When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, Jacob Owusu Gakpo, a medical doctor in Ghana, found it a moment of clarity amid all the chaos.
His country felt like it was on the verge of drowning. Resources were too few and the number of people who could not afford treatment were too many. “Health insurance claims simply didn’t work, and preventable conditions became life-threatening because of system failures,” says Gakpo, who received his training in Russia and Ukraine.
But, for the first time in a long time, Gakpo could see his future clearly: he wanted to make a true difference in his community.
Dr. Jacob Owusu Gakpo. Source: Georgia Southern University
To do that, he needed to understand the healthcare industry beyond the bedside. It was no longer about the effectiveness of treatment alone, but about access, policy, systems, and populations. That’s why he decided to join Georgia Southern University’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health (JPHCOPH): to improve access, prevention, and insurance coverage in Ghana, the US, and beyond.
From Ghana to Statesboro, Georgia
First impressions matter when picking a university. Especially for international students, it’s essential to know that you are receiving inclusive support, ensuring you won’t be on your own, whether you are studying in person or online. That’s what made JPHCOPH stand out to Gakpo as soon as he inquired about the Master of Public Health (MPH) programme.
The faculty and staff members treated him with respect even before he became a student.
“Their timely responsiveness to emails and calls was unmatched and seeing the prospecting of learning from and collaborating with renowned faculty … I was exactly where I was meant to be,” he says.
Gakpo is now pursuing a concentration in Biostatistics, but there is a total of seven to choose from, depending on your career focus. Two of them, Applied Public Health and Public Health Informatics, are offered fully online, making the road to career acceleration and impact far more accessible.
Regardless of concentration or delivery, you will develop the skills to enter various growing fields, such as public health policy and management, epidemiology, and social and community services.
Within classrooms, you need to think critically and apply what you are learning to real-world problems. Experienced practitioners and active scholars conduct project-based courses, so you are constantly aligning theory with practice. For example, students in Biostatistics will discuss and critique clinical trials in different areas of drug development in one course, while in another, they will analyse biomedical data using linear regression models.
“Faculty are approachable, students support each other, and whether you are learning in-person on campus or via the online platform, it feels less like a traditional classroom and more like a professional think tank where everyone is invested in your success,” he adds.
The MPH programme’s faculty members provide vast industry connections to students to ensure they receive the exposure they need to discover what they’re passionate about. Source: Georgia Southern University
Building strong connections with faculty experts
When Gakpo first started the MPH programme, he came from a clinical background with zero experience in research or statistical software. Discovering a new field on a master’s level should’ve been daunting, but with the support of Dr. Hani Samawi, Interim Department Chair and Professor, and other faculty members, he never had to brave the journey alone. With an appointment or not, he was always welcomed when he stopped by their offices for help.
Dr. Samawi went the extra mile to personally introduce Gakpo to statistical software platforms like R and SAS, as well as statistical simulation, even lending him his own textbook. Dr. Jing Kersey, Assistant Professor, spent extra time with Gakpo after classes to ensure he understood complex calculations within the Inference in Biostatistics Course. Early in the programme, a conversation with Dr. Bettye Apenteng, Professor, gave him an epiphany in which he realised that data-driven skills would make him a key “link between the bedside and the boardroom.”
Dr. Tilicia L. Mayo-Gamble, Associate Dean and Associate Professor. Source: Georgia Southern University.
“Our MPH and DrPH (Doctor of Public Health) students are assigned a mentor as they enter the programme,” says Dr. Tilicia L. Mayo-Gamble, Associate Dean and Associate Professor.
The direct mentorship ensures an effective support system throughout the programme and facilitates opportunities for you to engage in cutting-edge research alongside faculty members. Online students receive the same opportunities, on top of virtual engagement sessions to introduce them to the community.
As active leaders in their fields, they have a wide range of connections to help you launch your career. They often bring in community-based organisations and research colleagues who provide subject matter expertise, as well as opportunities for graduate assistantships. They’re prepared to recommend you for your pursuits after graduation too, whether that’s a postdoctoral fellowship or becoming a practitioner.
“Whether I am working in a research institution, a hospital, a government agency, or on international health projects, I know I’ll still be reaching back to my mentors at JPHCOPH, Georgia Southern,” says Gakpo. “Once you are an Eagle, that network stays with you.”
Learn more about the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health’s MPH programme here.
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