The 3+2 Bachelor of Science in Public Health and Masters in Public Health in Occupational Safety and Health is more than a means to produce next-level OSH experts. It will deliver a graduate who can not only immediately impact workplace health and safety, but also deliver someone with a well-rounded understanding of the specific roles that Occupational Safety and Health play in medicine, nursing, population health, and other health professions.
The undergraduate component of the 3+2 program is based on a philosophy of workplace health promotion and proactive prevention of illness, to improve the quality of life of individuals, families and communities through education and program intervention. The BSPH discipline focuses on four areas:
- the multiple determinants of health, including biological, environmental, sociocultural, health service, and economic factors,
- identification of scientific data, tools of informatics, and other information for identifying factors that both foster and hinder the health and well-being of individuals and communities,
- addressing major local, state, national, and global health challenges, and
- designing public health approaches and interventions that improve health outcomes, population health, and well-being.
The MPH in Occupational Safety and Health focuses on evaluating and providing interventions to reduce risk of injury and illness using ergonomics, human factors, and wellness for future, current and past workers.
The MPH in Occupational Safety and Health prepares students to:
- Evaluate occupational health risk in work settings.
- Implement theoretical models relevant to Occupational Health risk evaluation in the lab or field.
- Appraise experimental designs to appropriately address specific research questions in the field of Occupational Health.
- Synthesize knowledge of analytical techniques with theoretical models in Occupational Health to solve field problems.
- Develop and defend research plans appropriate for industrial or academic audience.
The graduate MPH component is a non-thesis degree program with culminating experiences as part of the degree requirements. Students will participate in a practicum demonstrating overall public health problem solving skills and complete a rigorous capstone class.
The coursework for this program will qualify students to be able to sit for the Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) exam.
The following is a suggested schedule that includes the required courses for the combination BS and MPH in Public Health-Occupational Safety and Health. It is recognized that many students will change the sequence and number of courses taken in any semester. Deviations from the prescribed course sequence, however, should be made with care to ensure that prerequisites for all courses are met.
Plan of Study Grid | First Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| BIOL 111 | Introductory Biology I | 4 |
| 3 |
| Public Speaking | |
| Communication for Technical Professions | |
| Argumentation and Debate | |
| Introduction to Rhetoric and Composition 1
or Composition and Rhetoric | |
| Writing about Literature | |
| Technical and Professional Writing | |
| 3 |
| Mathematics for Business and Social Sciences | |
| Business Calculus | |
| Calculus I for Biological Sciences | |
| Calculus II for Biological Sciences | |
| Engineering Mathematics I | |
| Engineering Mathematics II | |
| Finite Mathematics | |
| Calculus I | |
| Calculus II | |
| Introduction to Logic | |
| Elementary Statistical Inference | |
| 3 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 13 |
| Spring |
|---|
| BIOL 112 | Introductory Biology II | 4 |
| 3 |
| Public Speaking | |
| Communication for Technical Professions | |
| Argumentation and Debate | |
| Introduction to Rhetoric and Composition 1
or Composition and Rhetoric | |
| Writing about Literature | |
| Technical and Professional Writing | |
| 3 |
| Mathematics for Business and Social Sciences | |
| Business Calculus | |
| Calculus I for Biological Sciences | |
| Calculus II for Biological Sciences | |
| Engineering Mathematics I | |
| Engineering Mathematics II | |
| Finite Mathematics | |
| Calculus I | |
| Calculus II | |
| Introduction to Logic | |
| Elementary Statistical Inference | |
| 3 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 13 |
| Second Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| CHEM 119 | Fundamentals of Chemistry I | 4 |
| POLS 206 | American National Government | 3 |
| 3 |
| 2 | 6 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 16 |
| Spring |
|---|
| POLS 207 | State and Local Government | 3 |
| 3 |
| 3 |
| 2 | 6 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 15 |
| Third Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| PHLT 302 | Foundations of Public Health 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 303 | Social Context of Population Health 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 304 | Biological Basis of Public Health Diseases & Disorders 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 310 | Public Health Writing 3 | 1 |
| PHLT 313 | Health Care and Public Health System 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 316 | Public Health Data Management and Assessment 3 | 3 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 16 |
| Spring |
|---|
| PHLT 305 | Epidemiology in Public Health 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 311 | Narrative Approach to Public Health 3 | 1 |
| PHLT 330 | The Environment and Public Health 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 411 | Project Management in Public Health 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 412 | Health Advocacy and Policy 3 | 3 |
| 3,4 | 3 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 16 |
| Fourth Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| PHEO 678 | Occupational Biomechanics 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 441 | Strategies for Population Health Improvement 3 | 3 |
| SOPH 601 | Health Behavior 3,5 | 3 |
| SOPH 602 | Health Policy and Management 3,5 | 3 |
| SOPH 603 | Epidemiology 3,5 | 3 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 15 |
| Spring |
|---|
| PHEO 640 | Industrial Hygiene 3 | 3 |
| PHEO 655 | Human Factors 3 | 3 |
| PHEO 679 | Ergonomics of the Upper Extremities 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 410 | Public Health Communication 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 445 | Applications of Public Health 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 481 | Seminar 3 | 1 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 16 |
| Summer |
|---|
| PHEO 684 | Practicum 3,5 | 3 |
| 6 | 3 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 6 |
| Fifth Year |
|---|
| Fall |
|---|
| PHEO 618 | Occupational Safety 3 | 3 |
| PHEO 630 | Environmental/Occupational Diseases 3 | 3 |
| PHEO 682 | Industrial and System Safety 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 307 | Public Health in the Global Context 3 | 3 |
| 6 | 3 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 15 |
| Spring |
|---|
| PHEO 645 | Health and Safety at Hazardous Waste Sites 3 | 3 |
| PHLT 336 | Health Disparities and Diversity in Society 3 | 3 |
| SOPH 680 | Public Health Capstone 3,5 | 3 |
| | Semester Credit Hours | 9 |
| | Total Semester Credit Hours | 150 |
Directed Electives
Public Health (PHLT) directed electives are courses that are specifically approved for the curriculum. A student must select 18 semester credit hours from the following list of approved courses in consultation with their academic advisor. Directed Electives must have a letter grade of C or better.
The program includes a total of 165 hours which up to 15 hours may be applied toward both the Bachelor of Science in Public Health and the Master of Public Health in Occupational Safety and Health.
Approval of degree plan does not guarantee access to courses. Students must satisfy prerequisites, and some courses (writing intensive classes included) are available to majors only. It is the responsibility of the student to ascertain whether there are any restrictions or prerequisites for courses in their degree plan.
