Fundamentals of Public Health Supplemental Studies

The Fundamentals of Public Health Supplemental Studies (FPHSS) program is a 10-credit course sequence providing students who do not intend to complete the undergraduate degree in public health with a formal academic structure through which they will gain an understanding of the evolution and mission of the field of public health, as well as an appreciation of its key methods and applications.

Eligibility

Students currently enrolled in the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor’s College of Engineering, College of Pharmacy, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, School of Information, School of Kinesiology, Stephen M. Ross School of Business, and the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning are eligible to complete the FPHSS program. Students from these schools/colleges must have a minimum GPA of 3.0, have completed PUBHLTH 200 with a minimum grade of B-, and have attained at least sophomore standing (25 to 54 credits).

Curriculum

The FPHSS program is designed to be complementary and value-added to other academic programs, providing participating students with a foundational grounding in the basic spectrum of evidence-based principles comprising the field of public health. Students completing the requirements of the FPHSS program will be able to:

  • Summarize the history and philosophy of public health, as well as its core values, concepts, and functions in societies across the globe
  • Identify the core concepts, and basic processes, approaches, and interventions of population health that address health-related needs and concerns of populations
  • Describe the environmental, socioeconomic, behavioral, nutritional, biological, and other determinant factors that impact human health status with particular attention to inequities in and among populations
  • Illustrate the basic concepts of effective and persuasive public health communication through multiple modalities

Requirements and Courses

The 10-credit FPHSS program requires the 4-credit course Health and Society: Introduction to Public Health (PUBHLTH 200). Students must take at least one course (3-credits) from the approved list of Community and Global Public Health courses and at least one course (3-credits) from the approved list of Public Health Sciences courses. One of the courses selected from the menus of electives must be 300-level or above. Students who declared interest in FPHSS in Fall 2019 or later, 7 of the 10 credits must be in Public Health. 

Community and Global Public Health

  • ANTHRCUL 344: Medical Anthropology (4 credits)
  • ANTHRCUL 356/DAAS 358: Topics in Sociocultural Anthropology - section specific (3 credits)
  • ANTHRCUL 458: Topics in Sociocultural and Linguistic Anthropology - section specific (3 credits)
  • HF 416*: Environmental and Policy Approaches to Increasing Physical Activity (3 credits)
  • HF 451/KINES 413*: Physical Activity Across the Lifespan (3 credits)
  • PSYCH 211: Project Outreach (section 004 - Health, Illness and Society) (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 300: Behavioral and Social Science Foundations for the Health Professions (4 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 308: Black American Health: a focus on children, families, and communities (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 313: LGBTQ+ Health Promotion: Local and Global Strategies (3 credits)
  • PUBHTLH 350: Global Public Health: Challenges and Transformations (4 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 360: Community, Culture and Social Justice (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 382: Population Health Determinants & Disparities (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 400: Race and Racism in Public Health (4 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 402: Changing Health Behaviors: What Works (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 405: Social History of Infectious Disease (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 410: Making Change: public health policy advocacy in principle and practice (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 414: Public Mental Health (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 450: Critical Reflections on Global Public Health (3 credits)
  • PUBPOL 475: Topics - Improving Public Health - section specific (3 credits)
  • SOC 295: Topics in Sociology - Epidemics of Inequality: Sociological Dimentions of HIV/AIDS and Covid-19 (section 002) (3 credits)
  • SOC 475: Introduction to Medical Sociology (4 credits)
  • WGS 319: Race, Class and Reproductive Health (3 credits)
  • WGS 365: Global Perspectives on Gender, Health, and Reproduction (3 credits)
  • WGS 400: Women's Reproductive Health (3 credits)

*These courses are open to Kinesiology students only. 

Public Health Sciences

  • ANTHRBIO 363: Genes, Disease, Culture (4 credits)
  • BIOSTAT 449: Topics in Biostatistics (3 credits)
  • ENVIRON 310: Environmental Chemicals and Disease (3 credits)
  • HISTORY 285/RCSCI 275: Science, Technology, Medicine and Society (4 credits)
  • MOVESCI 471: Physical Activity Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 305: The Environment and Human Health (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 310: Nutrition in the Life Cycle (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 311: Introduction to Public Health Genetics (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 370: Public Health Biology and Pathophysiology (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 383: Data Driven Solutions in Public Health (4 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 401: Exploring the Public Health Spectrum of Cancer: from prevention to survivorship (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 403: Obesity: From Cells to Society (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 413: Vaccines in Public Health (3 credits)
  • PUBHLTH 460: Introduction to Bacterial Pathogenesis (3 credits)

Students may petition to the Office of Undergraduate Education for consideration in counting courses not on the approved course lists if they believe that these courses offer an opportunity to pair their disciplinary mindset with the learning outcomes of the Fundamentals of Public Health Supplemental Studies program.

Declaration Process

1. Declare Your Intent

Complete the Declaration of Intent Form to indicate that you intend to complete the Supplemental Studies program. After completing this form your official transcript will be updated to include the Supplemental Studies declaration. 

2. Plan

Please review the supplemental studies requirements and plan accordingly. Course offerings may vary based on the term in which they are offered. FPHSS students are not guaranteed enrollment in these courses. 

3. Completion Form

When ready to graduate, please submit the Fundamentals of Public Health Completion Form. This form triggers an audit in the system. Once your completion form has been reviewed and approved, the FPHSS designation will be added to your transcript at the same time your degree is conferred. 

NOTE: Your transcript will not list the supplemental studies program unless we receive the Completion Form and you meet all requirements. If you are no longer interested in completing this program please email sph.inquiries@umich.edu. 

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Questions?

For more information about the undergraduate admissions process, contact our admissions team at sph-inquiries@umich.edu or 734-764-5425.

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