What's New?

New Concentration: Public Health Nutrition

We are thrilled to announce that our latest OOMPH concentration has been approved. In collaboration with the Division of Community Health Sciences, OOMPH will launch our Public Health Nutrition (PHN) concentration in January 2022. The PHN concentration will require the 6 core MPH courses plus 5 required PHN courses. For this new concentration, OOMPH will add two new online Public Health Nutrition courses that are open to all OOMPH students.

• Spring 2022: Sarah Zyba, PhD will offer the first new online public health nutrition course: PHW206A: Nutrition Assessment for Spring 1 of 2022 will cover current tools to assess nutrition and dietary behaviors; field application of measures; and their use in evaluating nutrition programs

• Fall 2022: Hannah Thompson, PhD, MPH will offer the second new online public health nutrition course: PHW206B: Food and Nutrition Policy in Fall 2 of 2022. PHW206B will examine the historical origins of food and nutrition improvement programs in the United States, including the political and administrative conditions that led to the development of these programs.

The two new online Public Health Nutrition Courses will join PHW205: Program Planning, PHW218: Evaluation of Health and Social Program and PHW206: MCAH Nutrition to complete the 5 required PHN courses. Students in the PHN concentration will be able to choose any 3 electives from the suite of OOMPH courses to complete their MPH degree. We are working on a PHN concentration page on our Student Gateway with all the details (coming soon) and are planning a meet and greet with Dr. Zyba who will serve as the concentration faculty lead and advisor for later this fall.

Important Announcements

Important Dates and Deadlines: 

• September 20 - Tuition and registration fees: Second installment of Fee Payment Plan due. 
• September 24 - deadline to add/drop classes or swap/change units for classes within CalCentral. After this date, please complete the Petition to Change Class Schedule form. Please take note of OOMPH's refund policy.
• October 1 - Enrollment appointments are available on CalCentral for continuing and readmitted students. 
• October 11 - Spring enrollment begins for continuing students.

Phase I Enrollment: October 11 - November 7, 2021

OOMPH students are guaranteed “seats” in OOMPH courses during Phase I (Phase 2 enrollment is subject to availability). For more information on course offerings, please visit the Curriculum and Advising page and the Spring 2022 Academic Calendar.

Group Advising Sessions - First Year Students

Event: OOMPH Group Advising Session

Audience: First Year Students (Summer & Fall 2021 admits)

Date: Tuesday, September 21, 2021

Time: 5 PM - 6:15 PM (PDT)

Objective: To be available to answer your questions about required Spring courses and selecting your Summer 2022 courses.

Topic Areas:

• Spring & Summer Enrollment 
• Program Timeline 
• Wellness Resources
• Advising Q&A 

Please submit RSVP by Wed. September 14, 2021.

Group Advising Sessions - Second Year Students

The Second Year Group Advising Sessions will be concentration specific. Students will automatically be added to bCal events by their Program Managers. The sessions will be held at the following times:

• Tues. October 5, 2021, 5-6pm (PDT) - Interdisciplinary Session 
• Wed. October 6, 2021, 5-6pm (PDT) - Epi/Biostat Session 
• Thurs. October 7, 2021, 5-6pm (PDT) - HPM Session

All Session will be recorded.

If you require accommodation for effective communication (ASL interpreting/CART captioning, alternative media formats, etc.) or information about campus mobility access features in order to fully participate in this event, please contact oomph_prog_mgr@berkeley.edu ASAP.

Hispanic Heritage Month

From September 15 to October 15 is National Hispanic Heritage Month – a time to honor the cultures and extraordinary contributions of both Hispanic and Latine Americans. Check out the online Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration organized by the American Public Health Association happening on September 18th. The celebration will “cover a wide range of topics, from community health and promotoras to the cultural arts and advocacy. Nuestra gente are so diverse and full of life and deserve to be celebrated.”

National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month



September is National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month where organizations across the country raise awareness about childhood cancer. We invite you to learn about the Center for Integrative Research on Childhood Leukemia and the Environment (CIRCLE). The Dr. Catherine Metayer, Professor of Epidemiology/Biostatistics at Berkeley Public Health serves as the Principal Investigator and Director of the center.

