Radford University College Department Of Public Health

General Aims

1. To educate interested individuals for professional careers in public health through the development of a program that prepares them to assess baseline community needs of populations, design, implement, monitor and evaluate health promotion and disease prevention programs in populations.
2. To provide an environment conducive to student learning and professional development.
3. To prepare graduates to practice successfully in diverse public health/social service settings or to pursue advanced professional/academic training.
4. To recruit a qualified and diverse student body.
5. To conduct research that contributes to the identification, management and resolution of public health problems locally and globally.
6. To encourage faculty and students to actively engage in service leadership activities.
7. To improve the skills of local public health workforce to help address health issues characteristic of the country.

Objectives

The Bachelor of Science in Public Health Program is intended to support students who seek careers aimed at improving the health and well-being of children, adolescents, young adults, men, women of child bearing age, mothers, older adults and other vulnerable groups. In this regard, the specific instructional goals of the faculty in the Public Health Program are to:

• Develop within student’s strong foundation in the basic, social and health sciences appropriate to the delivery of quality illness prevention and promotion services in a wide variety of practice settings.
• Engender advocacy for the needs of underserved populations among future public health providers of timely interventions and community partnerships designed to facilitate service learning.
• Foster within future non physician providers of medical care the humanistic and interpersonal qualities essential to understanding lifestyle and social forces as major determinants of morbidity and mortality.
• Facilitate active learning and independent judgment about disease prognosis, diagnostic testing, and disease management using skills of critical appraisal.
• Prepare the next generation of faculty with the knowledge and research skills requisite to moving PA education well into the future.
• Provide leadership in the arena of student performance and competency documentation through an active program of health services research and information management.

In addition to the above, a range of didactic, clinical and practical experiences is used to ensure that each student:

• Knows the scientific, clinical and public health foundations underlying illness prevention and disease management;
• Understands the historical, social, family and community content of illness prevention and disease management
• Has the critical analysis and quantitative skills necessary to assess illness prevention and disease management problems
• Understands the interdisciplinary nature of solutions to illness and injury prevention and chronic disease management problems involving at-risk populations
• Has the interpersonal communication skill requisite to the effective planning and implementation of illness prevention and disease management practices and policies
• Has the analytical and behavioral counseling skill required to select, implement and maintain effective solutions for illness prevention and disease management problems involving at-risk populations; and
• Understands the role of information technology in the provision, tracking and evaluation of services provided in the clinical setting

Faculty members of the Public Health Programme are also committed to producing graduates who demonstrate essential attributes of cultural competence, intelligence, sound judgment, and honesty, the ability to relate to people, and the capacity to react to situations in an appropriately calm and reasoned manner.

Admission Policy

Applicants to Radford University College are admitted on the total strength of their applications. While academic criteria such as grades, quality and level of courses, test scores, trend of grades, and rank are of primary importance, leadership skills, involvement in school and community activities, recommendations, and how effectively an applicant communicates strengths and interests orally, are also important (and sometimes crucial) elements in an admission decision. Radford University College as an open institution, welcomes applications from all persons who meet the University’s admissions standards and requirements. A competitive selection process is necessary because the number of students to be accepted must be limited by the University’s teaching and physical resources.

Admission Requirements

Senior secondary/high school certificate-Science Students

1. Holders of SSSCE/WASSCE, with aggregate 24 or better, (With credit in English Language, Mathematics and Integrated Science and credit passes in three elective subjects in Science.

2. A pass in the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSSCE) or West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (WASSSCE) is understood to mean a candidate’s grades interpreted as follows:

3. Senior Secondary School candidates shall be admitted into level 100 (First Year) of the 4 year Bachelor of Science Degree in Physician Assistant.

WASSCE

C4/C5/C6

D7 & E8

SSSCE

#EQUI.

General Certificate of Education Examination (ordinary and advanced Levels) – Science Students

With passes or credits in at least five (5) subjects(including English Language, Mathematics and Science) at the GCE ordinary level and three (3) passes at the GCE Advanced Level. Two (2) of the advanced level passes must be grade “D” or better. A pass in General Paper must also be obtained.

Other Admissions

Mature Students

Applicants who are 25 years and above working or having worked for 2 years or more can apply as mature candidates. Mature candidates will be required to write a university entrance examination in three papers: Mathematics, English and General Science equivalent to Senior Secondary/High School level. Only candidates with a pass mark of 60% or above in each of these papers will be admitted.

Foreign Students

Foreign students must have their high school certificates/diplomas refer to the NAB for determination of equivalences and eligibility for admission to tertiary institutions in Ghana. Qualifications in non-English languages translated into English with an accompanying statement showing how their system equates to the Ghanaian system.