I mentioned in a previous post that I am enrolled in courses for an MPH. As you readers know, I am a candidate for the MD/MPH dual degree. And so, I’m easing into the MPH coursework. In order to: get use to New Orleans before medical school; keep my mind active; make my life easier down the road. I intend to concentrate in Tropical Medicine and so my required coursework is as follows:

Required Core Courses (3 hours each) || Total: 5

BIOS 6030, GEHS 6030, EPID 6030, GHSD 6030, and GCHB 6030.

Required Tropical Medicine Courses  || Total: 10 

TRMD 6320,  TRMD 6050, TRMD 6070, TRMD 6090, TRMD 7000, TRMD 6310, TRMD 6330, TRMD 6340, TRMD 6360, TRMD 7000

Elective Coursework 

By the end of the summer, I will have only one core course left to take (BIOS 6030) and all of the Tropical Medicine courses (which are scheduled between spring of M1 – fall of M4). This summer of diligence will make my medical school + public health balance far easier to manage.

My first two classes began June 2nd. Exactly…when I was in the midst of graduation festivities. However, these classes are online and so it hasn’t been extremely difficult (but it hasn’t been easy) to catch up on the material. One of the classes has only two grades (yikes!) the midterm and the final. Keep me in your thoughts, my midterm is on Thursday! The other class is far more involved: discussion boards, assignments, and three non-cummulative.

My life is currently: PDFs, Tegrity, Email, and Discussion Boards. It’s quite the adjustment but I thoroughly enjoy the subject material. Beyond the subject material, I’ve learned that there is a right way to add to the academic discussion. The discussion boards have already started to heat up (I know, I know) and while it’s definitely entertaining to see a heated debate, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that my arguments are not torn to shreds.

Okay, time to return to the study cave.