International Course in Health Development - Master of Public Health

Candidates

The ICHD/MPH is aimed at professionals working, or preparing to work, in a managerial capacity in health services at national, regional or decentralized district level.

Admission criteria

• Academic training at least to the level of a bachelor’s degree, either in medicine or in another field related to health, such as health sciences, economics, social science or nursing.
• A minimum of three years of experience,  including managerial responsibilities in health related services in a low resource country.
• Proven proficiency in spoken and written English. 
• Computer literacy is expected.

The number of participants is limited. Because there are always more applicants than places in the course, a selection must be made those meeting the above mentioned criteria. The selection committee takes into account country of origin, experience and professional background in order to compose a group with a mixture of professional and geographical backgrounds. An adequate representation of women is also sought; women with appropriate training and experience are especially encouraged to apply.

Application procedure

Please send the following documents:

• A completed ICHD application form, including the names of 2 people who are willing to act as referees.
• A one-page letter describing your reasons for wanting to follow the ICHD/MPH, including how you plan to apply the knowledge and skills acquired.
• Certified true copies of your diplomas and grade reports accompanied by a certified translation if they are not in English.
• An up-to-date curriculum vitae and a list of publications if applicable.
• Unless you are a native English speaker or have completed your higher education in English, enclose proof of English language proficiency in the form of a score on an internationally recognized test. A minimum TOEFL score of 550 or a minimum IELTS score of 6.0 is required. We do not accept certificates other than the TOEFL or IELTS. If you have not yet completed such test, you can send the results at a later date.

For students who wish to apply for the Netherlands Fellowship Programme (NFP), the entire application package to the Royal Tropical Institute is due at the latest by 1 December or 1 January 2011 (depending if an online application or paper based application is made to Nuffic). Check NFP information for more details.

Candidates fulfilling the ICHD/MPH entry requirements will receive a letter of conditional admission, admitting them to the course provided that financing can be arranged. Most sponsors and agencies providing fellowships will ask you to submit this letter of conditional admission along with your fellowship application.

Once you have secured financial support and provided evidence of proficiency in English, you will receive a definitive notice of admission.

Note: Participants with a source of guaranteed financing have until June 15 2011 to apply to the ICHD. However, visa applications can take several months to process and candidates are therefore advised to apply early.