May 28, 2009
Are you a high school graduate who is interested in a career in public health? A new degree may be of interest to you!
Beginning in the Fall 2009 semester, a new Bachelor of Science in Public Health (BSPH) degree will be offered by The University of Arizona Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health (MEZCOPH). The curriculum for the degree is based on recommendations of the Association of Schools of Public Health taskforce on undergraduate education and includes courses in:
- The health care system of the United States
- Epidemiology
- Biostatistics
- Global health
- Program planning and evaluation, and
- Health disparities
 Joe Gerald, MD, PhD, right, assistant professor in the Division of Community, Environment and Policy at the UA Zuckerman College of Public Health, will serve as the program’s director. “A particular strength of the program is a public health internship that places students in the community during their last year of study,” said Dr. Gerald. “As active participants, students will gain valuable experience and will have the opportunity to apply the knowledge gained in the classroom. Ultimately, students will have the skills to develop novel public health interventions and programs aimed at solving many of today’s problems, including obesity, rising health-care costs and infectious diseases such as the current H1N1 flu pandemic.”
“Public health challenges are rapidly changing, and practitioners and the general public alike are struggling to adapt to the new role of public health,” said Douglas Taren, PhD, the associate dean for academic affairs and a professor at the UA Zuckerman College of Public Health. “In response, the college has adopted a new strategy to improve the training of public health professionals. Furthermore, the bachelor of science in public health program will help address the public health workforce shortage facing Arizona and the nation by preparing students to immediately enter the public health workforce.” In addition, graduates will be well-prepared to pursue graduate studies in medicine, nursing, public health, pharmacy and other health-related careers.
“The bachelor of science in public health program is a wonderful new opportunity for our undergraduates,” said Iman Hakim, MBBCh, PhD, MPH, dean of the UA Zuckerman College of Public Health. “The program will provide students with a solid foundation in the core disciplines of public health — health behavior, epidemiology, administration, environmental health and biostatistics — as well as internship experiences to allow students to integrate and demonstrate their knowledge and analytical skills in research and practice settings.”
The Bachelor of Science in Public Health (BSPH) Curriculum
The Bachelor of Science in Public Health is designed to promote an understanding of health and disease based on public health principles. The primary goal of the program is to train public-health professionals who will seek to improve the quality of life of individuals and communities within Arizona. The curriculum provides general knowledge regarding public health principles and practice augmented by concentrated study (tracks) in Environmental and Occupational Health and Health Behaviors. Field work provides an experience that incorporates classroom learning into public health practice in preparation for future employment.
Core courses in the new BSPH degree include topics in:
- Technical Writing
- Community Health Sciences and Services
- Epidemiology
- Health Care in the United States
- Introduction to Health Statistics
- Public Health Planning and Evaluation Methods
- Health Disparities and Inequalities
- Global Health
- Principles of Nutrition in Health and Disease
- Field Work in Public Health
In the BSPH Environmental and Occupational Health Track, students will study:
- Introduction to Health Risk Assessment
- Fundamentals of Industrial and Environmental Health
- Health Preparedness
For the BSPH Health Behaviors Track, topics explored are:
- Drugs and Society
- Human Sexuality
- Family Violence
Information for Prospective Students
More information on this new degree will be released in the coming weeks from the MEZCOPH Office of Student Services. Students interested in this exciting new degree should please contact:
Alan Beaudrie, Undergraduate Program Coordinator
Email: abeaudri@email.arizona.edu or call (520) 626-3207
Mr. Beaudrie will be glad to help you plan your undergraduate degree at the College and will provide you with details about the curriculum and requirements of this new Bachelor of Science in Public Health (BSPH) degree.
Previous Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences (BSHS) Will Be Discontinued
The College offers this new bachelor of science in public health degree in place of the bachelor of science in health sciences (BSHS) degree for newly enrolling students. The BSHS was offered as a degree program to new students until last year. Students already enrolled in the BSHS program are allowed to complete their degrees within a specified time, but no new students have been allowed to start this discontinued program. BSHS students should contact the MEZCOPH Office of Student Services for more information if they have not done so already.
Links
Top photo: undergraduate students in Cal Payne's class, 2008.
Please send comments, questions, or errors in this article to
L. McKibben, mckibben@email.arizona.edu.
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