Public Health
Explore ways to promote and protect the health of communities, here and around the world, in classes from a broad range of academic subjects.
Learn About Health on a Global Scale and Help Others
Rooted in experiential learning, the major's rigorous, interdisciplinary curriculum covers a variety of important topics, giving you the freedom to pursue multiple passions. Designed to pair well with an additional major, such as mathematics, sociology, or communications, you have the opportunity to create the diverse resume that employers seek. Dive into social movements, epidemiology, geography, sociology, communications, health policy and management, and so much more. Small class sizes allow for a more personalized, cohort-style education.
Students in the major are regularly encouraged to question, discover, and explore. Opportunities to travel and study abroad will further build your awareness of the world around you. And unique research projects, internships, and community-engaged service will enhance your problem-solving, analytical and leadership skills. At the end of their program, students will complete a capstone experience, such as an internship, research, or public health education and outreach campaigns, giving them real-world experiences before going on to graduate school or into the workplace.
Supported by expert faculty and peers as passionate as you are, you'll quickly find the many incredible learning opportunities that await you at UW-Eau Claire. Individuals who believe in the power of community health and desire access to healthcare for all are needed now more than ever.
Program Details
We believe that in order to get the most out of your education, you need to have practical experiences outside of the classroom. Many students take their studies to the field through immersion programs, study abroad or the National Student Exchange program — opportunities we proudly offer to all students.
All public health courses are taught by expert faculty who make you and your success their top priority. Here, you won't just be a number. Faculty will know you by name and do all they can to support you in earning your degree.
A wide variety of electives allow you to focus your degree on the subjects that interest you most, with curriculum that is designed with your future career in mind. Employers in the public health industry seek out multitalented, broadly educated students, just like the graduates of our program.
Through group discussions, presentations, and field trips, you'll learn how to approach public health issues through the broad lens of social, economic, cultural, health and environmental conditions. You'll also understand the various policies at play at the local, state, national and global level.
Blugold Stories
The public health program can help students interested in social justice to form a comprehensive, data-oriented perspective on a number of relevant issues, including chronic illness, water and air quality, climate change, sexual health, global pandemics and police brutality.
Through undergraduate research, I aim to assess the Eau Claire Downtown Farmers Market Match Program’s impact on enhancing food access and supporting individuals experiencing food insecurity. This experience has shown me the power of research to drive meaningful change.
Just
the
facts
Where can the public health program lead me after graduation?
Earning a public health degree from UW-Eau Claire empowers you to take on many different career paths, and pairing the major with another program can help align your interests with your future goals. Work in fields like maternal and child health, behavioral health, research, health communication, and so much more. Graduates leave with the knowledge and skills necessary to develop interventions that preserve and promote health and well-being, as well as extensive preparation for graduate school.
Your degree will be in high demand, too. Employment prospects for public health majors are promising, with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development projecting growth rates in occupations for public health graduates to range from 9.4% to 40.4% between 2014 and 2024.
Example Careers
- Epidemiologist
- Community health worker
- Prevention specialist
- Healthcare social worker
- Environmental specialist
- Health education
- Biostatisticians
- Maternal and child care
- State or federal environmentalist
With a public health bachelor's degree from UW-Eau Claire, you'll gain insight into the world of human health and disease. Core courses in the major will focus on public health principles and practices, epidemiology, health policy, and demography. The curriculum will prepare graduates for entry-level public health careers in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, as well as graduate-level study.
Here are a few courses in Public Health at UW-Eau Claire.
PH 225
Introduction to Public Health
Examines population health and disease considering historical and current public health practice. Focus areas include cultural, political, environmental, and socioeconomic influences that increase population vulnerability and risk. Effectiveness of public health interventions is analyzed.
PH 450
Epidemiology
Fundamentals of epidemiology including measures of morbidity and mortality, descriptive epidemiology, and principles of epidemiologic study design. Selected topics related to infectious disease, chronic disease, and environmental epidemiology are included.
PH 115
Global Health
Explores endemic and emerging health issues affecting global populations. Aims to familiarize students with adverse health outcomes associated with global socio-economic disparities.
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