Public Health Major, B.S. (Community Health Concentration)

College of Public Health

Department of Community and Behavioral Health

Community and Behavioral Health Program Information

Box 70674
Phone: (423) 439-4332

The Department of Community and Behavioral Health offers the Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in public health with a concentration in community health. The degree prepares students to become effective health educators and community health specialists capable of developing and implementing health programs in a variety of community-based settings. Students completing the degree are eligible to sit for the national credential exam - Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES).

Transfer Students – Transfer students who major or minor in public health shall earn a minimum of 18 hours of credit (12 hours must include either field experience or student teaching) with an average grade of C or above in this department. (See section of catalog on transfer students for other requirements.)

Graduate Study - The Department of Community and Behavioral Health offers the Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree in Public Health and the Doctor of Public Health (Dr.P.H.) degree in community health. The department also offers a graduate certificate in rural health and an interdisciplinary graduate certificate in gerontology in conjunction with the colleges of Nursing, Business and Technology, Medicine, Arts and Sciences, and Education.

General Program Information

To earn a degree from ETSU, there are specific course requirements put forth by ETSU, by the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR), by each college, and by each department. All students must meet the degree requirements at each of these levels. Please follow the format below:

University-level Degree and Graduation Requirements

• Degree and Graduation Requirements 
• Completion of a minimum of 120 credit hours is required.
• CSCI 1100  or the proficiency exam
• Proficiency Intensive Course Requirements
• Senior Exit Exam
• Additional Requirements for Transfer Students
• Second Bachelor Degrees
• Double Majors/Double Degrees

Total Credit Hours for Degree: 120

TBR General Education Requirements: 41 Credit Hours

Below you will see the categories and courses specified under TBR General Education Requirements. Note that certain courses are required for this degree, specific to this major. Thus, these courses will satisfy both a TBR General Education requirement AND a requirement of this major. (Other majors may require different General Education courses.) Where specific courses are required for this major, we only list those courses under the category. If there are no specific major requirements for a category, all course options appear.

Communication

9 credits, consisting of 6 credits of written composition and 3 credits of oral communication.

Written Composition

Complete both of the following: 

• ENGL 1010 - Critical Reading and Expository Writing (3 credits)
• ENGL 1020 - Critical Thinking and Argumentation (3 credits)

• Students required to complete learning support in writing must enroll in both ENGL 1011  and in ENGL 1010 . Additional information may be found on the University Advisement Center website www.etsu.edu/uac/learningsupport. Students must earn a grade of “C” or better in ENGL 1010  and ENGL 1020 .

Oral Communication

• SPCH 2300 - Public Speaking (3 credits)

Humanities and Fine Arts

9 credits, consisting of 3 credits of literature, 3 credits of fine arts, and 3 credits of humanities electives.

Literature

Complete one of the following: 

• ENGL 2030 - Literary Heritage (3 credits)
• ENGL 2110 - American Literature I (3 credits)
• ENGL 2120 - American Literature II (3 credits)
• ENGL 2210 - British Literature I (3 credits)
• ENGL 2220 - British Literature II (3 credits)
• ENGL 2330 - World Literature (3 credits)
• ENGL 2430 - European Literature (3 credits)

Fine Arts

Complete one of the following:

• ARTH 2010 - Art History Survey I (3 credits)
• ARTH 2020 - Art History Survey II (3 credits)
• DANC 3500 - Dance as a Human Experience (3 credits)
• HUMT 2310 - Arts and Ideas I (3 credits)
• HUMT 2320 - Arts and Ideas II (3 credits)
• MUSC 1030 - Introduction to Music (3 credits)
• MUSC 1035 - History of Jazz (3 credits)
• THEA 1030 - Introduction to the Theatre (3 credits)

Humanities Electives

Complete the following:

• PHIL 2640 - Science and the Modern World (3 credits)

Social and Behavioral Sciences

Complete both of the following:

• ECON 2210 - Principles of Macroeconomics (3 credits)
• PSYC 1310 - Introduction to Psychology (3 credits)

History

6 credits, consisting of both of the following:

• HIST 2010 - The United States to 1877 (3 credits)
• HIST 2020 - The United States since 1877 (3 credits)

• Note:  HIST 2030 History of Tennessee  (3 credits) may be substituted for 3 credits of United States History.

Natural Sciences

8 credits, consisting of the following lectures and labs.

• HSCI 2010 - Anatomy and Physiology I (4 credits)
• HSCI 2011 - Anatomy and Physiology Laboratory I (0 credit)
• HSCI 2020 - Anatomy and Physiology II (4 credits)
• HSCI 2021 - Anatomy and Physiology Laboratory II (0 credit)

Mathematics

Students eligible to enroll in this math course must do so during their first calendar year of enrollment or prior to accumulating 33 semester credits at ETSU.

• MATH 1530 - Probability and Statistics – Noncalculus (3 credits)

Community Health Concentration

The Department of Community and Behavioral Health offers the Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in public health with a concentration in community health. The degree prepares students to become effective health educators and community health specialists capable of developing and implementing health programs in a variety of community-based settings. Students completing the degree are eligible to sit for the national credential exam - Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES.)

Public Health Core: 45 Credit Hours

• ENVH 3040 - Environmental Sanitation (3 credits)
• COBH 1010 - Lifetime Behaviors for Healthy Living (3 credits)
• COBH 2030 - First Aid and Emergency Care (3 credits) ¹
• COBH 2750 - Medical Terminology (3 credits)
• BSTA 3000 - Introduction to Biostatistics (3 credits)
• EPID 3080 - Principles of Epidemiology (3 credits)
• HSMP 3200 - Health Services Administration (3 credits)
• COBH 4030 - Community Health (3 credits)
• COBH 4457 - Emerging Technologies for the Health Professions (3 credits)
• COBH 4607 - Gerontology and Health (3 credits)
• COBH 3330 - Cultural Competence and Spirituality in Health Care (3 credits)

•  

• COBH 4850 - Field Experience - Community and Behavioral Health (12 credits) or
• CUAI 4580 - Directed Student Teaching (1-12 credits) (12 credits required) ²

Community Health Concentration: 16 Credit Hours

• NTFD 2420 - Principles of Nutrition Science (3 credits)
• COBH 3120 - Principles and Practices of Public Health Education I (4 credits)
• COBH 4060 - Community Organization for Health Education Programs (3 credits)
• COBH 4357 - Thanatology (3 credits)

Minor: 18 Credit Hours

Note:

¹ Lab fee applies.

² See College of Education  for requirements of K-12 licensure with emphasis on health.

Note for transfer and graduate students:

Transfer students - transfer students who major in public health shall earn a minimum of 18 hours of credit (12 hours must include either field experience or student teaching) with an average grade of C or above in this department. (See section of catalog on transfer students for other requirements.)

Graduate study - The Department of Community and Behavioral Health offers the Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree in Public Health and the Doctor of Public Health (Dr. P.H.) degree in community health. the department also offers a graduate certificate in rural health and an interdisciplinary graduate certificate in gerontology in conjunction with the colleges of Nursing, Business and Technology, Medicine, Arts and Sciences, and Education.

Suggested Course Sequence

Freshman Year

Sophomore Year

Junior Year

Senior Year

Total credits required for degree: 120