OOMPH Events

D-Lab session was hosted by our very own Avery Richards on Thursday, September 9, 2021. Visit the Events page of the Student Hub to view the recording and slides.

SPH Events

Online IRB Session open to all SPH students and faculty

Date and Time:  Tuesday September 28, 2021 at 2-4 PM

Zoom Lin:      https://berkeley.zoom.us/j/93363133005

Presenters:    Colleen Kohashi and Adrienne Tanner, UCB Office for Protection of Human Subjects (OPHS)

Are you planning a research project that may need UC Berkeley IRB review? Submitting an IRB application may feel like a daunting task, especially for first-time applicants. We invite you to join us for a webinar to learn and ask questions about:

• What kind of research requires IRB review
• The IRB submission and review process at UC Berkeley
• Research during COVID-19 and relevant human subjects research considerations

Q&A to follow the presentation.

Get Involved! If you are interested in attending SPH virtual events, please visit the community events calendar.

COVID-19 Exception Requests

You should have received messaging from campus about the vaccine requirement. All OOMPH students are required to complete the Covid-19 exception form. OOMPH students are considered Remote Study Students. Please read the instructions below:

For students who are studying remotely for Fall 2021 and will not be coming to campus for any reason, at any time through December 31, 2021, you can complete an attestation form in eTang, under Downloadable Forms.

For more information on the exception process, please visit https://uhs.berkeley.edu/requirements/covid19

Student Podcast

Threads of Impact - Student Podcast

A student run Podcast series from the School of Public Health, University of California - Berkeley

Our aim is to interview students, faculty and other thought leaders and highlight the importance of the role they play as public health practitioners in addressing population health, systemic racism, health equity and oppression. Together let us explore the various facets of public health.

In this first episode, we talk about our career journeys and what brought us into public health! The speakers are Susan Awor, Rashmi Varma, Premilla Banwait and Kee Rajagopal - who are among our student ambassadors to help plan and lead this effort. 

If you have any questions or feedback, please email us at: podcastquestions_sph@berkeley.edu

Link to Podcast

The Graduate Assembly

Are you ready for change?

Change is good, right? We hear it all the time but often do not know how or who to go to initiate the process. The Graduate Assembly is the representative body for graduate and professional students. GA Delegates are students just like you, but they serve as the eyes, ears, and voice of your program. Delegates work to implement change so that you can have a graduate school experience filled with diversity and inclusion all while creating a student quality of life that exceeds your expectations! The GA also distributes funds to student groups, publications, and to students traveling for conferences as well as provides access to campus spaces.

To learn more about what the GA does and how your Delegates can help serve you, visit: http://ga.berkeley.edu/

Expect to meet and learn more about your OOMPH Delegates soon!

Academic Support & Services

• Student Technology Equity Program 
• Off campus internet access resources, https://technology.berkeley.edu/off-campus-internet
• Free software for UCB students, https://techfund.berkeley.edu/impact/funded-software
• Grants for students with disabilities in need of technology, https://dsp.berkeley.edu/programs/technology-grants
• Student tech support, https://studenttech.berkeley.edu/techsupport
• Student discounts from technology retailers, https://studenttech.berkeley.edu/tech-discounts
• Hardware lending programs on campus, https://studenttech.berkeley.edu/hardware-lending

Career & Practicum

Practicum Opportunities

• Transportation Equity Student Researcher @ Other and Belonging Institute
• Graduate Student Researchers @ Other and Belonging Institute 
• Berkeley Unified School District Gardening & Cooking Program
• Fall 2021 Foodwise Teens & Adults Internship @ Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture
• Fall 2021 Foodwise Kids Internship @ Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture

Wellness

• The Science of Burnout: How to Manage Stress and Maintain Mental Wellbeing by  Dr. Sahar Yousef recording from August 5, 2021 event. Sponsored by Advancing Practice.
• Navigating Mental Health at Work Reading List from the Harvard Business Review
• Breath Slowly: The eXHALeR web app is meant to help with your breathing exercises, and has been said to reduce stress and anxiety, by promoting slow and even breathing. Try it today! 

If you have any wellness tips that you would like to share, please send them to oomph_prog_mgr@berkeley.edu. We may post it in our next newsletter!