Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Jan 20:333549241310367.
doi: 10.1177/00333549241310367. Online ahead of print.

Accessibility of Public Health Knowledge: The Presence of Public Health Courses in General Education Programs at US Public Universities

Susan Roberts-Dobie  1 , Disa Cornish  1 , Jeremy Schraffenberger  2
Affiliations

Accessibility of Public Health Knowledge: The Presence of Public Health Courses in General Education Programs at US Public Universities

Susan Roberts-Dobie et al. Public Health Rep. .

Abstract

Objectives: In 2003, the Institute of Medicine released the report Who Will Keep the Public Healthy?, in which the authors recommended that "all undergraduates have access to education in public health." The objective of this study was to explore the current status of that recommendation in public institutions in the United States with schools or programs accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH).

Methods: We used a systematic qualitative content analysis approach, specifically a manifest analysis strategy, focusing on data that were available, tangible, and observable. To provide a snapshot of public health coursework in the general education curriculum, we reviewed the spring 2023 curriculum posted in online catalogs at US public colleges and universities with CEPH-accredited schools or programs of public health.

Results: Of the 132 institutions represented in the analysis, 100 (75.8%) offered at least 1 public health course in their general education course offerings in the spring 2023 term and 32 (24.2%) offered no public health-related courses. None of the institutions required a public health course to graduate.

Conclusion: The recommendation for all students to have access to public health education in undergraduate programs was a timely and relevant imperative in 2003, and it is increasingly so today. We encourage colleges and universities with schools and programs accredited by CEPH to lead a renewed effort to expand access to public health education for undergraduates in the United States through general education programs.

Keywords: curriculum; general education; public health education.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Katz J. A New Vitality in General Education: Planning, Teaching, and Supporting Effective Liberal Learning. Association of American Colleges; 1988.
    1. Gaff JG. Strong Foundations: Twelve Principles for Effective General Education Programs. Association of American Colleges; 1994.
    1. Association of American Colleges and Universities. Statement on liberal learning. Liberal Educ. 1999;85(2):6.
    1. Institute of Medicine, Committee on Educating Public Health Professionals for the 21st Century. The need for public health education in other programs and schools. In: Gebbie K, Rosenstock L, Hernandez LM, eds. Who Will Keep the Public Healthy? Educating Public Health Professionals for the 21st Century. National Academies Press; 2003:144. - PubMed
    1. Riegelman RK, Albertine S, Persily NA. The Educated Citizen and Public Health: A Consensus Report on Public Health and Undergraduate Education. Council of Colleges of Arts & Sciences; 2007.

LinkOut - more resources