UND School of Medicine and Health Sciences

Public Health

JD/MPH

Save time by completing both J.D. and master's degrees in our accelerated program.

Get personalized attention that’s focused on you while earning your Juris Doctor and master's degree in public health. UND’s specialized accelerated track allows you to earn your master's degree while getting on the law school track early.

Program type:
Doctoral Degree
Format:
On Campus or Online
Est. time to complete:
4 years
Credit hours:
120

Why earn a dual Law and Public Health degree at UND?

M.P.H. Application Deadlines
Fall:
Aug. 17
Spring:
Dec. 15
Summer:
May 1
J.D. Application Deadline
Fall:
July 15

Our unique program allows you to specialize in a master's program while getting a jump start on law school. You complete both degrees in four years rather than five years — a savings in time and money.

  • Three Master of Public Health specializations from which to choose.
  • The MPH portion can be done exclusively online.
  • The MPH program has a 100% employment rate in health careers.
  • In the MPH portion of the program, students will learn how to use law and policy to improve the health status of populations, how to identify the social determinants of health, and how to appreciate the diversity of structures for delivering health care delivery in various settings.
  • In the JD portion of the program students will learn how laws and regulations implement health policy, how to identify the legal requirements that impact public health programs and how to understand the peripheral legal ramifications health care reform

  • UND Law graduates consistently rank among those who graduate with the least debt.

Three M.P.H. Specializations

Three specializations help you develop the necessary critical thinking, problem solving and communication skills to excel in this field.

  • The Indigenous Health specialization offered online, on-campus, and in a hybrid format provides you with a critical understanding of determinants and solutions to health disparities. UND's specialization is the only 100% online Indigenous Health program in the U.S.
  • The Population Health Research & Analytics specialization prepares you to produce convincing and scientifically sound information about population health, evaluate the effectiveness of interventions and provide the basis for improving health policies and programs. This specialization is offered 100% online synchronous or on-campus.
  • The Health Management & Policy specialization gives you the skills needed to manage health delivery systems effectively and efficiently, analyze health policies and communicate to affect change in health policy and management. This specialization is offered 100% online, on-campus, and in a hybrid format.

Accredited JD & MPH Degrees

The School of Law is accredited by the American Bar Association.
The Master of Public Health is accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health.

JD/MPH at UND

  • UND Law’s first-time North Dakota Bar Exam pass rate is 87%

  • Provides the skills and expertise needed to operate in the complex and dynamic worlds of health law and public policy.

  • Graduates can find employment developing policy, working as lawyers specializing in health care delivery, insurance, or compliance; general counsel in a public or private hospital; or serve as experts within advocacy organizations devising legal responses to public health challenges.

  • Double your network when you build connections through the law school and medical school. In both the legal and medical, contacts are invaluable.

  • Work at an accelerated pace by dual-counting credits.

  • JD and MPH provides opportunities in health, medicine and law.

Careers in Public Health and Law

122K

Median annual salary for lawyers

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

6%

Expected growth in employment of lawyers

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

A JD-MPH dual degree puts you in a unique group of educated individuals and opens doors to flexible career paths.

  • Public Health Attorney
  • General Counsel (Medical)
  • Human Rights Attorney
  • Pharmaceutical Counsel
  • Disability Rights Attorney

Public Health and Law Courses You Could Take

PH 555. Health Law & Policy Analysis. 3 Credits.

The U.S. health system is undergoing significant transformation, and public health has a critical role at the federal, regional, state, and local levels. Students will learn advanced skills in applied health policy including: researching health legislation (e.g., Public Health Service Act, Social Security Act, Affordable Care Act); understanding the interdependent role of laws, administrative rules, executive orders, and judicial decisions in policy making and implementation; analyzing the evidence base for public health policy interventions; writing brief summaries of proposed legislation; preparing legislative testimony to inform health policy decisions; evaluating and comparing potential health policy interventions; and identifying opponents, proponents, advocates, and other stakeholders related to specific health law policy issues and interventions. Prerequisite: POLS 552. F.

POLS 552. Health Policy. 3 Credits.

This course examines historic and contemporary trends in health care delivery in the United States. Emphasis is placed on addressing health care cost-containment issues; access to health care and, recent efforts to invoke broadly based systemic reforms of the U.S. health care system.

POLS 562. Political Advocacy and Social Entrepreneurship. 3 Credits.

This course examines the use of social enterprises, including nonprofit, to achieve political, economic, and social change. Course coverage includes the use of social enterprises as vehicles for social transformation, development and execution of advocacy campaigns for social enterprises, the role of social enterprises within democracies, and the potential for social enterprises to address and overcome problems of collective action. S, even years.

PH 583. American Indian Health Policy. 3 Credits.

The course will provide a detailed overview of the unique policy issues that form the legal basis for provision of public health and healthcare services to American Indians and Alaska Natives. The American Indian (AI) population is unique in the United States in that AIs are born with a legal right to health services. This is based on treaties and numerous other laws, executive orders, court decisions and other legal bases in which the tribes exchanged land and other natural resources for various social services, including housing, education, and healthcare. The Indian Health Service is the federal agency responsible for carrying out the federal government's trust responsibility to provide public health and healthcare services to AIs. Prerequisite: Enrollment in MPH degree program or certificate or consent from instructor. F.

LAW 269. Insurance Law. 2 Credits.

LAW 234. International Human Rights Law. 3 Credits.

Public health classroom

Top Public Health Graduate Program in the Nation

UND is increasingly regarded as one of the top academic and research institutions in the nation for public health. Our M.P.H. program consistently ranks among the best for educational quality, affordability and career outcomes.

Best Online Master's Program - Public Health
Most Affordable Online Master's Degree - Public Health
College Rank - Public Health

Leaders in Action

Alison Traynor received her online master’s degree in public health and is currently the North Dakota Suicide Prevention Director.

Read Alison's Story

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