University of Texas School of Public Health
University of Texas School of Public Health
Practicum Evaluation
Executive Summary – Fall 2013
Introduction
Eighty-nine students (three received an incomplete) from three of the degree programs - MPH, DrPH, PhD, and the MD/MPH - completed a practicum experience during the Fall 2013 semester. Students and community preceptors were asked to complete an evaluation through Survey Monkey™. Student and preceptor response rates were 100% and 95%, respectively. The key findings are listed below.
Primary Campus and Division
§ 72% Houston, 28% regional campuses
§ 30% Epidemiology; 20% Management, Policy & Community Health; 19% General, 17%Health Promotion & Behavioral Sciences; 9%Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences; 8% Biostatistics
Students
§ Locations: Hospital/clinic (28%), university/college system (20%), more than one (15%), health departments (12%), business/corporate (9%), community service organizations (8%), international (4%), foundation (2%), government (1%), federal (1%)
§ 92% of students thought the practicum was very effective (59%) or effective (33%) as a learning experience
§ Final products: Report (31%), more than one product (28%), presentation (19%), instrument/protocol (8%), journal article (7%), training/procedure manual (3%), promotional material (3%), thesis (mixed with more than one)
§ The practicum was very effective (62%) or effective (34%) in giving students a better understanding of public health practice
§ 88% of students registered for 3 credit hours or more (registrar’s data)
§ Student hours per week: 16 or more (31%),12-15 hours (45%); 95% considered the weekly hours to be appropriate
§ 58% of students reported contact with their preceptor 14 or more times
§ Overall ratings of preceptors were positive: 83% very good and 15% good
§ 96% of students highly recommend (62%) or recommend (34%) their community preceptors
§ 93% of students highly recommend (48%) or recommend (45%) their faculty sponsor
§ 92% of students highly recommend (41%) or recommend (51%) their practicum site
Community Preceptors
§ 87% of preceptors rated their student’s final product as excellent (51%) or above average (36%); 1% of students had an incomplete product mainly because the final product was an instrument/protocol or report
§ 96% reported that student proficiency in using appropriate methods was very effective (68%) or effective (28%)
§ Preceptors rated overall student performance as very good (79%) or good (20%)
§ 79% of preceptors reported meeting with the student 10 times or more
§ 96% of preceptors found the student’s weekly time commitment was appropriate
§ 79% of preceptors are willing to accept another student
Student Comments
§ Preceptor was great. He explained concepts well and kept me informed.
§ Excellent.
§ Great mentor.
§ Great! Very patient with me and helpful.
§ He is very experienced in the field of Occupational Health.
§ She is worthy of emulation.
My community preceptor was…
§ A great preceptor. She provided plenty of resources to help me become familiar with the literature as well as contacts that were themselves helpful in accomplishing my tasks. I have nothing but great things to say about my time learning from her.
§ Amazing. She helped me so much and I feel like I learned so much from working with her. She made work enjoyable and fun and I felt like my contributions and feedback were truly welcomed. I cannot recommend her highly enough.
§ Awesome, direct, and very supportive of the students she mentors.
§ She was a wonderful community preceptor. She was very aware of my needs as an MPH student and was always willing to help and provide feedback and guidance. She provided great advice as a mentor to help excel me in the world of corporate health and included me in everything she could.
§ Excellent. She was an inexhaustible resource, and very communicative. I never had difficulties completing tasks for lack of guidance.
§ Great! She was very flexible with my schedule and project desires. She was also concerned with giving me a great experience and connected me people who would enrich it.
§ My community preceptor met with me at least twice a week and provided good feedback allowing me to further develop my paper. At times when I was unsure of the assignment, he would be patient and further explain it to me. He also encouraged me to take a 3 hour quick online course in order to better understand mHealth, which has helped me better write my paper.
§ She has demonstrated genuine leadership role. Hers is leadership be example.
§ Stupendous. He was and continues to be among the best resources of my graduate career, and I continue to learn things from him every time we meet.
Community Preceptor Comments
§ Great experience. Thank you for the opportunity.
§ I am very pleased with her work. She's done a tremendous job. She's going to do great in the field of public health.
§ Our group enjoyed learning more about the long term benefits of lifelong healthy food and activity choices and the simple nutrition suggestions he offered.
§ We are in a transition period that does not lend well to hosting interns. We have truly appreciated the help and being able to offer the experience. We hope to be able to host more at a point later in the future!
§ We enjoy and appreciate being a part of this program. We would be willing to accept more than 1 student per semester, possibly 2 or 3. Thank you for your leadership in coordinating these out of the classroom learning experiences for young people!
Acknowledgements
On behalf of the University of Texas Health Science Center School of Public Health, the Office of Public Health Practice extends our warmest gratitude to the organizations and community preceptors who graciously allowed our students to gain practice experience. Without your continued support and feedback, we would not be able to offer this invaluable experience to our students.
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