll in the integrative learning experience (ILE). With a goal of illustrating mastery of core public health and focus-area-specific competencies, the ILE is completed in the final year of the program and includes writing a high-quality paper. The ILE can be an internship, capstone course, or data analysis project. Your major will determine which ILE you complete. 

What is Urban Public Health?

55% of the global population currently live in cities, and that number is expected to grow in the coming decades. Urban areas provide unique health challenges and opportunities, and as people continue to migrate to cities, understanding those issues is becoming increasingly important. Urban public health studies these populations and communities to determine the challenges they face and how to best meet their needs. This often means working within communities that are diverse in terms of socioeconomic, racial, and ethnic backgrounds, and at times have drastically different challenges and opportunities. Urban health professionals often work within vulnerable populations and focus on health inequalities to improve the lives of these communities.

What Do You Learn in Urban Healthcare Studies?

MPH Urban Health Overview

In Drexel Dornsife’s online MPH in Urban Health, you will learn to:

• Apply theories and frameworks from urban social sciences to identify social and other determinants of health, and develop solutions to major urban health problems
• Critique policies and programs that promote the health of urban populations and reduce urban health inequalities
• Engage various constituencies including policymakers, community residents and leaders, civil society organizations, social movements, and public agencies in identifying and reducing health problems facing cities
• Identify ecological models to identify appropriate solutions to the health problems of cities at the individual, family, community, municipal, regional, national, and global levels
• Select appropriate epidemiological methods to characterize patterns of health, disease, and inequalities in health in urban populations and subpopulations

What Can You Do With a Degree in Urban Health?

A degree in urban health prepares you for careers in areas like health education and community health, as well as provide opportunies to collaborate in urban and regional planning. Health educators and community health workers promote wellness in their communities through teaching populations healthy behaviors. They may also collect data and work with communities to understand health concerns that affect specific populations.

Public health practitioners also collaborate with urban and regional planners to assess, implement, and evaluate strategies of health in all policies, such as healthy and equitable housing and neighborhoods, safe and active transportation, and issues of sanitation and air quality. Together, public health practitioners and urban and regional planners can help create or revitalize communities, address infrastructure issues, and accommodate population growth.

MPH Urban Health Career Opportunities
The job outlook in these areas is encouraging. As a graduate of Drexel’s MPH in Urban Health, you can expect to look for career opportunities in organizations like:

• Public health agencies in cities and/or states
• Non-profits/philanthropies/NGOs (domestic or global)
• National government organizations (e.g., CDC, NIH)
• Private companies focused on urban health issues (e.g., insurance companies, hospitals, etc.)
• Research organizations (e.g., universities, institutes, centers, hospitals, etc.)
• Doctoral programs in public health, sociology, medicine, public policy, law, sociology, and anthropology

Learn more about the public health industry.

How Much Can You Make with a Master’s in Urban Health?

MPH Urban Health Salary Expectations

Your salary as an urban health professional will vary based on your title, location and years of experience. Learn more about public health salaries.

How Long Does it Take to Complete a Master’s in Urban Health?

Drexel University’s online MPH in Urban Health offers multiple tracks that make earning your degree convenient for your schedule:

• 12 Months
  This plan allows you to complete the program in the shortest amount of time. It’s recommended that you not work while pursuing this plan.
  Expect to spend: 60-80 hours of coursework each week
  • This option begins in the summer term. When applying, please make sure to select the 12 month option and summer term option under the term you plan to enroll question.
• 18 Months
  This plan allows you to complete the program by March of your second year. You may be eligible for a research assistantship. You will also have the time to do an internship over the summer should you choose.
  Expect to spend: 40-60 hours of coursework each week
• 21 Months
  This plan allows you to complete the program in less than 2 years, but still work if you choose. You may be eligible for a research assistantship. You will have the time to do an internship over the summer should you choose.
  Expect to spend: 30-50 hours of coursework each week
• 33 Months
  This plan allows you to finish the program in less than 3 years while still working full-time. You may be eligible for a research assistantship. You will also have time to do an internship over the summer if you so choose.
  Expect to spend: 18-20 hours a week.
• Flexible Plan of Study
  We understand that sometimes you need to go at your own pace. Working closely with your program manager, you can create a customized plan of study that works best for you. On the application, please select the 33-month option. Then set up time to meet with your program manager prior to registering for your first class to discuss your options further.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Online MPH in Urban Health Program Asynchronous?
Online MPH in Urban Health classes are conducted asynchronously, which means you are not required to be online at a specific time for course instruction. However, many of our classes include group work. In these instances, you will be asked to find time to meet online with other students to complete the small group projects.

Drexel's 10,000 Hours Podcast: Sharrelle Barber

How can where you live affect your health? For Black communities, their neighborhoods can literally make them sicker. Sharrelle Barber, an assistant research professor at Drexel, looks at the intersection of place, racism, and health.

Related Programs

• Executive MPH
• MPH: Epidemiology
• MPH: Global Health
• Certificate in Epidemiology and Biostatistics
• Certificate in Global Health
• Certificate in LGBT Health
• Certificate in Maternal and Child Health
• Certificate in Public Health
• Certificate in Urban Health
• Certificate in Infectious Disease Prevention and Control
• On-Campus Public Health Programs

Drexel University offers a variety of Graduate Minors that can be added to any master's degree program.
State restrictions may apply to some programs.