International Health Development (MPH)

Masters Programme, Department of Global Health

INTERNATIONAL HEALTH DEVELOPMENT COURSE

Three policies of the School of Tropical Medicine and Global Health

TMGH selects students who possess the following qualifications ; :

  1. Having fundamental knowledge and skills necessary to acquire master’s level of research and practical ability in each course in the Global Health (knowledge level)
  2. Having an aspiration to contribute to the progress in Global Health. (mission and mental level).
  3. Having the ability and flexibility to work as a member of an international team with leadership and followership in cooperation with various fields after obtaining a master’s degree (sociality, internationality and ability level).

TMGH composes a curriculum that equips students with basic knowledge of tropical medicine, global health and related practical sciences, with specialized expertise in any of them, and with problem-solving skills in the field.

  1. In addition to letting the students learn the basics of Global Health, we will set up Introduction to Global Health Modules in order to let them understand the outline of each Module Group and module set in Advanced Modules.
  2. Teaching the basics of epidemiology and statistics, research design and  research ethics, and making students master the specialized basics related to the promotion of research in the master’s programme, we will establish Research Methods Modules with the aims of securing the students the ability to create a final master’s thesis (or research report on a specific subject).
  3. To ensure the specialty of each course, we will set up Advanced Modules that arranges seven module groups: Epidemiology/ Statistics, Environment/ Sanitation, International Community Health, Scientific Basis of Tropical Medicine, Social/ Behavioral Science, Clinical Tropical Medicine, and Health Policy/ Management that compose the global health field.
  4. In order to provide guidance from the preparation of the research plan to the implementation of the research plan and the creation of the master’s thesis (or research report on the specific subject), we will conduct a global health exercise and provide research guidance. In the Tropical Medicine Course, the students will study overseas clinical and clinical epidemiology in a global health exercise.
  5. We will set up Global Health Seminar as a three-course co-learning seminar in order for three courses of students to jointly learn specialized knowledge of important topics in the field of global health and to cultivate comprehensive thinking ability and debate ability.
  6. In the Health Innovation Course, Health Innovation Tutorial will be set up in order to carry out themed exercises in the first and second years under the guidance of the supervisor. The theme of the tutorial is selected from 5 themes: basic/applied medical science, vector ecology, epidemiology/group health, health informatics, health social science/social engineering.
  7. In the International Health Development Course, short-term field training will be provided in the first year, and long-term overseas training will be provided in the second year.
  8. In order to unify students with different backgrounds and work experiences at a high level so that they can study Research Methods Modules and Advanced Modules, bachelors from the humanities and social sciences departments will receive Basic Human Biology as one of Introduction to Global Health Modules. In addition, we will guarantee the quality of education and the level of academic achievement by providing many supplementary lectures such as international communication, IT equipment, and basic statistics.

We aim to nurture professionals with a global perspective who can contribute to the health and happiness of people around the world. The following four aspects summarize the key capabilities of students once they fulfill the requirements of a master’s degree at TMGH.

  1. Expertise
    Students develop skills and expertise in tropical medicine, global health, and health innovation and have the capacity to use these skills.
  2. Communication and Teamwork
    Students have a broad and fundamental knowledge of global health allowing them to communicate with various professionals in English in order to solve global health challenges.
  3. Professionalism
    Students will have knowledge, skills, professionalism, and fortitude. They will be highly advanced professionals who can contribute to the advancement of global health.
  4. Leadership and Followership
    Students possess the aforementioned capabilities as well as demonstrate leadership and followership qualities to fulfill their responsibility as members of an international and integrated global health team.

COURSE OVERVIEW

Duration: Two Years
Academic degree conferred : Master of Public Health
・Short-term field training trip abroad
・Long-term overseas practicum (internship + research) (5-8 months)

Completion Requirements:
– 26 credits from compulsory modules
– 4 credits from elective modules
– successful completion of a Master’s Thesis (project report)
– final examination

Application requirements:
– Bachelor’s degree from a recognized education institution (university, nursing school, etc.)
– work experience (in Japan or abroad)
– community service experience (volunteer)
– experience working with organizations such as JOCV (Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers),NGOs, government agencies, or in the private sector (in Japan or abroad).
*Students who do not satisfy these requirements may still be admitted based on their academic qualifications and work experience.

Curriculum:
Please refer to the following for the criteria required for completion and the content of the module.

Curriculum (Masters Programme)

MAJOR APPLIED MODULE GROUPS

International Community Health Module
  • Reproductive Health and Gender I
  • Child Health
  • Community Health
  • Reproductive Health and Gender II
  • Public Health Nutrition
  • Health Humanitarian Assistance
  • Implementation Science

This module is designed for students to acquire the necessary knowledge needed to understand global health issues from a community health perspective.

Social and Behavioral Science Module
  • Health Promotion I
  • Medical Anthropology I
    Quantitative Social Research
  • Qualitative Research Methods
  • Health Promotion II
  • Medical Anthropology II
  • Demography
  • Mixed Methods for Health Research and Evaluation

This module is designed to provide students with a social point of view on health issues.

Health Policies and Management Module
  • Health Economics I
  • Health System and Policy I
  • Project and Programme Management I
  • Development Assistance
  • Health Finance
  • Health System and Policy II
  • Global Health Governance
  • Project and Programme Management II
  • Social Entrepreneurship
  • Health Economics II

This module is designed so that students can acquire the knowledge needed in order to offer solutions to various global health issues.

