SOCIAL SCIENCES DEGREE:
Community Health Science Track
Advisor:
Dr. Myra Bookman, Director MHMSS
Dr. Margaret Woodhull, Asst. Director MHMSS
Overview
Community Health Science is an interdisciplinary track for completing the Master of Social Science that challenges students to apply knowledge from the social and behavioral sciences to identify patterns and formulate explanations for population health and disease. Areas of application include epidemiology, public health practice, global health, health policy, cross-cultural perceptions of health needs, and the organizational and social structures through which health services are delivered and received. This track provides students with courses in social theory, basic research methods, and statistics in order to facilitate development of problem solving and critical thinking skills in the areas of epidemiology, geographic information systems (GIS), and health planning. Required courses for this track total 18 credit hours consisting of 9 hours devoted to the core social science courses required of those admitted to the Master of Social Science Program and the remaining 9 credit hours being methods courses in the Health and Behavioral Sciences (HBSC) department. All courses must be taken in residency at the University of Colorado Denver.
Targeted Audience
This program is relevant for students with an interest in future careers in health care or health policy as health care providers, administrators, or policy makers in health care agencies, or as public health professionals in the fields of global health, or health law. Upon graduation, students will be prepared to enter the job market immediately, or they may use this track as a steppingstone toward a Ph.D. or another advanced degree.
Track Requirements
Required courses for this track total 18 credit hours. The core social science courses required of those admitted to the Master of Social Science Program comprise 9 credit hours. The remaining 9 credit hours consist of Health and Behavioral Sciences (HBSC) methods courses. All courses must be taken in residency at UC Denver.
Core Courses (9 credit hours):
SSC 5013 Philosophical Problems in the Social Sciences and Humanities
SSC 5020 Elements of Social Thought
SSC 5023 Research Perspectives in the Social Sciences
Methods Courses (9 credit hours):
Required:
HBSC 5001 Introduction to Epidemiology (prereq, an upper division statistics or biostatistcs course). This course is required for further Methods courses in this track. Students should take this early on in their course of study. Offered in spring only.
Plus at least two of the following Statistics courses:
HBSC 7041 Research Design in the HBSC I
HBSC 7051 Research Design in the HBSC II
HBSC 7061 Epidemiology for the Health and Behavioral Sciences
Suggested Electives
Please note that some of these courses are taught infrequently and other courses may also be taken (upon consultation with track advisors)
ANTH/HBSC 5014: Global Health 1: The Biocultural Basis of Health and Disease
ANTH/HBSC 5024: Global Health 2: Comparative Health Systems
ANTH/HBSC 5080: Global Health Practice
ANTH 5520: Evolutionary Medicine
ANTH 5560: Human Ecology
ECON 5660: Health Economics
HBSC 5021: Community Health Assessment*
HBSC 5080: Global Health Practice
HBSC 5100: Social Marketing and Media Advocacy*
HBSC 5200: The Global AIDS Epidemic*
HBSC 5230: Emerging and Re-Emerging Infectious Diseases*
HBSC 5240: Maternal and Child Health*
HBSC 5300: Sickness and Healing*
HBSC 5400: Environmental and Occupational Health*
HBSC 5620: Health Risk Communication
HBSC 6320: Human Genetics: legal, ethical and social issues
HIST 5345: Gender, Science and Medicine
HIST 5346: Medicine and Society: From the Ancients to the Present
HLTH 6070: International Health Policy and Management
PHIL 5242: Bioethics
SSC 5050: Philosophical Psychology
SSC 5400: Women and Violence
* Course is pending approval.