News Release

UNC School of Public Health offers nation’s first
distance education doctorate in health leadership

CHAPEL HILL -- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Public Health is offering the nation’s first doctorate in health leadership (DrPH) degree that students can earn while taking all of their classes online from their homes or offices.

The DrPH program is designed for working professionals in mid-career who want to become leaders in administration or policy. The first class, or cohort, of students in this new, three-year degree program began their studies this week.

The program’s technology allows students to have discussions from multiple locations, said Dr. Ned Brooks, the program’s director and clinical associate professor of health policy and administration at the school.

Admission to the program is highly competitive: Only nine of 89 applicants were selected for admission this year. 

The students start the program with four days on campus for orientation. After that, they return home for the balance of the semester. Students return to Chapel Hill between each semester to conclude work on the preceding semester and begin work on the next semester’s curriculum.

This schedule is followed for the first two years of instruction. The third year is focused on writing the dissertation.

Funding for the program’s technical support and student financial aid is provided by the Constella Group, a global provider of outsourced health intelligence and technology services to help public sector, not-for-profit and commercial clients identify and address critical issues affecting human health.

Before entering UNC’s DrPH program, students must have a master’s degree or doctorate. These degrees do not have to be in public health, but students must have at least several years of professional experience in the health field, some of which must be in management or substantial leadership roles.

Students are expected to come from a variety of backgrounds in health and health-related organizations, including public health, hospitals and government agencies.

For more information on the program, including costs and applications, visit http://www.sph.unc.edu/hpaa/academic/drph.htm.

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Note: Contact Brooks at ned_brooks@unc.edu or (919) 843-4846.

School of Public Health contact: Ramona DuBose, (919) 966-7467 or ramona_dubose@unc.edu

UNC News Services contact: Deb Saine, (919) 962-8415 or deborah_saine@unc.edu