Public health is an interdisciplinary concentration through which students gain an understanding of the breadth of theories, concepts, and methods that underpin science-based efforts to protect and promote the well-being of all people. Courses in the concentration allow students to explore a breadth of approaches that can be employed to describe the health of populations, determine the causes of poor health outcomes, and design and evaluate strategies for improving population health. Recognizing that all people have an equal right to better health, special attention is paid to identifying, reducing, and eliminating health inequities.
Requirements for the Public Health Concentration
| 1. Core Courses (non-substitutable; 5 required for all students) | ||
| HSP 0310 | Health Care in the United States | 1 |
| PHP 0320 | Introduction to Public Health | 1 |
| EPI 0850 | Fundamentals of Epidemiology | 1 |
| or EPI 2120 | Introduction to Methods in Epidemiologic Research | |
| or EPI 2140 | Principles of Applied Epidemiology | |
| or EPI 2150 | Foundations in Modern Epidemiologic Methods | |
| STAT 1501 | Essentials of Data Analysis | 1 |
| or STAT 1510 | Principles of Biostatistics and Data Analysis | |
| or STAT 2507 | Biostatistics and Applied Data Analysis I | |
| or STAT 2510 | Principles of Biostatistics and Data Analysis | |
| PHP 1910 | Public Health Senior Seminar (required of all non-honors seniors; FALL) | 1 |
| or PHP 1915 | Public Health Honors Senior Seminar | |
| 2. Environmental Health and Policy (select one of the following): | 1 | |
| Public Health and the Environment | ||
| World of Food: Personal to Global Perspectives on Nutrition, Agriculture and Policy | ||
| Current Topics in Environmental Health | ||
| Environmental Exposure Assessments in Practice | ||
| Rural Public Health | ||
| Climate Risks and Health Solutions | ||
| 3. Health, Health Care Systems, and Policy (select one of the following): | 1 | |
| Health Law and Policy | ||
| From Manufacturer to Patient: Why is the Cost of Prescription Drugs So Darn High? | ||
| Comparative Health Care Systems | ||
| COVID-19, Public Health, and Health Policy | ||
| Public Health Law and Policy | ||
| Foundations of Health Economics | ||
| Pandemic Game Changers: Preparing the Next Generation of Decision-Makers for Emerging Bio Threats | ||
| Reproductive Health, Rights and Justice | ||
| 4. Social and Behavioral Science for Prevention (select one of the following): | 1 | |
| Intro. to Health Disparities & Making Connection btw Structure, Social Determinants & Health Equity | ||
| Global Public Health Interventions | ||
| World of Food: Personal to Global Perspectives on Nutrition, Agriculture and Policy | ||
| Parenting Behaviors and Child Health | ||
| Alcohol Use and Misuse | ||
| Substance Use and Vulnerability to Addiction | ||
| Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, & Policy | ||
| Tobacco, Disease and the Industry: cigs, e-cigs and more | ||
| Race, Racism and Health | ||
| Public Mental Health: A Framework for Studying and Preventing Mental Disorders | ||
| Technology and Health Behavior Change | ||
| Social Determinants of Health | ||
| Public Health Nutrition | ||
| 5. Global Health Elective (select one of the following): | 1 | |
| Global Public Health Interventions | ||
| Public Health and the Environment | ||
| Global Burden of Disease | ||
| Pandemic Game Changers: Preparing the Next Generation of Decision-Makers for Emerging Bio Threats | ||
| Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Disability and Death in the Global South | ||
| 6. Health Disparities Elective (select one of the following): | 1 | |
| Intro. to Health Disparities & Making Connection btw Structure, Social Determinants & Health Equity | ||
| Public Health Law and Policy | ||
| Pandemic Game Changers: Preparing the Next Generation of Decision-Makers for Emerging Bio Threats | ||
| Race, Racism and Health | ||
| Pathology to Power: Disability, Health and Community | ||
| Reproductive Health, Rights and Justice | ||
| The Historical Determinants of Public Health | ||
| Community-Engaged Research in Public Health | ||
| Incarceration, Disparities, and Health | ||
| Social Determinants of Health | ||
| Public Health Nutrition | ||
| 7. Biology (select one of the following): | 1 | |
| The Foundation of Living Systems | ||
| The Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Disease | ||
| Principles of Ecology | ||
| Genetics | ||
| Cell and Molecular Biology | ||
| Introductory Microbiology | ||
| Principles of Immunology | ||
| Principles of Physiology | ||
| Human Biology for Public Health | ||
| 8. Public Health Elective (Any 1000-level or higher Public Health course) | 1 | |
| Total Credits | 12 | |
Study Abroad/Study Away: The best semester to travel abroad/away is Spring of junior year. Courses taken away/abroad will likely NOT count for any of the concentration requirements, with the exception of the Elective requirement, and it must be a course related to a Public Health topic. Meet with concentration advisor and be prepared to provide syllabi for course being considered for transfer. Permission from concentration advisor is required.
Honors:
Honors Track, Classes of 2023 & Beyond
For Classes of 2023 & beyond, Honors track students enroll in PHP 1915, Public Health Honors Senior Seminar during Fall semester of their senior year as well as PHP 1980, Honors Thesis Prep during both semesters of their senior year to conduct research and write the honors thesis. Thus, for Classes of 2023 & beyond, fourteen courses are required for completion of the concentration requirements for an honors track student.
Please visit https://www.brown.edu/academics/public-health/undergraduate/curriculum for details or email the Director of Undergraduate Studies, William Goedel- william_goedel@brown.edu for more information.