New Master of Public Health Partnership

Dr. Laura McDougall, dean of the University of Alberta's School of Public Health, addresses the first cohort of Master of Public Health students at Wenzhou Medical University.

The University of Alberta and Wenzhou Medical University (WMU) have launched a new Master of Public Health (MPH) program, expanding a six-year institutional partnership into public health education, research and community engagement.

Laura McDougall, dean of the University of Alberta’s School of Public Health, travelled to Wenzhou to represent the U of A at the program’s opening ceremony on September 25, joining academic leaders, faculty members and public health partners from both universities to welcome the inaugural cohort.

The new program builds on the relationship between the U of A and WMU established through the Alberta Institute at Wenzhou Medical University in 2020. The partnership initially focused on medical education and has since grown to include collaboration across health disciplines. The new MPH program creates another opportunity for the two universities to learn from each other and work together on shared public health priorities.

Learning across health systems and communities

For McDougall, the value of the partnership extends beyond the classroom.

“Public health challenges do not stop at national borders,” McDougall said during the opening ceremony. “International partnerships give us an opportunity to learn from one another, to bring different perspectives to complex health challenges, and to build lasting connections between students, faculty and communities.”

That approach was reflected in McDougall’s visit to Wenzhou, which included both the launch of the MPH program and a series of activities with WMU faculty, students and public health partners.

The program brings together the U of A’s strengths in population health, public health engagement and evaluation, and public health practice with WMU’s knowledge of China’s health system and local public health context.

The goal is not simply to deliver courses across borders, but to create opportunities for reciprocal learning.

“Community engagement is an important part of how we understand and practise public health,” McDougall said. “Working with colleagues and communities in different settings helps us see both the similarities and differences in how public health challenges are understood and addressed.”

From the classroom to public health practice

The opening ceremony was followed by a series of orientation and teaching activities involving the U of A and WMU faculty.

Students took part in English-language preparation, program orientation and introductory learning activities as they began their graduate studies. Faculty members also had opportunities to learn more about the students’ diverse academic and professional backgrounds and their areas of interest in public health.

The inaugural cohort includes students with a range of backgrounds and experiences across health and public health, including clinical care, disease control and prevention, health administration, community health services and the pharmaceutical sector. Many students are working professionals, bringing valuable perspectives from their professional experience into the classroom. 

Their experience in the field will become an important part of the learning environment, bringing real-world questions and local perspectives into classroom discussions.

For U of A faculty, the exchange also provides an opportunity to learn from the experience of public health professionals working in China.

“This is a partnership in which learning goes both ways,” said McDougall. “Our faculty are excited to share their experience and expertise, but they are equally excited to learn from the students and colleagues in Wenzhou.”

Building a community of public health learners

The first cohort will study within a learning community that connects academic training with professional experience and public health practice.

As part of the partnership, WMU has also connected the program with local public health organizations, creating opportunities to link graduate education with practice in the community.

These connections are an important part of the program’s longer-term vision: preparing public health professionals who can move between evidence and practice, understand different health systems and work collaboratively with communities and organizations to address population health challenges.

The launch also creates a foundation for further collaboration between the two schools, including faculty engagement, research and opportunities for students and public health professionals to connect across Canada and China.

For the inaugural students, the experience is also an opportunity to help shape what the partnership will become.

“You are the very first cohort of this program, and that distinction will always be yours,” McDougall told students at the opening ceremony. “Your experience will help shape this program for the students who follow.”

As the program gets underway,  the U of A’s School of Public Health looks forward to continuing to learn alongside WMU colleagues, students and community partners — and to building a public health community that extends well beyond the classroom.