Public Health, BA

Introduction

The mission of the public health program is to develop emerging public health leaders through an interdisciplinary education rooted in the liberal arts and connected with contemporary public health practice. The curriculum challenges students to understand the intellectual meaning and practical implications of the broad array of influences on population health, emphasizing the social foundations of health.

The study of public health is dedicated to understanding and improving the health and well-being of all people. The public health major is designed to develop students’ abilities to understand, analyze, problem-solve and communicate effectively in a complicated, international and rapidly changing world. Pacific’s public health program integrates health science, social science and humanistic approaches to addressing global health challenges.

Public health students study core courses within public health, such as introductory public health, epidemiology, social foundations of population health, environmental health, and global health. But we know that public health workers need a broad set of skills and abilities to be effective in promoting health and well-being, so our students complete their public health majors with courses in statistics and biology, plus a choice of courses from anthropology, biology, chemistry, economics, environmental sciences, ethics, history, media arts, politics, psychology, sociology, social work and the humanities.

Baccalaureate Degree Core

Baccalaureate Core & Other Graduation Requirements

Major Requirements: 44-45 credits

Required Courses: 28-29 credits

Complete all of the following:

PH 101 - Public Health 4 credit(s)
PH 200 - Epidemiology 4 credit(s)
PH 310 - Social Foundations of Population Health 4 credit(s)
PH 352W - Program Development and Evaluation 4 credit(s)
PH 370 - Pre-Field Experience Seminar 0-1 credit(s)
PH 380 - Public Health Field Experience 4 credit(s)
PH 491 - Capstone I: Senior Project 2 credit(s)
PH 492 - Capstone II: Senior Project 2 credit(s)
SOC 301 - Social Statistics 4 credit(s)
OR MATH 207 - General Elementary Statistics 4 credit(s)

Biological Science Electives: 4 credits

Complete 4 credits from the following:

BIOL 160 - Selected Topics for Non-Science Majors 2 or 4 credit(s) (by approval)
BIOL 170 - Human Genetics 4 credit(s)
BIOL 200 - Intro Biology: Flow of Energy 4 credit(s)
AND BIOL 200L - Intro Biology: Flow of Energy Lab 0 credit(s)
BIOL 201 - Intro Biology: Flow of Information 4 credit(s)
AND BIOL 201L - Intro Biology: Flow of Info Lab 0 credit(s)
HBIO 110 - Human Biology 4 credit(s)
HBIO 230 - Human Anatomy & Physiology I 4 credit(s)
AND HBIO 230L - Human Anatomy & Physiology I Lab 0 credit(s)
PH 340 - Human Health & Disease 4 credit(s)

Ethics: 4 credits

Complete one of the following:

PHIL 202 - Ethics and Society 4 credit(s)
OR
PHIL 307 - Ethics, Medicine & Health Care 4 credit(s)

Electives: 8 credits

At least 4 credits must have PH prefix and at least 4 credits must be upper-division.

Any PH prefix course not required above
ANTH 302W - Designing Ethnography 2 credit(s)
ANTH 311 - Medicine, Body and Culture 4 credit(s)
ANTH 343 - Food, Fat, and Fitness 4 credit(s)
CIV 227 - Action for Affordable Housing 2 credit(s)
CIV 233 - Healthy Communities 2 credit(s)
CIV 325 - Leadership in Civic Engagement 2 credit(s)
ECON 210 - Income Inequality and Poverty 4 credit(s)
ECON 234 - Intro to Health Economics 4 credit(s)
ENV 270 - Geospatial Analysis using GIS 4 credit(s)
ENV 344 - Environmental Toxicology 2 credit(s)
HBIO 230 - Human Anatomy & Physiology I 4 credit(s)
AND HBIO 230L - Human Anatomy & Physiology I Lab 0 credit(s)
HBIO 303 - Medical Terminology 1 credit(s)
KINES 215 - Nutrition 4 credit(s)
MEDA 110 - Introduction to Communication 4 credit(s)
MEDA 116 - Graphic Design I 4 credit(s)
MEDA 122 - Introduction to Digital Media 2 credit(s)
MKT 301 - Marketing 4 credit(s)
NPO 317 - Introduction to Grant Writing 2 credit(s)
POLS 304 - Community Politics 4 credit(s)
POLS 321 - Protest, Dissent, & Social Change 4 credit(s)
PSY 202 - Health Psychology 4 credit(s)
PSY 208 - Addictions and Society 4 credit(s)
PSY 310 - Community Psychology 4 credit(s)
SOC 220 - Diversity & Equity in Organizations 2 credit(s)
SOC 300W - Qualitative Research 4 credit(s)
SOC 319 - Sociology of Medicine 4 credit(s)
SOCWK 215 - Conflict Resolution 2 credit(s)
SOCWK 320 - Human Behavior in Social Environment 4 credit(s)

Program Details

Program Length

Four years for a complete BA degree. Two years for students transferring in with an AAOT degree. Program length may vary depending upon the student’s course load and academic progress.

Program Learning Outcomes

Describe interconnected relationships among physical, social, and environmental aspects of health and disease.
Appreciate the role of multiple determinants of health across diverse populations and health issues.
Identify social injustices and propose strategies for change.
Understand and communicate using public health terminology, including epidemiological measures.
Interpret quantitative and qualitative information about population health.
Synthesize information from a variety of sources to understand and act upon population health problems.

Students studying public health are often interested in pursuing careers in the public sector, working with health departments, policymakers or organizations such as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. Others are interested in working with nonprofit organizations or non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that promote better health both domestically and abroad. Still other public health graduates will pursue private-sector employment within the insurance or healthcare industries. Public health graduates are prepared for careers in health departments, hospitals, nonprofit organizations, universities, family violence prevention organizations, disaster relief organizations, and state and federal agencies. Many students choose to combine undergraduate public health education with graduate school in public health or the health professions.

Students may earn a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science, or minor in Public Health. Only a grade of C- or above may be used to satisfy major and minor requirements. Students must maintain a minimum 2.0 grade point average in the major or minor.