UCLA Fielding School of Public Health

UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
Name	UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
Established	1961
Type	Public
Parent	University of California, Los Angeles
City	Los Angeles
State	California
Country	United States
Dean	Jonathon E. Fielding (former)

UCLA Fielding School of Public Health is a constituent school of the University of California, Los Angeles that focuses on population health, epidemiology, biostatistics, health policy, and environmental health. The school engages with institutions such as the University of California system, California Department of Public Health, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and World Health Organization to influence training, research, and practice. It attracts students and faculty connected to organizations like the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Wellcome Trust, and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

History

The school's origins trace to the postwar expansion of public health education influenced by the University of California system, California Medical Association, Los Angeles County, Veterans Administration, and Surgeon General initiatives. Early milestones involved collaboration with the Health Resources and Services Administration, Public Health Service, Institute of Medicine, and Rockefeller Foundation on workforce development and influenza research. Over decades the school has worked with partners including the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Environmental Protection Agency, Food and Drug Administration, and California Legislature in curriculum reform and accreditation processes with the Council on Education for Public Health and Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health.

Academic programs

Degree programs span professional and research pathways informed by connections to Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and Yale School of Public Health through exchanges and joint initiatives. Offered degrees include the Master of Public Health, Master of Public Health in Applied Epidemiology, Doctor of Public Health, PhD in Epidemiology, PhD in Biostatistics, and joint MD/MPH and DDS/MPH options aligned with UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine and UCLA School of Dentistry. Curricula integrate competencies from the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health, Council on Education for Public Health, Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education, and California Consortium for Public Health.

Research and centers

Research programs maintain partnerships with the National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and National Institute of Mental Health on projects spanning cancer epidemiology, cardiovascular disease, environmental exposures, and mental health disparities. Centers and initiatives include collaborations with the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, Center for Disease Control-funded networks, California Air Resources Board studies, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health surveillance, RAND Corporation evaluations, and RAND Health Policy Center analyses. Specialized centers work across themes represented by the Keck School of Medicine, Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology, Stein Institute for Research on Aging, and UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs.

Faculty and administration

Faculty include scholars who have held positions or affiliations with institutions such as the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Institute of Medicine, American Public Health Association, Society for Epidemiologic Research, International Epidemiological Association, and American Statistical Association. Leadership has engaged with policymakers linked to the California Governor's Office, Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, United States Congress committees, World Health Organization advisory panels, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention task forces. Faculty research profiles reflect prior roles at the Harvard School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, and University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine.

Campus and facilities

Facilities are situated on the University of California, Los Angeles campus near landmarks such as Royce Hall, Powell Library, Ackerman Union, and the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, with laboratory and classroom space connected to the David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA Hospital, and UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica. Research infrastructure supports work with instrumentation and resources similar to those at the Broad Institute, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, Caltech, and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and coordinates field studies across Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Diego County, and state public health laboratories. Campus collaborations include faculty exchanges and shared facilities with the UCLA School of Law, UCLA Anderson School of Management, and UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability.

Student life and public engagement

Student organizations and practicum placements link to partners such as the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, California Department of Public Health, Peace Corps, Teach For America, AmeriCorps, World Health Organization field offices, and Médecins Sans Frontières networks. Students engage in community-based work with neighborhood health centers, Healthy Cities initiatives, California Health Equity Project, Planned Parenthood clinics, and local advocacy groups that have ties to the Sierra Club, AARP, NAACP, and UnidosUS. Career pathways lead alumni to positions at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health, California Health Care Foundation, Kaiser Permanente, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and multinational organizations like UNICEF and World Bank.

Category:University of California, Los Angeles Category:Schools of public health in the United States