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Public Health
Overview
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The mission of York College's undergraduate public health program is to engage in teaching, learning, scholarship and service to foster and sustain a healthier New York City and to promote culturally responsive, evidence-informed solutions to reduce disparities and promote health and wellness among urban populations.
Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) Foundational Competencies
Communicate public health information, in both oral and written forms and through a variety of media, to diverse audiences.
Locate, use, evaluate, and synthesize public health information.
Program Goals (CEPH Learning Domains)
Identify and apply the principles of basic statistics.
Address the foundations of biological and life sciences and the concepts of health and disease.
Address the history and philosophy of public health as well as its core values, concepts, and functions across the globe and in society.
Address the basic concepts, methods, and tools of public health data collection, use, and analysis and why.
Address the concepts of population health, and the basic processes, approaches, and interventions.
Address the underlying science of human health and disease including opportunities for promoting and protecting health across the life course.
Address the socio-economic, behavioral, biological, environmental, and other factors that impact human health and contribute to health disparities.
Address the fundamental concepts and features of project implementation, including planning, assessment, and evaluation.
Address the fundamental characteristics and organizational structures of the U.S. health system as well as to the differences in systems in other countries.
Address the basic concepts of legal, ethical, economic, and regulatory dimensions of health care and public health policy, and the roles, influences and responsibilities of the different agencies and branches of government.
Address the basic concepts of public health-specific communication, including technical and professional writing and the use of mass media and electronic technology.
Background
Public health programs focus primarily on prevention and health promotion (rather than treatment), and on whole populations (rather than individuals). Public health is an essential component of the US health system. Its infrastructure and prevention-based programs, together with clinical health systems, work to improve population health and reduce health care costs among populations. The undergraduate program in public health at York College is focused on the science of protecting and improving the health and well-being of communities.
Reflecting the interdisciplinary approach of the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, students in the major will take courses originating from the various public health core disciplines, including epidemiology, biostatistics, environmental and occupational health, and health management and policy. The community health concentration emphasizes specific training in the assessment, planning, implementation and evaluation of community-based, - focused and -driven public health programs and policies. The major curriculum is multidisciplinary while being rooted in the social and behavioral determinants of health. As students progress through the program, they will gain more breadth and depth in public health practice through field experiences as well as a capstone course in their final year.
Upon completion of the degree, students will be better equipped to complete graduate education in public health or begin working in the field as a public health practitioner. Students will have acquired skills that could be translated into the workplace (city, state or local government agencies, non-for-profit organizations, etc.) or other post-baccalaureate educational settings such as enrollment in an MPH, MSW, JD or MD program.
York College and CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy 4+1 Program
Students admitted to the Public Health Program who have completed a minimum of 75 total credits and who have earned at least a 3.2 overall GPA may be eligible to participate in the 4+1 Program. This program will allow York College Public Health students to take up to 12 credits of graduate level courses at CUNY SPH during their junior and senior years, with courses counting for both undergraduate and graduate credits (depending on equivalency requirements) allowing for the completion of a bachelor’s degree from York College and a Master of Public Health (MPH) or Master of Science (MS) degree from CUNY SPH in five years rather than six.