The goal of the Global and Community Health (GCH) B.S. program is to serve the needs of students who aspire to a wide range of careers in healthcare. Students in this program will learn about the biological bases of health and disease and how social, political, economic, and environmental factors interact with the biology to create patterns of disease in communities and societies. Students must complete either of two concentrations in this major. The biomedical concentration is intended for students who are intent on gaining rigorous preparation for professional training in direct patient care (e.g., medical, dentistry, pharmacy school). The public and community health concentration, while still compatible with many professional school programs, is designed for students who wish to receive a broader education that will prepare them to understand both the biological and social determinants of health.

Students in both concentrations take a course in the foundations in global and community health along with introductory courses in biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry, calculus and statistics. In the upper division, all students take courses in biochemistry, epidemiology and environmental health. Students in the biomedical concentration also take advanced courses in genetics, molecular and cell biology, human physiology, and five quarters of Spanish, culminating in a course in medical Spanish. Students in the public and community health concentration take an introductory physiology course, an advanced course in community health, and elective courses in the biological and social contexts of health. Students in both concentrations also take courses in global and community health communication and complete a capstone course in which they participate in interdisciplinary teams to analyze a contemporary problem in global and community health.

Medical and professional school admissions requirements vary; students should verify that their coursework will satisfy the admissions requirements of the programs to which they plan to apply. Check our Health Careers webpage for more information on how you can academically prepare for a career in health care and/or public health. Additional information is available at the UCSC Career Center.

Kết quả học tập của chương trình

Students who successfully complete the global and community health B.S. major will be able to:

✔ Describe the biological and environmental contexts of health;

✔ Describe the social, economic, and cultural contexts of global and community health;

✔ Describe the institutional and policy contexts of global and community health;

✔ Apply methods and skills for biological and population analyses to problems in global and community health; and,

✔ Demonstrate an interdisciplinary understanding of global and community health in practice.D