Public Health A.B.
Chair: Associate Professor Baker
A Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Public Health requires the completion of the Elon Core Curriculum as well as the Major Requirements listed below.
The Public Health major prepares students with the knowledge and skills to address the public health challenges of the 21st century. Students apply interdisciplinary and population health frameworks to the analysis of the determinants of health and interventions to address diseases and other health conditions. The pursuit of health equity at the local, national, and global levels is emphasized. Students are prepared to enter the workplace and/or continue their education in public health or related fields. PBH majors must select a focal area, either the Socio-Cultural Focal Area or the Biological Focal Area.
The major includes 7 required core courses that all students must complete: six (6) PBH courses and one (1) STS course. Additionally, PBH majors must select a focal area, either the Socio-Cultural Focal Area or the Biological Focal Area. Students must take four (4) courses from their selected area of focus. The Socio-Cultural Focal Area includes a list of courses from the following departments: ANT, ENS, ESS, GEO, HSS, PHL, PSJ, PST, PSY, REL, SOC. Students must select four (4) courses from at least two different departments among the list of Socio-Cultural Area courses. The Biological Focal Area includes a list of courses from the following departments: ANT, BIO, CHM, ENS, ESS. The Biological focal area requires students to take either BIO 2412/2413 or BIO 2513/2512 and three (3) courses of their choice from the list of Biological Focal Area courses. All majors must take one (1) additional course either from the unselected focal area OR from a list of courses outside the College of Arts and Sciences (e.g., COR, WHE, COM, BUS) for a total of 48 sh.
Major Requirements:
Required courses: 28 sh
Focal Areas
Choose sixteen semester hours from one of the following focal areas: 16 sh
Sociocultural Context of Health and Illness
Biological Aspects of Health and Illness
Choose one course with corresponding lab from the following list:
Choose three courses from the following list: 12 sh
| ANT 3260 | Forensic Anthropology: From Crime Scene to Laboratory | 4 sh |
| BIO 1112 | Introductory Cell Biology | 3 sh |
| BIO 1113 | Cell Biology Laboratory | 1 sh |
| BIO 2122 | General Microbiology for Health Professionals | 3 sh |
| BIO 2212 | Principles of Genetics | 3 sh |
| BIO 2213 | Genetics Laboratory | 1 sh |
| BIO 2312 | Human Anatomy | 3 sh |
| BIO 2313 | Human Anatomy Lab | 1 sh |
| BIO 3122 | Microbiology | 4 sh |
| BIO 3650 | Toxicology | 4 sh |
| CHM 3050 | Environmental Chemistry | 4 sh |
| ENS 1110 | Introduction to Environmental Science | 3 sh |
| ENS 1130 | Introduction to Environmental Science Lab | 1 sh |
| ENS 1200 | Community Agriculture - Fall Harvest | 2 sh |
| ENS 1210 | Community Agriculture - Spring Planting | 2 sh |
| ENS 3110 | Sustainable Food Production | 4 sh |
| ENS 3140 | Agroecology | 4 sh |
| ENS 3210 | Urban Ecology | 4 sh |
| ESS 3120 | Physiology of Exercise | 4 sh |
| ESS 3123 | Nutrition and Bioenergetics | 4 sh |
| ESS 4875 | Exercise Testing and Prescription | 4 sh |
| STS 3230 | Methods in Survey Design, Sampling & Estimation | 4 sh |
Elective: 4 sh
All majors must take one (1) additional course either from the unselected focal area OR from the elective list of courses below.
| COM 3310 | Environmental Communications | 4 sh |
| COR 3080 | Health Care Strategies for the 21st Century | 4 sh |
| COR 3240 | Substance Abuse and Human Behavior | 4 sh |
| COR 3460 | Childbirth | 4 sh |
| COR 4060 | Women's Health Issues | 4 sh |
| ECO 1410 | The Economics of Human Trafficking: a Global Review | 2 sh |
| ECO 3210 | Health Economics | 4 sh |
| ECO 3410 | Gender and Development | 4 sh |
| ECO 4400 | Applied Economics and Consulting | 4 sh |
| EDU 3320 | Early Childhood Family - Team Partnerships | 4 sh |
| EDU 4670 | Early Childhood Policy and Advocacy | 4 sh |
| WHE 3240 | Nutrition | 4 sh |
| WHE 2300 | Foundations of Health and Wellness Coaching | 2 sh |
| WHE 3500 | Community Health Program Assessment, Evaluation and Design | 4 sh |
| COM 3370 | Health Communications | 4 sh |
| COR 3010 | Becoming an Adult in the Modern Era | 4 sh |
| COR 3260 | Human Sexuality | 4 sh |
| COR 3300 | Leading for Change: an Institutional and Cross-Systems Approach for Racial Equity | 4 sh |
| COR 3680 | Nutrition in the 21st Century | 4 sh |
| COR 4050 | Prison Nation: Deconstructing the Prison Industrial Complex | 4 sh |
| COR 4070 | Global Health Disparities | 4 sh |
| COR 4300 | Food and the Environment | 4 sh |
| COR 4420 | Food, Health, and Society in Global Perspective | 4 sh |
| COR 4540 | Diversity and Social Justice: Building Cultural Competency | 4 sh |
Other courses may be submitted for approval by the Department Chair.
Total Credit Hours: 48
Program Outcomes
Understand the history and philosophy of public health as well as its core values, ethics, concepts, and functions across the globe and in society.
Articulate and communicate the concepts of population health and the basic processes, approaches, and interventions that identify and address the major health-related needs and concerns of populations, communities, and individuals.
Apply basic concepts, methods, and tools of public health data collection, use and analysis.
Analyze the biological, environmental, and socio/cultural determinants of health in order to understand local, state, national, and global public health issues.
Synthesize evidence to determine and create appropriate interventions to promote health and prevent disease.