Program Overview

---

Master of Science in Toxicology for Human Risk Assessment

The Master of Science in Toxicology for Human Risk Assessment is a professional degree program designed for students interested in toxicity testing and risk assessment. The program emphasizes the integration of traditional in vivo models and emerging in vitro and in silico models into work by regulators and risk assessors.

Overview

The full-time program consists of nine months of coursework focused on the fundamental concepts and testing approaches used in classic risk assessment processes, as well as those used in the new paradigm for toxicity in the 21st Century, and an internship with a government agency, non-governmental organization, industry, or private sector company.

Curriculum

The curriculum consists of core courses that will be taken during the first year of the program, during the four 8-week terms from September to mid-May. The internship and a capstone essay will be completed in the second year.

• Course List:
  • PH.550.860: Academic & Research Ethics at BSPH
  • PH.552.601: Foundational Principles of Public Health
  • PH.552.603: The Role of Qualitative Methods and Science in Describing and Assessing a Population's Health
  • PH.552.611: Globalization and Population Health
  • PH.552.608: Biologic, Genetic and Infectious Bases of Human Disease
  • PH.552.609: Psychological and Behavioral Factors That Affect A Population's Health
  • PH.180.609: Principles of Environmental Health
  • PH.187.610: Public Health Toxicology
  • PH.317.600: Introduction to the Risk Sciences and Public Policy
  • PH.317.610: Risk Policy, Management and Communication
  • PH.317.605: Methods in Quantitative Risk Assessment
  • PH.317.615: Topics in Risk Assessment
  • PH.340.721: Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health I
  • PH.340.722: Epidemiologic Inference in Public Health II
  • PH.140.621: Statistical Methods in Public Health I
  • PH.140.622: Statistical Methods in Public Health II
  • PH.187.632: Molecular Toxicology
  • PH.187.645: Toxicology 21: Scientific Applications
  • PH.180.640: Molecular Epidemiology and Biomarkers in Public Health
  • PH.187.655: Evidence-Based Toxicology
  • PH.187.650: Alternative Methods in Animal Testing
  • PH.180.628: Introduction To Environmental and Occupational Health Law
  • PH.340.680: Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology
  • PH.182.613: Exposure Assessment Techniques for Health Risk Management
  • PH.182.845: EHE MS Special Studies and Research
  • PH.182.810: MS Field Placement
  • PH.182.850: EHE MS Essay

Internship

Students in this professional degree program assume responsibility for a professional project to be carried out off-site at a governmental agency, non-governmental organization, industry, or private sector company. The minimum duration of the internship will be four months (two academic terms).

Essay and Presentation

Students in professional programs at the Bloomberg School of Public Health must successfully submit a culminating project that demonstrates integration of the skills developed during the coursework and internship experiences. For students in the MS program, this project takes the form of an in-depth capstone essay.

Essay Format

• Title page
• Abstract (1 page)
• Table of contents/list of figures
• Introduction/background (approx. 5-10 pages)
• Methods (approx. 5-8 pages)
• Results (approx. 4-8 pages)
• Discussion and conclusions (approx. 5-10 pages)
• References

Milestones

• July 1 (or one month after beginning the internship): An organizational meeting will be conducted that includes the student, internship adviser, and the academic adviser. A draft of the introduction is submitted prior to the meeting.
• July 16: Project approved and data collection begins.
• Sept. 1: Paper outline is submitted to academic adviser.
• Sept. 15: Comments from adviser are due.
• Oct. 1: First draft is submitted.
• Oct. 15: Comments from adviser are due.
• Nov. 1: Second draft is submitted.
• Nov. 15: Comments from program adviser are due.
• Dec. 1: Final draft is submitted.
• Dec. 15: Completion letter is signed.
• TBA: 30-minute presentation to MS faculty.

Code of Conduct

The fundamental purpose of the Johns Hopkins Universitys regulation of student conduct is to promote and to protect the health, safety, welfare, property, and rights of all members of the University community.

Personal Relationships

The Johns Hopkins University is committed to maintaining an atmosphere of mutual respect, collegiality, fairness, and trust. The Personal Relationships Policy implements the Universitys commitment to maintaining the integrity of its educational and working environment.

Research

Human Subjects

The Johns Hopkins University is committed to protecting the rights and welfare of all individuals participating as subjects in research.

Animal Research

The Johns Hopkins University is committed to protecting the rights and welfare of animals used in research. All students involved in animal research must first complete an online training module, Animal Care and Use.

Leave of Absence

If it becomes necessary to take a break from studies, students should contact their adviser and academic program manager to determine if a formal leave of absence (LOA) is necessary.

Parental Accommodations

Please see the university page on parental accommodations for full-time graduate students and post-doctoral fellows.

Travel Resources

While BSPH encourages participation in opportunities to supplement your education or research in other countries, international tensions can be high and the resources on the U.S. International Travel website may assist you in making an informed decision.

Career Development Resources

BSPH's Career Services office provides resources and guidance, including personal career and life-design planning for students and alumni, career workshops and events throughout the year, a comprehensive Career Planner with resume template, exclusive access to sponsored career resources, an outstanding Public Health Career Fair held each spring, and a robust database of public health jobs, internships, and public health employers.

Disability Services

The Bloomberg School of Public Health is committed to the holistic well-being of its students and offers a wide spectrum of support as they progress toward becoming confident, capable, and fulfilled leaders in public health.

Program Funding

The Masters Tuition Scholarship is available for second-year students enrolled in 12 or more credits in the MS program.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:

1. Explain and interpret epidemiologic studies to support risk assessment and decision-making.
2. Elaborate on commonly used public health measures, such as relative risk, attributable risk, and relative hazards, and select appropriate statistical methods for estimating such measures in the presence of covariates.
3. Interpret descriptive and inferential statistics resulting from data analysis and draw relevant conclusions.
4. Contrast traditional and novel methodological approaches in toxicology.
5. Define the major environmental agents (i.e., environmental chemical, biological, and physical) that cause adverse effects on human health and their sources, and their regulations.
6. Describe the toxicology (toxicokinetics and dynamics) of environmental agents.
7. Describe approaches for in vitro to in vivo modeling of toxicokinetics.
8. Evaluate evidence-based toxicology studies and studies conducted using other systematic approaches.