About

About the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health

The University of North Carolina’s Gillings School of Global Public Health was founded in 1940 as the first public health school at a state university and the fourth school of public health in the nation. For more than 80 years, we have remained committed to providing world-class teaching and pioneering research and conducting dedicated public health service on a local, national and global scale.

The No. 1-ranked public school on U.S. News & World Report’s 20221 list of the nation’s best schools of public health and No. 2 overall, the UNC Gillings School is broadening its scope and influence in the field by offering MPH@UNC, its online Master of Public Health (MPH) program, to aspiring public health professionals across the country.

Mission

Our mission is to improve public health, promote individual well-being and eliminate health inequities across North Carolina and around the world.

Through collaborative teaching, research and service, our online and on-campus MPH programs are designed to:

  • Educate the next generation of leaders in public health.
  • Discover, test, disseminate and implement solutions to health threats and problems.
  • Translate research findings into sound practices and policies.
  • Serve North Carolina and beyond through outreach, engagement, education of citizens and health professionals and application of solutions to health threats and problems.

Strategic Themes

At the UNC Gillings School, we strive to significantly advance public health across all communities and populations — from the Well to the World™. Much of the research and practice at the Gillings School is centered around four strategic themes, and these themes derive from two basic motivations: to eliminate health inequities and to improve health locally and globally. 

Our four strategic themes are:

  • Deliver Proven Solutions Faster — Implementation Science
  • Healthy People, Healthy Planet
  • Promote Health, Prevent Disease and Improve Care for All
  • Harness Big Data for Health and Well-Being

Global is Local and Local is Global

A local and global focus is woven throughout all research, teaching and practice activities at the Gillings School. Examples of how we embody this “global is local and local is global” mentality are listed below.

  • We work in more than 80 countries and in all 100 counties in North Carolina, seeking transformative solutions to improve public health across populations.
  • Global and local content and tactics are infused throughout our courses and programs.
  • Our students participate in experiential learning opportunities in North Carolina, across the United States and around the world.
  • Our students actively volunteer in local and global organizations, from increasing access to clean water in Orange County, N.C., to improving water distribution in Peru.
  • Students have earned awards and national recognition for their work solving real-world problems while enrolled at Gillings.2
  • Our alumni are leaders in the field, holding influential positions in the U.S. and internationally at academic institutions, governmental and nongovernmental organizations, health ministries around the world and more.3

To learn more about MPH@UNC, request information and an admissions counselor will contact you.

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1 Best Public Health School U.S. News & World Report (2022) Retrieved April 20, 2021.arrow_upwardReturn to footnote reference

2 Two from Gillings School Bring Home Prize from Inaugural Healthcare Case Competition, UNC Gillings School of Public Health (2017)arrow_upwardReturn to footnote reference

3 Meet our Alumni, UNC Gillings School of Public Health (2019)arrow_upwardReturn to footnote reference