Public Health

Public Health

Ebola. Avian Flu. Tuberculosis. CoronaVirus (COVID-19). HIV/AIDS. Malaria. When people think of public health, these are the names that come to mind, and indeed, with our increasingly interconnected world, the spread of epidemic diseases is a major public health issue.

However, Public Health is much more than mere crisis response. Public Health is the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting human health through organized efforts and informed choices. It covers a wide range of sociological, scientific and mathematical approaches and seeks to improve standards of living, affect healthcare policy, and prevent the looming crises that stem from issues such as Antibiotic Resistance.

Faculty Contributors

Dr. Russell "Skip" Barbour - Dr. Russell "Skip" Barbour is the former Associate Director for Research Methods and Analysis at the Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS (CIRA). He currently serves as a faculty member within Yale's School of Public Health (Biostatistics) and was previously the Co-Director of Data Management and Statistical Analysis at CIRA. He earned his PhD from Yale University in Human Ecology.

Dr. Ajay Rangaraj - Dr. Ajay Rangaraj is a practicing physician and a consultant to the department of HIV, Hepatitis and STIs at the World Health Organization, Geneva. He played a pivotal role in developing the current WHO guidelines for treating HIV and communicating that information to world governments. Dr. Rangaraj is also a graduate of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, with a MSc in Public Health. He is the primary creator of the Public Health Major.

Dr. Charles Severance, University of Michigan - Dr. Charles Severance holds a PhD in Computer Science from Michigan State University. He is the former Executive Director of the Sakai Foundation, and one of the world’s leading online CS educators. His contributions and curriculum form the basis of our programming curriculum

Curriculum Highlights

In addition to a strong liberal arts background, epidemiology, and certain topics from sociology, anthropology, and political science, we identified the following priorities:

• An understanding of health systems and the ramifications of politics on said systems.
• A strong background in quantitative studies, including Statistics, Probability, and Data Analytics.
• A foundation in the social sciences, including economics, anthropology, and sociology.
• An understanding of qualitative and mixed research methods.
• A deeper exploration of the role economics plays within public health.

How does this degree align with the real world?

Forever Labs was our corporate partner in the development of this program. They're an Ann Arbor-based biomedical company that seeks to preserve and extend healthy human life through the preservation and reintroduction of an individual’s stem cells.

Career Outlook

The Public Health Major intends to prepare students for a wide range of career options including:

• Healthcare Administrator (Med. Salary: $99,730, 10-yr growth: 18%)
• Health and Safety Engineer ($89,130, 5%)
• Environmental Specialist ($71,130, 8%)
• Health Educator ($46,080, 11%)
• (Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics).

Nationwide, over 270,000 job postings sought graduates with a Bachelor’s in Public Health, and the number of people employed in public health is expected to grow by 9.3% over the next ten years. (Source: Burning Glass)