Major in Public Health
Department website: https://www.towson.edu/chp/departments/health-sciences/undergrad/health-science/
The field of public health is focused on promoting and protecting health and well-being across the individual, community and societal levels. Public health professionals work to understand and improve a range of health issues, including chronic and infectious disease prevention, environmental health, behavioral health, nutrition, injury prevention and mental health. Public health professionals track health conditions, study causal factors, address health disparities, and design and evaluate programs and policies to improve health.
The Public Health Program at Towson University prepares students to work in a variety of public health settings by developing knowledge and skills across key public health domains. The domains include foundations of health and disease, health communication, public health program planning and implementation, evaluation, health policy, and evidence-based advocacy. The Public Health Program also provides real-world work experience through a culminating internship experience.
The Program is an excellent option for students planning to launch a career as a public health professional after graduation, pursue graduate education, or to use knowledge of public health to pursue a clinical career (e.g., medicine, dentistry, nursing). For students with a particular interest in health education and promotion, the Public Health Program provides the knowledge and skills needed to become a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) through the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing (NCHEC).
Students in the Public Health major must complete University Core Requirements, 81 units of required courses (including an internship), and electives in any discipline to meet the requirement of 120 units for graduation.
Internship
The Public Health Internship is a supervised, integrative experience in a public health setting. All degree requirements must be successfully completed prior to the internship semester. Interns work full-time (approximately 40-hour work week) for a 15-week semester and earn 12 units. Internships take place in a university-approved placement and are supervised by a site Preceptor and a Public Health Program faculty supervisor. Placements are determined based on an interview process.
Public Health majors must complete 81 units of required courses (21 units of prerequisites, 48 units of professional courses and electives, and a 12-unit internship).
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| Introductory Courses/Prerequisites | ||
| BIOL 191 & 191L | INTRODUCTORY BIOLOGY FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONS [LECTURE] and INTRODUCTORY BIOLOGY FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONS [LAB] | 4 |
| CHEM 121 & 121L | ALLIED HEALTH CHEMISTRY I LECTURE and ALLIED HEALTH CHEMISTRY I LABORATORY | 4 |
| BIOL 220 | ESSENTIALS OF HUMAN ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY 1 | 4 |
| PSYC 101 | INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY | 3 |
| COMM 131 | PUBLIC SPEAKING | 3 |
| PSYC 203 | HUMAN DEVELOPMENT | 3 |
| or PSYC 201 | EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY | |
| or SCED 305 | ADOLESCENT LEARNING, DEVELOPMENT, AND DIVERSITY | |
| Professional Courses | ||
| HLTH 101 | WELLNESS FOR A DIVERSE SOCIETY | 3 |
| HLTH 207 | HEALTH CARE IN THE U.S. | 3 |
| HLTH 222 | FOUNDATIONS OF HEALTH EDUCATION AND HEALTH BEHAVIOR | 3 |
| HLTH 310 | INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC HEALTH | 3 |
| HLTH 311 | CHRONIC AND COMMUNICABLE DISEASE | 3 |
| HLTH 315 | CURRICULUM AND PLANNING | 3 |
| HLTH 335 | PUBLIC HEALTH POLICY | 3 |
| HLTH 339 | HEALTH BEHAVIOR THEORY | 3 |
| HLTH 402 | HEALTH COMMUNICATION | 3 |
| HLTH 425 | INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS IN HEALTH EDUCATION | 3 |
| HLTH 430 | ORGANIZATION, IMPLEMENTATION AND MANAGEMENT OF HEALTH EDUCATION PROGRAMS | 3 |
| HLTH 432 | MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION IN HEALTH EDUCATION | 3 |
| HLTH 435 | INTRODUCTION TO EPIDEMIOLOGY | 3 |
| HLTH 451 | INTRODUCTION TO ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH | 3 |
| Electives | ||
| Select minimum of two courses from the list below: | 6 | |
| EMC, FIRST AID AND SAFETY | ||
| INTERNATIONAL HEALTH | ||
| NUTRITION AND WEIGHT CONTROL FOR THE CONSUMER | ||
| MENTAL HEALTH, STRESS MANAGEMENT, AND CRISIS INTERVENTION | ||
| WOMEN'S HEALTH | ||
| SEXUALITY IN A DIVERSE SOCIETY | ||
| WEIGHT CONTROL: THEORY AND PRACTICE | ||
| NUTRITION FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONALS | ||
| FOOD SAFETY SCIENCE | ||
| URBAN FOOD SYSTEMS | ||
| TEACHING ABOUT DRUGS AND SEX | ||
| DRUGS IN OUR CULTURE | ||
| VIOLENCE PREVENTION FOR HEALTH EDUCATORS | ||
| Internship | ||
| HLTH 422 | FIELD WORK IN COMMUNITY HEALTH | 12 |
| Total Units | 81 | |
Suggested Four-Year Plan
Based on course availability and student needs and preferences, the selected sequences will probably vary from those presented below. Students should consult with their adviser to make the most appropriate elective choices.
| Freshman | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Term 1 | Units | Term 2 | Units |
| BIOL 191 & 191L (Core 7) | 4 | CHEM 121 & 121L (Core 8) | 4 |
| HLTH 101 (Core 11) | 3 | COMM 131 (Core 5) | 3 |
| PSYC 101 (Core 6) | 3 | HLTH 207 | 3 |
| Core 1 (or Core 2) | 3 | HLTH 222 | 3 |
| Core 3 (recommend MATH 231) | 3 | Core 2 (or Core 1) | 3 |
| 16 | 16 | ||
| Sophomore | |||
| Term 1 | Units | Term 2 | Units |
| BIOL 220 | 4 | HLTH 339 | 3 |
| HLTH 310 | 3 | PSYC 201, 203, or SCED 305 | 3 |
| HLTH 311 | 3 | Core 4 | 3 |
| Core 13 (recommended HLTH 220) | 3 | Core 12 | 3 |
| Required Health Elective | 3 | Required Health Elective | 3 |
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Junior | |||
| Term 1 | Units | Term 2 | Units |
| HLTH 315 (Core 9) | 3 | HLTH 402 | 3 |
| HLTH 335 | 3 | HLTH 425 | 3 |
| HLTH 451 | 3 | Elective | 3 |
| Core 10 | 3 | Elective | 3 |
| Core 14 | 3 | Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Senior | |||
| Term 1 | Units | Term 2 | Units |
| HLTH 430 | 3 | HLTH 422 | 12 |
| HLTH 432 | 3 | ||
| HLTH 435 | 3 | ||
| Elective | 3 | ||
| Elective | 3 | ||
| 15 | 12 | ||
| Total Units 120 | |||
Upon completion of the Public Health Program, graduates will be able to:
- Explain the core values, concepts, and functions of public health, as well as the field’s history and philosophy.
- Describe the methods and tools of public health data collection, use, and analysis.
- Identify the basic processes, approaches, and interventions that identify and address major health-related needs.
- Discuss the underlying science of human health and disease, including chronic and infectious disease.
- Identify socio-economic, behavioral, biological, environmental, and other factors that impact human health and contribute to health disparities.
- Apply the principles of project planning, implementation, and evaluation.
- Explain the major characteristics and organizational structures of the U.S. health system.
- Discuss public health policy, and the roles and responsibilities of the branches of government and health-related agencies.
- Develop public health-specific communications for various audiences, including technical and professional writing, and demonstrate use of a variety of communication technologies.
- Propose a strategy to advocate for protection of public health and discuss the importance of public health advocacy at all levels of society.
The Public Health Program learning outcomes are based on recommendations from the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health.