Social Work + Public Health Certificate
The Master of Social Work (MSW) and Certificate in Public Health is designed to provide students with specialized training in public health social work with a focus on addressing social and structural determinants of health to advance health equity and social justice.
This Simmons certificate in public health provides the opportunity for Simmon’s MSW students to acquire specialized knowledge from the adjacent field of public health. The certificate helps students enrich their MSW education and training in a way that prepares them further for work in macro social work settings. With a focus on health equity, a Simmons Certificate in Public Health will equip MSW students with the analytical lens necessary to identify the population health consequences of social injustice, along with the associated approaches to address them through public health programming, policy, community organizing and advocacy. The certificate will also provide MSW students with foundational understandings of public health history, theory, and practice.
Students who select this certificate program will take classes in the Simmons MPH online program alongside MPH students. The certificate is open to MSW on-ground students and will be open to MSW online students in 2025.
The certificate will offer interested students a unique opportunity to increase their knowledge and skills regarding public health social work including:
Interdisciplinary knowledge: MPH courses will provide students with a broader range of interventions and perspectives. It promotes interdisciplinary learning between MPH and MSW students, enabling them to understand the connections between social work and public health and their overlap in addressing complex social problems.
Expands student’s analysis from an Ecological Systems Approach to address social problems: By combining social work and public health perspectives, students gain a more comprehensive understanding of the factors that influence individual and community health outcomes. This holistic approach gives them the ability to address social problems from multiple perspectives, considering not only individual well-being but also systemic factors that impact health and social justice.
Deepens Problem-Solving Skills: Integrating public health courses into social work education enhances students' problem-solving skills. Students learn to analyze complex social issues through a public health lens, identify root causes, and develop evidence-based interventions that promote both individual and community health.
Expands Career Opportunities: Graduates with MSW and MPH degrees are well-positioned for a variety of career opportunities in diverse sectors such as healthcare organizations, community agencies, government agencies, non-profit organizations and research institutions. There is a greater potential for professional roles focused on health policy, community health education, program evaluation and advocacy.
Our Faculty
Leigh Haynes
Associate Professor of Practice and Director of the Master of Public Health Program