Short-term Field Trip

The field trip of about two weeks will be conducted in the spring session of the first year. Students will be able to learn about the health system. They will visit various government and non-government organizations and health/research project sites to observe the conditions of the healthcare service delivery being implemented by such organizations. The field trip will give students the opportunity to recognize and connect knowledge gained on campus with the real-life situations encountered. Along with these insights, new skills and experiences, their new found empirical knowledge is expected to contribute to enabling them to apply themselves to subsequent research proposal development, internship applications, as well as benefiting their future careers in global health.

Short-term Field Trip

LONG-TERM PRACTICUM

The eight-month long-term practicum programme during the second year is the most important portion of this course in achieving the educational goal of this School. Students utilize the knowledge they learned in the first year to acquire practical capabilities at international organizations in which students apply for an internship, JICA projects, international NGOs and Nagasaki University’s overseas research stations.
Of the eight months of long-term practicum, the first five months will be spent on practical training at the dispatched location while the last three months will be spent on research activities at either the dispatched project region or a region of the student’s choice.

Long-term Practicum

DISSERTATION

2022

 

Title Supervisor
What policy / regulation impacts the number of Multi Regional Clinical Trials in ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries? Prof. Kenji Hirayama
Maternal risk factors for low birthweight and macrosomia: A cross-sectional study in Northern Region, Ghana Prof. Hirotsugu Aiga
A cross-sectional study to evaluate access to antenatal care services in Twifo Hemang Lower Denkyira district, Ghana Prof. Tsunenori Aoki
Effectiveness of short message service in COVID-19-related behavioral changes: a mixed methods study in Kwale county, Kenya Prof. Hirotsugu Aiga
Effectiveness of Free Child Healthcare Policy in reducing catastrophic health expenditure: a facility-based prospective study in Kwale County, Kenya Prof. Hirotsugu Aiga
Epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 infection in nursing facilities and the impact of their clusters in Nagasaki city Prof. Christopher Smith
Exploring feeding practices of mothers of children aged 1-2 months in Kwale County, Kenya Prof. Kiyoshi Kiya
Factors affecting malnutrition up to 12 months of age in Kampong Cham province, Cambodia Prof. Kiyoshi Kiya
Impacts of supportive supervision on community health workers’ performance:A mixed-methods study in four districts of the Northern region, Ghana Prof. Hirotsugu Aiga
Excitatory amino acids, possible causative agents of nodding syndrome in eastern Africa Prof. Kiyoshi Kiya
Cross-sectional study of stigma related to girls’ contraceptive use perceived among unmarried in-school adolescents in rural areas of central Zambia Assist Prof. Miho Sato
Performance of quarantine system in screening Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Lao PDR: A retrospective study at two ground crossings in Savannakhet Province Prof. Hirotsugu Aiga
Social, perinatal, and symptomatic characteristics among the native and immigrant children with autism spectrum disorders in Mie, Japan: A Comparative Case Series at a single center Prof. Yasuhiko Kamiya
Determinants of safe stool disposal among children under five years in Myanmar and its association with childhood diarrhoea: Secondary analysis of Myanmar Demographic and Health Survey 2015-2016 Prof. Yasuhiko Kamiya
Determinants of quality of clinical codes in the hospital information systems in Myanmar: a retrospective study at two public hospitals Prof. Hirotsugu Aiga
A case study on the influence of traditional beliefs and practices on maternal healthcare in post-delivery in Chhouk Operational District, Kampot Province, Cambodia Prof. Kiyoshi Kita
Risk factors associated with Preterm Births: A Case-Control study at National Maternal and Child Health Center in Cambodia Prof. Kiyoshi Kita
Household-specific risk factors for diarrhea among Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh Prof. Hirotsugu Aiga
The current situation and student’s perspectives of the sickbay in public senior high schools in Lower Manya Krobo Municipality, Eastern Region, Ghana Prof. Yasuhiko Kamiya

The list of dissertation title

PAST MPH ENTRANCE EXAM QUESTIONS

For Japanese applicants, questions from past entrance examinations for the MPH course can be released upon request. Please note that these documents are all in Japanese and not needed by international applicants as the entrance examination for international applicants consist only of an online interview. Please check the link below for details.

MPH Past Entrance Examination Questions

Messages from Graduates

Takuya Shizume

Year of graduation:2017

graduates1 Hello, my name is Takuya Shizume (right). I am a 1st batch, Master of Public Health candidate, Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nagasaki University.
I entered this Master of Public Health course to study disease prevention after working in the Solomon Islands as a Physiotherapist and a Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteer for 2 years. After the completion of this master degree, I am going to work in WHO/WPRO as a short-term consultant, and then in JICA as a full-time employee.
The most interesting part of this course is 5-month internship and 3-month research overseas (i.e. long term overseas practicum). In my case, I conducted 2-month internship in Asia Pacific Development center on Disability and 3-month internship in WHO Lao PDR country office. Regarding on my research, I conducted field survey on Schistosomiasis in southern Lao PDR in cooperation with Ministry of Health, Lao PDR.
I practically applied the acquired knowledge on statistics, epidemiology and data management etc to my field work during the internship and research. By doing so, I could have great field experiences and improve my skills in the field.
This study also enabled me to have good relationship with those who work in JICA, UN, Consultant company and NGOs. It also helped me to think about my future career.
In this 2-year course, you can spend precious time with precious friends and professors who have different expertise.

Messages from Graduates (MPH)

MPH REGISTRATION MODELS (Examples)

  • Registration Model 1

    University graduate with a degree in economics and with experience working at a private company or Overseas Cooperation Volunteers.

  • Registration Model 2

    University graduate with the experience of working in developing countries as a nurse.

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