The Public Health Education and Service Directorate is one of five directorates within the College of Medicine and Health Science, Arba Minch University. Under this directorate, there are three departments: Public Health, Health Informatics, and Environmental Health. The Public Health department is further divided into six units/departments: General Public Health, Nutrition, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Reproductive Health, Health Service Management, and Health Promotion & Behavior. Each unitAcademic Affairs offers postgraduate programs.
To enhance accessibility to education, five of the departments have introduced both regular and weekend Master's programs. The Nutrition department currently offers only regular programs. The Master's programs available in the directorate include General MPH, MPH in Epidemiology and Biostatistics, MPH in Reproductive Health, MPH in Public Health Nutrition, MPH in Health Service Management, and MPH in Health Promotion and Behavioral Science.
In collaboration with various stakeholders, we have established two postgraduate programs in Sawla (MPH in GMPH and RH) and three programs (MPH in GMPH, RH, and Epi & Bio) in Jinka. These off-site postgraduate programs provide opportunities for potential candidates to pursue higher education closer to their living and working locations. They also benefit individuals who have not received government-sponsored education or face challenges due to work commitments and distance.
We are proud of our continuous production of highly competent professionals, which is crucial for achieving public health goals. As Ethiopia's policy focuses on health promotion and disease prevention, skilled public health professionals and researchers are invaluable assets.
One of the directorate's significant milestones is the establishment of a PhD in Public Health program in the 2021/22 academic calendar. Currently, we have two batches of PhD students, making this a pioneering PhD program in the college. This program fosters collaboration with esteemed professors both domestically and internationally. The directorate is actively working to expand the PhD program into different specialties or tracks.
In addition to the Public Health department, there are also Health Informatics and Environmental Health departments. While both departments currently have undergraduate programs, the Health Informatics department is preparing to introduce MPH in Health Informatics program in the 2024/25 academic calendar.
To enhance international visibility, the directorate is collaborating with international universities on research, student exchange, PhD supervision, grant acquisition, and more.
Regarding human resources, the directorate currently has 90 staff members, including 15 PhD holders with academic ranks of Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Full Professor. There are a total of 20 active Assistant Professors, 5 Associate Professors, and 4 Full Professors.
Aligned with the university and college's strategic plans for human resource career development, the directorate is committed to achieving its goals. To foster career development and capacity building among staff, the directorate facilitates active participation in scholarship opportunities both domestically and internationally. Through collaborations and relationships with international universities, four of our staff members have secured opportunities at Maastricht University in the Netherlands, one staff member at Lund University in Sweden, one student at Shandong University in China, and four students in Belgium under the IUC project. Additionally, one staff member has gotten an opportunity at the University of Adelaide in Australia. Currently, seven staff members are pursuing PhD education, and some of them are at the pipeline of completion. Eighteen (18) staff members are on study leave for PhD programs, and ten (10) are on study leave for Master's degrees. These figures demonstrate the directorate's commitment to human resource development.
The directorate currently has 338 undergraduate students and 189 postgraduate students, including PhD students. Our students benefit from high-quality education under the guidance of experienced and esteemed professors. Master's and PhD students, in particular, can expect to learn from well-respected faculty members and have a high likelihood of securing research grants.
Vision: “Aspires to become one of leading center of excellence in public health education and service, innovative research, and community engagement by 2030."
Mission: “Providing high quality, regionally relevant public health education and training for both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. Conducting innovative research to address pressing public health problems and providing evidence-based community services. Producing ethical, knowledgeable, competent, and skillful public health professionals who will become leaders in their respective fields through community-based education, collaboration with the community, and partnerships with other stakeholders.”