When people think about careers in health, many think about medical careers (such as doctor or nurse) that involve treating individuals who have illnesses or injuries. Public health practitioners address the health of whole populations and focus on injury and disease prevention, as well as the promotion of optimal health, rather than on treatment. The B.S. in Public Health with concentration in Health Systems Administration and Policy prepares students for administrative roles within a health system. A health system consists of all the organizations, institutions, resources and people whose primary purpose is to improve health. A health system can be large, encompassing the whole health system of a nation (which means all the providers, insurers, nonprofit health education and advocacy organizations, and resources in that nation) or it can be small, consisting of, for example, a group medical practice or a senior living facility. Students will examine the complex problem of providing access to quality healthcare at a reasonable cost and develop an overall understanding of reimbursement mechanisms such as Medicare, Medicaid, and private health insurance, how policy can impact healthcare delivery, and how data is used to inform healthcare decision-making. They will also understand how to transform health systems from an orientation toward treating illness to that of promoting prevention. Graduates will be prepared for jobs as case managers, project managers, program assistants, patient navigators, patient representatives, hospital unit coordinators and representatives, practice administrators, practice assistants, research coordinators, administrative coordinators, data analysts, health data specialists, hospital insurance counselors, performance coordinators, quality assurance specialists, policy analysts, research analysts, and program support specialists, among many others.
Degree Requirements Overview
Course List
| Code |
Title |
Credits |
| 1 |
| 21-24 |
| 72 |
| 26-23 |
| Total Credits | 120 |
Major Requirements
Course List
| Code |
Title |
Credits |
| HLTH 102 | Introduction to Public Health | 3 |
| HLTH 202 | Public Health Foundations, Ethics, and Cultural Competency | 3 |
| HLTH 204 | Social and Behavioral Aspects of Health | 3 |
| HLTH 240 | Foundations of Environmental Health | 3 |
| HLTH 360 | Health Policy and Administration | 3 |
| HLTH 365 | Science of Public Health: Epidemiology | 3 |
| HLTH 425 | Applied Statistics for Public Health | 3 |
| HLTH 208 | Study of Human Diseases | 3 |
| HLTH 290 | Human Sexuality | 3 |
| HLTH 397 | Career Paths in Public Health and Internship Preparation | 3 |
| HLTH 498 | Internship and Culminating Seminar | 6 |
| HLTH 361 | Health Systems Administration and Leadership | 3 |
| HLTH 370 | Health Economics and Finance | 3 |
| HLTH 355 | Addressing Health Disparities Through Social Justice | 3 |
| HLTH 490 | Ethical Issues in Public Health | 3 |
| HLTH 492 | Health Systems Research and Evaluation | 3 |
| 12 |
| ECON 102 | Applied Microeconomics | 3 |
| INFO 173 | Spreadsheet Modeling for Business Decisions | 3 |
| STAT 109 | Statistics | 3 |
| Total Credits | 72 |
Concentration Electives
Course List
| Code |
Title |
Credits |
| ACCT 201 | Fundamentals of Financial Accounting | 3 |
| FINC 221 | Introduction to Finance | 3 |
| HLTH 105 | Medical Terminology | 3 |
| HLTH 207 | Injury Prevention and Emergency Care | 3 |
| HLTH 213 | Perspectives on Drugs | 3 |
| HLTH 220 | Mental Health | 3 |
| HLTH 226 | Introduction to Non-Profit Management | 3 |
| HLTH 347 | Special Topics in Health | 1-3 |
| HLTH 405 | Professional Certifications in Health | 3 |
| HLTH 411 | School Health and Community Services | 3 |
| HLTH 433 | Population Approaches to Diet and Activity | 3 |
| HLTH 440 | Health Aspects of Aging | 3 |
| HLTH 454 | Race, Racism, and Health | 3 |
| HLTH 474 | Gender, Sexuality, and Health Disparities | 3 |
| MKTG 345 | Nonprofit Operations and Marketing | 3 |
| POLS 205 | Introduction to Public Administration | 3 |
| PSYC 421 | Data Science for Social Scientists | 3 |
| WRIT 302 | Grant Proposal Writing | 3 |
New Student Seminar
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| |
| 1 |
| Pathways to Success | |
| Freshman Seminar in Chemistry | |
| First Year Seminar | |
| Adult Academic Success Seminar | |
| New Student Seminar | |
| Freshman Seminar in Health and Physical Education | |
| Pathways to Adult Learning | |
| New Student Seminar | |
| New Student Experience for Mathematical Sciences | |
| Freshman Seminar for Music Majors | |
| Introduction to Nursing | |
| Freshman Seminar in Political Science and Law | |
SEEDS General Education Requirements
Click here for a list of courses that fulfill SEEDS requirements.
Course List | Code | Title | Credits |
| 3 |
| 3 |
| 3 |
| |
| |
| 3-6 |
| 9 |
| |
| Total Credits | 21-24 |
Recommended Roadmap to Degree Completion
This recommended degree plan is provided as an outline for students to follow in order to complete their degree requirements within four years and 120 credits. This plan is a recommendation and MUST be used in consultation with their academic advisor. Important note: Students should be aware this plan assumes no pre-requisite coursework is required. If pre-requisite coursework is needed, students may have additional requirements to fulfill which do not appear on the plan.
| First Year |
|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
|---|
| New Student Seminar | 1 | SEEDS: Effective Writing II | 3 |
| SEEDS: Effective Writing I | 3 | SEEDS: World Language 2 | 3 |
| SEEDS: Interactive Communication | 3 | HLTH 202 (Fulfills SEEDS: Exploration 1 – Analyzing Cultures and Societies) | 3 |
| SEEDS: World Language 1 | 3 | STAT 109 (Fulfills SEEDS: Quantitative Reasoning) | 3 |
| HLTH 102 (Fulfills SEEDS: Political and Civic Life) | 3 | ECON 102 | 3 |
| | 13 | | 15 |
| Second Year |
|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
|---|
| SEEDS: Exploration 2 | 3 | SEEDS: Exploration 3 | 3 |
| HLTH 240 | 3 | SEEDS: Exploration 4 | 3 |
| HLTH 290 | 3 | HLTH 360 | 3 |
| HLTH 208 | 3 | HLTH 361 | 3 |
| HLTH 204 | 3 | INFO 173 | 3 |
| | 15 | | 15 |
| Third Year |
|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
|---|
| HLTH 365 | 3 | HLTH 425 | 3 |
| HLTH 355 | 3 | HLTH 397 | 3 |
| HLTH 370 | 3 | Concentration Elective | 3 |
| Concentration Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
| Free Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
| | 15 | | 15 |
| Fourth Year |
|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
|---|
| HLTH 490 | 3 | HLTH 498 | 6 |
| HLTH 492 | 3 | Concentration Elective (Upper Level) | 3 |
| Concentration Elective (Upper Level) | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
| Free Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 3 |
| Free Elective | 3 | Free Elective | 1 |
| Free Elective | 1 | |
| | 16 | | 16 |
| Total Credits 120 |