Public health is the science of protecting and improving the health of people and their communities. With a focus on health promotion and disease/injury prevention, the B.S. in Public Health program provides students with foundational public health knowledge and skills that can be applied across a range of settings. The program prepares students to enter the workforce or continue their education into areas such as public health, medical school, or other professional and allied health programs. Graduates of the program are eligible to take the national Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) exam (visit the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing, Inc. for more information). Students must complete one of the two concentrations offered in the program: Health Education and Promotion or Health Professions.
Health Education and Promotion Concentration:
The Health Education and Promotion concentration is designed for public health majors interested in careers in community, health care, and work-site health promotion among others. Students in this concentration may also be interested in pursuing graduate studies in public health or health promotion (e.g., Master of Public Health) and other related disciplines.
Health Professions Concentration:
The Health Professions concentration is designed for public health majors interested in pursuing undergraduate and/or graduate studies in physical therapy, medicine, dentistry, nursing, and other allied health professions. The concentration allows additional health-related elective courses (as approved by and selected in consultation with the BS in Public Health Program Advisor) to be used towards such program pursuits.
Accelerated Master’s Program (AMP):
An Accelerated Master’s Program (AMP) in Health Education & Promotion provides students an opportunity to take six predetermined required credits (HHE 586, HES 509) and six approved elective credits that count simultaneously toward the B.S. in Public Health and the Master of Public Health (MPH) degree programs. Students admitted into the program could complete both degrees in five years. Prospective AMP students should consult with the BS in Public Health Program Advisor as early as possible; applications should be submitted prior to completing the junior year. At the time of application, you must have an overall undergraduate grade point average of no less than 3.7 in all courses. Please visit the UA Graduate School for more information.
Total coursework required for the B.S. in Public Health degree is 120 semester hours, of which 54 must be in the major. Of the 54 hours of coursework in the major, 18 should be completed in one of two concentrations: Health Education and Promotion or Health Professions.
| Public Health, BHL | Hours |
| HHE 270 | Personal Health | 3 |
| HHE 350 | Introduction to Public Health | 3 |
| HHE 370 | Prin/Foundatn Health Promotion | 3 |
| HHE 375 | Health Behavior Theory | 3 |
| HHE 378 | Drugs, Society, & Human Behav | 3 |
| HHE 380 | Pub Hlth Sys Policy | 3 |
| HHE 445 | Environmental Health | 3 |
| HHE 446 | Health Disparities | 3 |
| HHE 450 | Intro Epi Health Ed/Promo | 3 |
| HHE 468 | Pract Appl Health Comm & Promo | 3 |
| 3 |
| Elem Statistical Methods | |
| Educational Statistics | |
| Statistical Data Analysis | |
| 3 |
| |
| 18 |
| Total Hours | 54 |
Concentrations
In addition to the public health major requirements (36 credit hours), students must complete either the Health Education and Promotion Concentration (18 credit hours) or the Health Professions Concentration (18 credit hours).
Health Education and Promotion Concentration
Requirements for the Health Education and Promotion Concentration are listed below.
| Code and Title | Hours |
| HHE 470 | Needs Assess and Program Plan | 3 |
| HHE 475 | Program Evaluation | 3 |
| 12 |
| Cap Internship Comm Hlth (Non-AMP students) | |
| Cap Internship in Comm Hlth (AMP Only) | |
| Environmental Health Promotion (AMP Only) | |
| Research Methods (AMP only) | |
| Total Hours | 18 |
Health Professions Concentration
Requirements for the Health Professions Concentration are listed below.
| Code and Title | Hours |
| HHE 472 | Pat Health Ed Cap | 3 |
| Understanding Stress Mngt | |
| Introduction to Global Health | |
| Program Evaluation | |
| Culminating Experience in P.H. | |
| Cert Hlth Ed Specialist Study | |
| Independent Study | |
| Environmental Health Promotion (AMP students only) | |
| Research Methods (AMP students only) | |
| Intro to Athletic Training | |
| First Aid, Safety & CPR | |
| |
| |
| Medical Terminology | |
| Human Sexuality Sex Education | |
| Precalculus Trigonometry | |
| Precalc Algebra & Trig | |
| Calculus I | |
| Intro Human Nutrition | |
| General Physics I | |
| General Physics II | |
| Developmental Psych | |
| Psychopathology | |
| Total Hours | 18 |
NOTE: Prerequisite courses for allied health undergraduate and/or graduate programs may also be used for the Health Professions Concentration (consult with Public Health Program Advisor). Specific admissions requirements vary; therefore, students preparing to enter allied health programs should consult the catalogs of the schools of their interest early in their undergraduate enrollment in order to be informed of the exact requirements for entrance.
The overall employment outlook for public health graduates regardless of concentration or sub-discipline is strong (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2018). The employment of health educators and community health workers, specifically, is projected to grow 16 percent from 2016 to 2026, which is faster than the average for all occupations (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2018). Graduates from this program can sit for the Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES®) examination. You can find more information on the exam at https://www.nchec.org/.
Health education and promotion is a diverse field! Within the six major career sectors for health education specialists, a wide variety of job titles and responsibilities can be found in settings like:
Community Health Education
- Community Health Educator
- Education Program Manager
- Case Manager
- Alcohol Educator
- Family Services Specialist
- Community Outreach Coordinator
- Program Resource Coordinator
- Community Organizer
- Health Education Programmer
- Diabetes Educator
School Health Education
- District Wellness Coordinator
- School Health Educator
- Youth Program Specialist
- Director of Health Promotion
- Head Start Health Specialist
- Health Counselor
- Youth Outreach Coordinator
Business and Non-Profit Health Education
- Health Literacy Program Coordinator
- Clinical Research Specialist / Coordinator
- Wellness Consultant
- Health Coach
- Integrative Health Practitioner
- Corporate Trainer
- Employee Wellness Coordinator
- Worksite Safety Coordinator
- Health Education Director
- Cultural Competency Trainer
- Health Media Director
- Grant Writer
- Health Journalist
Academia and University Health Education
- Adjunct Faculty
- Assistant Professor
- Curriculum Development Specialist
- Health Programs Management Director
- Education Outreach Liaison
- Education Director
- Health Promotion Programmer
- Health and Wellness Coordinator
Government and Health Departments
- Accreditation Coordinator
- Health Officer / Department Planner
- Prevention Specialist
- Health Program Analyst and Advocate
- Program Resource Coordinator
- Public Health Inspector
- Infection Preventionist
- Health Information Specialist
- Epidemiologist
- Environmental Health Educator
- Violence Prevention Program Coordinator
Health Care
- Community Outreach Coordinator
- Health and Wellness Coordinator
- Medical Resource Manager
- Patient Education Director
- Patient Care Coordinator
- Biometric Health Screener
- Nutrition Services Coordinator
- Community Benefits Manager
- Prevention Program Director
- Lactation Consultant
- Cancer Information Specialist
Health Education Specialists in these settings may perform the following duties:
- Deliver and assess health education programs
- Coordination and outreach
- Enrollment and initial health assessments
- Motivate others to initiate behavior change
- Evaluate community health promotion/disease prevention programs
- Communicate/liaise with primary care physicians, hospitals and other health care providers
- Plan and administer health education interventions
- Translate medical and health education material for dissemination to client/patient(s).
Learn more about opportunities in this field at the Career Center
