Shaloo Puri, assistant dean of the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Global Pediatric Medicine.
Two years after launching the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, where students can earn Ph.D.s while being mentored by St. Jude faculty members, the Graduate School, in collaboration with the St. Jude Department of Global Pediatric Medicine, is launching a new online Master of Science program.
“The masters degree program in global child health is a furtherance of the mission of the institution, which is to eradicate catastrophic childhood diseases by disseminating knowledge,” said Stephen White, DPhil, president and dean of the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.
The program, known as the Master of Science in global child health, will take two years to complete, and is offered as a blended program with a competency-based curriculum. It will be overseen by Shaloo Puri, M.D., assistant dean of the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Global Pediatric Medicine.
The Master of Science program is open to not only physicians and nurses, but also other health care professionals. The goal is for graduates to become “agents of change” who can produce results when it comes to childhood health, pediatric cancer and other catastrophic diseases, Puri said.
“More than often in the health care field, the best policies don’t get translated into real action and don’t reach those who need it the most,” Puri said. “What we’re trying to do is train these professionals to not only do the scientific and clinical work, but to also reach the most vulnerable. Most other programs teach the theoretical, but this program will also provide the management and leadership skills to get things done.”
The program aims to equip students with knowledge, tools and skills that will enable them to assemble and assimilate scientific evidence, apply analytical tools and integrative thinking to develop evidence-based policies and programs, acquire leadership and management skills to bring about positive change, and ultimately identify and implement the necessary changes to systems that will improve the treatment and care of childhood cancers and catastrophic illnesses.
“This unique program will offer students around the globe the transformative education needed to enhance treatment and care of childhood cancers and catastrophic illnesses in countries worldwide,” said James Downing, M.D., president and CEO of St. Jude. “Students will receive training in basic and applied research, global health systems and innovation, and population sciences, tailored to child health.”
Students will be able to take full advantage of the exceptional resources and faculty of the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and partnerships formed with collaborators around the world through the Department of Global Pediatric Medicine throughout the course of the program.
Full credit courses will be held online, with some on-campus group activities and team projects to promote a sense of community and collaboration. Instructors will be available for designated office hours or appointments.
Students admitted to the program will receive a full scholarship to cover the program’s cost, fully paid travel expenses for on-campus visits and a laptop.
Students will complete their degree by writing a master’s thesis, which will include a project proposal addressing a child health issue and a personal journey statement. Select theses proposals will be considered for funding by the Department of Global Pediatric Medicine after successful degree completion.
Classes will begin in July, and the first class is expected to graduate in 2021. For more information, visit www.stjude.org/global-child-health-masters.
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and cures childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. It is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children. Treatments developed at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% to 80% since the hospital opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude shares the discoveries it makes, and every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children. To learn more, visit stjude.org or follow St. Jude on social media at @stjuderesearch.