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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Allison Foster, MBA, CAE, Association of Schools of Public Health, 1101 15th Street NW Suite 910, Washington, DC 20005, 202-296-1099, afoster@asph.org

Background/Purpose: Schools of public health are seeking ways to increase and improve the pipeline of students seeking careers in public health, as well as increase awareness of public health as an educational and career option. The creation and implementation of a centralized application service for other health professions has been shown to increase visibility of the profession. Barriers to applying that have been identified are difficulty in managing complex application process(es) and lack of clear understanding of educational options.

Methods: As an outcome of a strategic planning meeting, the idea to develop a centralized application service for schools of public health emerged. A core group was formed and presented a town hall meeting at APHA in 2004. From that meeting, a committee of representatives from each of the 37 accredited schools of public health was formed. The committee met over the course of several months to determine if a centralized application service should be created and if it would improve recruitment SPH strategies. A survey was sent to recent applicants to schools of public health and the resulting data compiled and analyzed. The committee reached a consensus that establishment of a CAS would help improve the pipeline of students into public health careers. The committee then worked through a consensus building process to develop the policies, guidelines and governance structure for the service.

Results/Implications: The schools of public health launched SOPHAS in July 2006. Presentation will include statistics from first cycle of application and lessons learned during process.

Learning Objectives:

• 1. Understand how to apply to a school of public health through the centralized application system (CAS).
• 2. Understand the benefits by applying through a CAS.
• 3. Understand how a CAS will improve the pipeline of future public health professionals.

Keywords: Education, Workforce

Related Web page: www.sophas.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered