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Public Health (BS)

 

Degree Requirements

 

The suggested sequence for core courses is:

First Year

PH 101Introduction to Public Health

4
BIOL 113General Biology

4
CHEM 110General, Organic and Biological Chemistry

4
SOCI 241Health, Illness & Society

4

Sophomore Year

BIOL 104Introduction to Environmental Science

4
BIOL 221Microbiology

4
SOCI 245Global Health

4
STAT 118Introductory Statistics

4
OR
STAT 227Intermediate Statistics: Design & Analysis

4

Junior Year

COMM 312Health Communications

4
PH 201Introduction to Epidemiology

4
PH 345Health Systems & Policy

4
BIOL 246Foundations of Exercise and Health

4
OR
SOCI 239Introduction to Social Research I

4

Senior Year

PH 347Public Health Seminar

4
Other capstone coursework (see below)

Capstone Requirement

Public Health seniors will complete their capstone requirement by taking the Public Health Senior Seminar (PH 347) in the fall semester, plus will undertake a one-semester senior internship in the spring semester, a one-semester research experience in the spring semester, or a two-semester thesis across the entire senior year. All students will make a poster presentation and submit an internship paper, research paper, or research thesis as the final products of their capstone experience.

Arrangements for satisfying the capstone requirement must be made with the student’s public health advisor before the end of the junior year.


For students doing internships (Spring)

PH 370Internship

4

For students doing independent research (Spring)

PH 350Independent Study

1-4

For students completing a thesis

PH 350Independent Study

1-4
PH 355Thesis

4
PH 350 Independent Study (Fall) and PH 355 Thesis (Spring)

Elective Courses

Students must complete two additional courses from this list:
AST 232/SOCI 232/WGST 232Race, Gender & Health

4
AST 365/SOCI 365/WGST 365Intimate Family Violence

4
BIOL 245Principles of Ecology

4
BIOL 338Microbial Pathogenesis

4
BUS 221Project Management

4
BUS 234Organizational Communication & Behavior

4
CHEM 227Energy & Global Warming

4
IT 225Health Informatics

4
NUTR 237The Practice of Community Nutrition

4
PH 261Introduction to Public Health Promotion

4
PHIL 131Biomedical Ethics

4
POLS 212Politics Unplugged: How Things Work in Massachusetts

4
POLS 217American Public Policy

4
PSYC 232Health Psychology

4
SOCI 210Body Politics

4
SOCI 220Working for Social Justice

4
SOCI 275Birth and Death

4
SOCI 285Drugs and Society

4
SOCI 321Sociology of Food

4
SOCI 339Community Research

4
STAT 227Intermediate Statistics: Design & Analysis

4
STAT 229Regression Models

4
 

Additional Graduate Study Opportunities

In addition to Simmons’ BS/MPH Accelerated and 3+1 Programs, the Public Health Department has matriculation agreements in place for Masters Programs in Public Health with Boston University School of Public Health (Select Scholars Program) and The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Interested students should discuss these options with the Chair of the Public Health Department in the fall of their junior year.

Other

Students will be encouraged to attend open lectures on Public Health in Boston. Courses at Simmons will integrate guest speakers from the pool of expertise in the area. Students are encouraged to obtain applied work experience in addition to the required academic senior capstone requirements, through volunteering, part-time jobs, or additional internships.