Core Course Requirements

Post-baccalaureate Certificate in Public Health - 18 hours of core courses

PBHL 5003 Introduction to Public Health (3)
An introduction to basic and contemporary issues of public health, including tools of community-based health assessment, surveillance, health promotion, disease prevention, policy and ethics will be presented. This course provides an overview in the diverse areas of public health practice.

PBHL 5173 Epidemiology I (3)
An introduction to epidemiology and to the basic principles and methods of epidemiological research and practice. Overview of the history and theoretical basis of epidemiology; measures of morbidity, mortality, disease transmission and risk; major study designs; measures of association; bias, confounding and interaction; evaluation of screening tests; inference; causality. Prerequisite: Biostatistics I (may be taken concurrently) or equivalent.

PBHL 5123 The Health Care System (3)
Analysis of system-wide issues related to the delivery of health in the United States, including organizational arrangements, financing, health status issues, health insurance, health manpower, cost of health care, quality of health care, access and regulatory issues.

PBHL 5113 Environmental and Occupational Health (3)
Provides students a detailed overview of the fields of environmental and occupational health, with an emphasis on the practical aspects of the recognition, evaluation and control of chemical, physical and biological hazards including basic quantitative assessment of these hazards. Additional topics include significant legal and historical influences as well as currently important issues in the fields. The overall goal of the course is to ensure students have a fundamental knowledge of the field and to prepare them for further study in more specific aspects of environmental and occupational health.

PBHL 5133 Health Behavior Research (3)
Designed to facilitate integration, application and evaluation of information regarding health behavior theory, research, and practice. This course will guide analysis of current issues in health behavior, including controversial issues. Concepts of scientific writing and professional presentation will also be provided.

PBHL 5013 Biostatistics I (3)
Introductory topics in descriptive biostatistics and epidemiology, database principles, basic probability, diagnostic test statistics, tests of hypotheses, sample-size estimation, power of tests, frequency cross-tabulations, correlation, nonparametric tests, regression, randomization, multiple comparisons of means and analysis of variance for one and two-factor experiments.

Masters in Public Health Degree - 42 hours
Core courses: The same 18 hour semester core courses listed above for the Post-Baccalaureate Certificate
Concentration: Specialty or generalist - 15 semester hours
Elective: 3 semester hours

Public Health Integration Project: 3 semester hours
The Public Health Integration Project is intended to provide a culminating experience that requires the student to synthesize and integrate the knowledge acquired during their prior course work and to apply theory and principles learned to an area of public health practice. This class is required and should be taken near completion of the MPH Program.

Preceptorship in Public Health: 3 semester hours
The Preceptorship in Public Health is a field experience for the student under the joint direction of a public health faculty member and a qualified specialist working in a selected area of public health. The class is required and should be taken near completion of the MPH program.