Applied Practice Experience
Practicum Overview Preceptors
The Practicum project gives MPH students the opportunity to synthesize and apply public health knowledge, skills, and professional competencies in real-world settings.
Connecting classroom learning to public health practice.
The Practicum is designed for students pursuing the professional Master of Public Health at Ensign Global University. It allows students to apply their acquired knowledge and proficiencies within a real-world public health context.
Guided experience
Approved, Supervised, and Deliverable-focused
Practicum projects are endorsed by the respective program head to ensure alignment with educational objectives.
Students complete their projects under the guidance of a designated Preceptor within the host organization and provide an agreed-upon deliverable before the project begins.
Practice, Mentorship, and Professional Readiness.
Students connect with host organizations to develop practical deliverables and demonstrate public health competencies in real-world settings.
MPH Concentration Competences
Competencies developed through applied practice.
The Practicum helps students demonstrate practical public health competencies in community, organizational, and low-resource settings.
Apply health promotion skills specific to low-resource settings to improve the well-being of communities.
Apply tools and concepts beyond the traditional public health scope to innovatively solve health challenges at the district level.
Apply standards of professionalism, principle-based practice, and ethics in addressing public health issues through practice and research.
Apply entrepreneurial thinking, skills, and dimensions through a public health approach to solving community health problems.
Demonstrate effective community engagement skills, including activities that inform, educate, and empower targeted audiences.
What is a Practicum project?
A required applied learning experience for MPH candidates.
The Practicum project is a vital component of the MPH program at Ensign Global University. It enables students to bridge theoretical knowledge and public health competencies with real-world challenges.
Each MPH candidate undertakes a Practicum project independently. Projects are approved by the faculty advisor and completed under the guidance of a dedicated Preceptor at the host organization.
Students collaborate with the host organization to establish clear deliverables and present two products to the faculty advisor as evidence of proficiency in required competencies.
Selection and supervision
Choosing a practicum topic, site, and preceptor.
Students are encouraged to begin early, consult faculty advisors, and align their Practicum scope with educational and career goals.
Practicum topic and site selection
There is no single standard approach to identifying a suitable practicum topic, site, or agency.
Students may identify opportunities through agencies where prior students completed practicum work, conversations with faculty members and peers, or internship and job postings.
Each student is encouraged to work with their faculty advisor from the start of the program to discuss public health interests, goals, and potential practicum sites.
Practicum preceptor requirements
The Preceptor must be an employee of the site organization. Students completing a Practicum must identify, select, and secure a qualified Preceptor.
- Has demonstrated experience or expertise related to the student’s learning objectives.
- Can provide a justification statement or CV/resume where available.
- Is not an immediate or first-degree relative of the student.
- Does not have a conflict of interest that affects objective feedback.
- Is not a current Ensign Global MPH student.
Assessment and readiness
Demonstrating readiness for professional public health practice.
At the culmination of the Practicum, students deliver both an oral presentation and a comprehensive written report. These assessments allow students to communicate the depth and breadth of their experiential learning.
The Practicum also serves as a mechanism through which faculty evaluate students’ preparedness to transition into the professional sphere of public health and apply their acquired proficiencies in practical settings.
APE Quick Links
Use these resources to continue exploring Applied Practice Experience information, Practicum guidance, and related academic resources.