Academic Departments

Our five academic departments offer students the opportunity to pursue public health programs with a specialization in the following core areas of study.

Department of Biostatistics and Data Science

Biostatistics uses statistical tools and methods to make sense from the vast quantities of data generated by biomedical research and real-world practice. Through classroom instruction and hands-on experience, our students learn to operate in two roles, both as leaders in their field and as expert translators of data and statistics for their project partners and clients. Each role is equally important. As leaders in statistics, our students are primed and ready to use and develop state-of-the-art statistical methods to tackle challenging data problems from real-world projects. As project partners, our students learn to collaborate with biomedical and health science investigators to address scientific questions effectively using statistical and data science methods, and articulate findings to stakeholders in a way that is meaningful and actionable.

The Department of Biostatistics and Data Science offers the following programs of study:

Department of Epidemiology

Epidemiology encompasses every facet of life that can affect a population's health. The fields covered by epidemiology offer a different angle from which to assess and tackle pressing health issues affecting communities and populations. Students learn to bring the full context into view in order to understand the patterns and relationships in chronic and infectious diseases and other health outcomes such as injuries, aging, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and mental health in populations.  Epidemiology students can immerse themselves in a variety of topics, including nutrition, physical activity, tobacco control, and genomic research, to help guide decisions regarding the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of disease.

The Department of Epidemiology offers the following programs of study:

Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences

Environmental and occupational health scientists are at the forefront of today’s most critical public health challenges. Whether addressing workplace safeguards during a pandemic or mitigating the threats of extreme weather, aging urban infrastructure, and food-borne outbreaks, those working in environmental health and occupational safety inform the health policies that impact where we live and work. Faculty expertise and leadership span industry, government and academia. Along with interactive curricula, students obtain hands-on learning and research opportunities that produce tangible results for contemporary public health problems. Specifically, our students investigate the relationship between environmental/occupational exposures and human health impacts to inform safe worksites and healthy communities. The environmental and occupational health degree programs are managed by the Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences (EOHS). 

The Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences offers the following programs of study:

Department of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences

Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences prepares students to work alongside communities to develop, implement and evaluate successful interventions. Students join our department because they believe that making healthy life choices attainable and appealing is the most effective way to prevent disease and injury. Many times this means combining evidence-informed theories that address public health challenges with the goals and values of the community to create better intervention outcomes. Our faculty literally wrote the book on developing successful interventions, a seminal work that’s used in public health classrooms around the nation. Their expertise not only helps our students build valuable skill sets, such as how to undertake a needs assessment or evaluate a project’s effectiveness but also encourages them to address their own biases and assumptions to achieve better, more sustainable health programs.

The Department of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences offers the following programs of study:

Department of Management, Policy, and Community Health

The Department of Management, Policy and Community Health provide instruction in the fields of health economics, health services research, health policy, health law, health management and administration, health planning, community health practice, public health leadership, population health, organization management, health disparities, economic and social determinants of health, and health and economic development. Equipping students with the tools to lead health departments, government agencies, healthcare organizations, research facilities, and culturally sensitive programs is the mission of this department. 

The Department of Management, Policy and Community Health offers the following programs of study: