Undergraduate public health education has without question, gained steady momentum over the past few years as a viable option for undergraduate education at a number of America’s most prestigious colleges and universities.
In the 2007 ASPH Data Report, 35 of 40 schools responded with data on their undergraduate offerings. 16 of 35 (45.7%) schools currently have an undergraduate public health program. Of those 16, 10 offered a major and 10 offered a minor. Of the 19 schools without an undergraduate public health program, seven were currently planning a major or minor degree and 11 were not currently planning a major or minor degree. 11 of the 35 (31%) responding schools offer a combined bachelors-masters degree program and 17 (49%) offer an introductory/survey course that routinely permits enrollment of students who are not majors or minors in public health. 18 of 35 (51%) offer an introductory epidemiology course that routinely permits enrollment of students who are not majors or minors in public health.
On May 19, 2008, Dean Donna Petersen (South Florida) facilitated the ASPH Undergraduate Public Health Education Meeting that was held in Tampa, Florida. Participants included Dr. Greg Hand (South Carolina), Dr. Jeffery Johnson (Tulane), Dr. Ian Lapp (Columbia), Dr. Peggy Leatt (UNC), Dr. Dick Riegelman (George Washington), Dr. Harrison Spencer (ASPH), Dean Carleen Stoskopf (San Diego), Dean Randy Wykoff (ETSU) and Dr. Jim Yager (Johns Hopkins). The meeting participants discussed the growth of undergraduate public health education, reviewed existing models and suggested priorities for ASPH to pursue. In addition, one noteworthy outcome of this important meeting was the creation of the following official ASPH Statement regarding undergraduate education in the public health sciences:
ASPH supports the growth of undergraduate education in public health. Such educational offerings range from undergraduate degrees organized and granted by accredited schools and graduate programs of public health to courses and course clusters offered by institutions both with and without accredited graduate programs in public health. ASPH further recognizes
- the value of comprehensive undergraduate education in public health in supporting an educated citizenry,
- the potential contributions of undergraduate public health education in easing the public health workforce shortage,
- the opportunity to prepare students for further graduate or professional education in public health and related fields, and,
- that a general and liberal introduction to public health education promotes a population perspective, reinforces interdisciplinary approaches, and encourages a global viewpoint among students in a wide range of academic programs.
ASPH will develop resources to support this movement, including fostering a network of experts from Schools of Public Health, Arts and Sciences and others, that promote high quality undergraduate education in public health. Undergraduate public health education should
- be based on a population perspective,
- use evidence-based and experiential approaches to learning,
- nurture enduring understandings of global public health,
- be taught, wherever possible, by faculty who are qualified by training and experience in public health or related disciplines, and,
- be developed in collaboration with faculty from accredited schools and programs of public health.
 The ASPH taskforce on undergraduate education in public health will continue to provide a forum for continuing discussion, exploration and action in undergraduate education in public health as part of a larger ongoing discourse around the continuum of public health education and its continued evolution. For more information, please see ASPH’s web site, www.pathwaystopublichealth.org, which contains information regarding undergraduate public health programs and course offerings.
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