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Public Health Education
As a Public Health Education major, you’ll become a passionate advocate for healthier individuals and stronger communities. Through this program, you’ll explore key wellness issues affecting diverse populations and gain the skills to educate, inspire, and lead positive change.
With this degree, you’ll be ready to jump into a career in health promotion, community outreach, or wellness advocacy—or take the next step with graduate studies in public health, health education, or other health professions. Whether you’re working with individuals or shaping policies, you’ll have the knowledge and tools to make a lasting difference.
Experiential Learning
- Intern for organizations such as the YMCA, Hult Center for Healthy Living, OSF Healthcare, and the Children’s Home Association of Illinois.
- Class projects in community, school, university and worksite wellness settings.
- Professional development and networking through national honor societies Eta Sigma Gamma and Kappa Omicron Nu.
Program Details
Family and Consumer Sciences Core – 15 hrs.
- FCS 100: Family Dynamics (3 hrs.)
- FCS 220: Consumer Issues in Health Care (3 hrs.)
- FCS 310 and 311: Community Program Planning and Evaluation (6 hrs.)
- FCS 442: Foundations of FCS (3 hrs.)
- Required Professional Work Experience (3 hrs.)
- FCS 462: Public Health Education Practicum I (3 hrs.)
Additional Required FCS Courses – 22 hrs.
- FCS 120: Foundations in Public Health Education (1 hr.)
- FCS 203: School Health Promotion(3 hrs.).
- FCS 220: Consumer Issues in Healthcare – (FCS core)
- FCS 221: Introduction to Community and Public Health (3 hrs.).
- FCS 303: Nutrition (3 hrs.)
- FCS 310: Community Program Planning – (FCS core)
- FCS 311: Evaluation and Research Methods – (FCS core)
- FCS 320: Public Health Intervention Strategies (3 hrs.)
- FCS 341: Human Development through the Lifespan (3 hrs.)
- FCS 420: Public Health Policy (2 hrs.)
- FCS 421: Public Health Education Seminar (1 hr.)
- FCS 464: Leadership in Public Health Education (3 hrs.)
Required Supporting Courses – 36 hrs.
- BIO 111: Introduction to Cell Biology (3 hrs.).
- BIO 230: Human Anatomy and Physiology I (3 hrs.).
- BIO 232: Human Anatomy and Physiology II (3 hrs.).
- BIO 300: Population, Resources, and Environment (3 hrs.)
- CHM 100: Fundamentals of General Chemistry (3 hrs.)
- CHM 101: Fundamentals of General Chemistry Lab (1 hr.)
- CHM 162: Fundamentals of Organic and Biochemistry (4 hrs.)
- CHM 302 or NUR 391: Medical Terminology (1 hr.)
- MTH 111: Elementary Statistics (3 hrs.)
- NUR 263: Introduction to Personal and Community Health (3 hrs.)
- PSY 101: Principles of Psychology (3 hrs.)
- SOC 100: The Sociological Perspective (3 hrs.)
- 6 hrs of electives (choose from PSY 201, 309, 313, SOC 313, 333, 341, 343) (6 hrs.)
Required Health Minor – 18 hrs.
- Open Electives for Student Personalization (16 hrs.)
Career Opportunities
Community health education organizations, government programs, social service agencies, healthcare providers, local and state health departments, and corporations and universities are hiring PHE grads for positions such as:
- Health Education Specialist
- Prevention Specialist
- Community Outreach Coordinator
- Youth Service Specialist
- Wellness Coordinator
Minor
Get ready to learn about consumer issues before tailoring a program to your career interests! A complement to any major, a minor in Family and Consumer Sciences will enhance your understanding of individual, family and community wellbeing across the lifespan. Courses covering topics such as family dynamics, nutrition, child development, sustainable health, death and dying, and consumer issues provide personal life skills and equip you to support others in improving their lives.
The FCS minor is 15 hrs, with at least 6 hrs at 300-level or above.
Required Course (3 hrs)
FCS 300 Consumer Issues in America – 3 hrs
Electives (12 hrs), choose from:
FCS 100 Family Dynamics
FCS 171 Sanitation, Health, and Safety
FCS 202 Food and Nutrition
FCS 203 School Health Promotion
FCS 220 Consumer Issues in Health Care
FCS 221 Introduction to Community and Public Health
FCS 237 Sustainability in the Apparel Industry
FCS 270 Special Event Planning
FCS 271 Food and World Cultures
FCS 302 Lifecycle Nutrition
FCS 304 Sports and Exercise Nutrition
FCS 320 Public Health Intervention Strategies
FCS 321 Sustainable Health
FCS 335 Survey of Fashion Designers
FCS 337 Clothing and Human Behavior
FCS 340 Parent Education
FCS 341 Human Development across the Lifespan
FCS 342 Child Development in the Family
FCS 350 Matters of Life and Death
FCS 376 Professional Development Seminar
FCS 400 Human Metabolism
FCS 420 Public Health Policy
FCS 450 Foundations of Play