Public Health

The College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University offer a pre-professional program in public health. Students complete prerequisite coursework as outlined by the various accredited schools of public health. Upon completion of the pre-professional coursework, the student is eligible to apply to colleges and universities offering a post graduate degree in public health, and to pursue careers in public health.

There are several core disciplines within the field of Public Health (biostatistics, epidemiology, health policy and management, social and behavioral sciences, and environmental health sciences). These core disciplines and several other sub-disciplines draw from a range of interdisciplinary fields and areas, some more rooted in math and science and others more rooted in the social and behavioral sciences. Therefore, there are several appropriate majors and minors (in the sciences, social sciences, and humanities) for students interested in public health, depending on their area of interest. Additionally, the prerequisites for graduate school in these areas vary widely.

The following prerequisite courses are often required to attend graduate school for most of the public health core disciplines.

-          1 or more college level mathematics course

-          1 statistics or research methods course

-          1 or more courses in human biology

Due to the range of career paths in public health and the specific prerequisite courses that each public health school requires, students are strongly encouraged to work closely with the faculty advisor in planning their pre-professional program. Students should meet with the campus advisor early in the fall semester of their first year or as soon as they determine public health to be their area of interest.