Meeting the Core Competencies for Public Health Professionals Using Backward Design

Abstract

The mission of public health programs is to prepare competent public health professionals for a dynamic workforce. One way to accomplish this mission is to design curricula that support learners’ competency attainment in today’s public health practice. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate the actual steps taken to ensure that graduates meet public health core competencies. The major stages of this process are (a) backward design of the curriculum, (b) front-end analysis of the curriculum, and (c) back-end analysis of the curriculum. The backward design stage aligns a course curriculum with the core competencies. Front-end analysis provides evidence that the overall program curriculum aligns with the core competencies. The back-end analysis provides evidence of learners’ competency attainment. All three phases embed principles of continuous improvement to benefit the curriculum through a feedback-loop mechanism. Challenges, opportunities, and future directions for academic leaders of curriculum program development are discussed.