UPDATED: Oct. 5 at at 5:30 p.m.

The David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics has announced the addition of a master’s of science in public health over the summer — and students have already jumped on board.

Only two students are enrolled, but the program will be launching in its fullest capacity in fall 2017, said Brooks Gump, graduate program director in Syracuse University’s public health department.

Ivan Castro, a graduate student in Falk, described it as a “soft launch,” meaning that since the program won’t officially start until next year, he is still fulfilling requirements to complete the two-year program.

Since some of the already established M.S. in global health courses overlap with the M.S. in public health core classes, Castro is filling several requirements that will transfer over to the M.S. in public health in the near future.

Felicia Otero, director of admissions at Falk, said in an email that the program has gained exposure at graduate school fairs across the country. Faculty members attend about 30 fairs annually, but the admissions department also uses digital and email campaigns, direct mail and college newspaper advertisements, she added.

“We are looking for students who can handle the academic rigor of the program and are well suited for a research-based approach to a public health graduate program,” Otero said.

Prospective students are required to submit GRE General Test scores, Otero said, along with letters of recommendation and a 3.2 minimum GPA during bachelor studies.

Gump said the staff is also targeting students by sending flyers to students who have taken the Medical College Admission Test.

Gump, who came to SU five years ago, said he has been working very closely with Otero to raise interest in the program and attract top students since the program has come to fruition.

“It’s difficult and it’s always the case when you start a new program,” Gump said. “That is just part of the growth process, you are going to have very small classes initially.”

Gump said the program aims to foster the studies of roughly 15 to 20 students, which may take five or more years to build. The overall class sizes will be kept relatively small in the long run, he said, since each student is required to work directly with a faculty mentor on a thesis.

SU has already managed to form programs within related fields, including a B.S. in public health, an M.A. in addiction studies, an M.S. in global health and a Master of Public Health (MPH), a joint program between SUNY Upstate Medical University and SU’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs.

Castro, one of the two students already set to take part in the new master’s program, said practice-based studies like the existing MPH program are great, but the research component of the M.S. will help him move toward a doctoral program if he decides to take that route.

The program offers two tracks — biostatistics and global health — and Castro said once he completes his official transfer to the new M.S., he will declare a global health track.

M.S. in public health programs have a strong graduate placement in governmental health organizations at all levels — local, state and federal — as well as organizations such as the World Health Organization, Gump said.

Castro said he hasn’t entirely narrowed down his career goals, but he would like to work with implementing and evaluating programs in the United States or internationally to help those whose basic health needs are not being met.

CORRECTION: In a previous version of this article, the title of the joint degree offered by SUNY Upstate Medical University and SU’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs was misstated. The degree is a Master of Public Health (MPH). The Daily Orange regrets this error.

Published on September 19, 2016 at 11:15 pm

Contact Kenneth: kmintz@syr.edu