Majors and Minors

The major prepares students for graduate work in public health, as well as for employment in public health organizations and agencies. Students majoring in the humanities, social and natural sciences and mathematics are encouraged to use the public health minor as a way to explore their interest in a career in public health. Students wishing to major or minor in the program should consult early in their college careers with one of the public health advisors to plan a course of study.

Requirements for the Public Health Major

52 hours: Core (28), electives (24). At least three elective courses at 300 level or above.

Core Courses for the major

  • PH-101 Survey of Public Health
  • PH-211 Principles of Epidemiology
  • PH-311 Global Health
  • PH-331 Topics in Public Health
  • BIO-191 Cell and Animal Biology
  • PH-240 Medical Anthropology
  • MAT-115 Elementary Statistics or PSY-206 Research Statistics

Electives

  • PH-202 Environmental and Public Health Communication
  • PH-225 Topics in Women’s Health
  • PH-331 Topics in Public Health (if topic is different)
  • PH-335 Laboratory Techniques in Public Health
  • PH-450 Internship in Public Health 
  • ANT-101 Cultural Anthropology or SOC-101 Intro to Sociology
  • ANT/REL/AS-219 Trans-Atlantic Voodoo
  • ANT-354 Human Culture in Anthropological Perspective
  • ANT/SOC-390 Foundations of Social Research
  • ANT/SOC-391 Special Areas in Social Research Inquiry
  • BIO-250 Foundations of Neuroscience I
  • BIO-260 Bioinformatics
  • BIO-270 Invertebrate Biology
  • BIO-301 Microbiology
  • BIO-315 Genetics
  • BIO-316 Molecular Biology
  • BIO-317 Immunology
  • CHE-150 Intro to Chemistry
  • CHE-240 Organic Chemistry I
  • CHE-270 Inorganic and Bioinorganic Chemistry
  • CHE-280 Introduction to Biochemistry
  • CHE-350 Organic Chemistry III
  • HIS-336 Topics in the History of Race, Ethnicity, and Immigration in the U.S.
  • MAT-325 Mathematical Models and Applications
  • PHI-106 Medical Ethics
  • SOC-230 Race, Class, Gender

Requirements for the Public Health Minor

Minimum of six courses including three core courses and three electives. Two electives must focus on health, medicine or disease (Group B). At least two courses must be at the 300-level or above.

Group A: Core courses 

  • PH-101 Survey of Public Health
  • PH-211 Principles to Epidemiology
  • PH-311 Global Health or PH-331 Topics in Public Health

Group B: Courses with a focus on health, medicine, or disease (choose two)

  • PH-202 Environmental and Public Health Communication
  • PH-225 Topics in Women's Health
  • PH-331 Topics in Public Health
  • PH-335 Laboratory Techniques in Public Health
  • PH-345 Health Economics
  • ANT-345 Anthropology of Public Health
  • ANT-371 Women, Health and Society 
  • BIO-317 Immunology
  • CHE-484 Topics in Organic Chemistry (Organic Chemistry of Major Drugs)
  • PHI-106 Medical Ethics 
  • Four-credit internship (450) selected in consultation with the program director 

Group C: Electives (choose one, in consultation with your advisor) 

  • AS-170 African American Culture and Social Institutions
  • ANT-219 Trans-Atlantic Voodoo
  • ANT-340 Worlds of Culture: Global Ethnography
  • BIO-260 Bioinformatics
  • BIO-301 Microbiology
  • CHE-270 Inorganic and Bioinorganic Chemistry
  • ESS-101 Introduction to Environmental and Sustainability Studies
  • HIS-336 Topics in the History of Race, Ethnicity, and Immigration in the US
  • MAT-325 Mathematical Models and Applications
  • POL-125 Introduction to Human Rights
  • POL-313 Gender Politics
  • POL-429 Issues on Global Migration
  • PSY-205 Psychology of Sexual Behavior
  • PSY-205 Industrial & Organizational Psychology
  • PSY-312 Abnormal Psychology
  • SOC-230 Race, Class, and Gender
  • SOC-325 Urban Lives
  • One additional course from Group B