Public Health Sciences
Be a driving force behind solutions to today’s most pressing public health issues.
Infectious disease pandemics and substance abuse disorders. Chronic disease and food insecurity. Healthy aging, reproductive health, and environmental advocacy. These types of topics and efforts to improve public health lie at the heart of what we do at UMass Amherst’s School of Public Health and Health Sciences.
As a BS in Public Health Sciences student you’ll be a part of those initiatives. You’ll study across disciplines from community health education to health policy and management, environmental health sciences, epidemiology, and biostatistics, drawing connections between them. And you’ll work with award-winning faculty who are leading forces in improving public health around the world.
We offer numerous opportunities for community-based internships and experience in clinical and outreach programs that promote quality of life in diverse populations while building skills in:
- Health equity and access
- Health care system analysis
- Public health communications and advocacy
Explore our programs
Undergraduate
UMass Amherst ranked 9th best college to major in public health in USA Today’s College Guide
First-generation students
Underrepresented minorities
Benefits list
Small Class Sizes, Close-Knit Community
Our low student-to-faculty ratio offers public health sciences students individual contact and hands-on training with leading scientific experts partnering with the CDC, NIH, and WHO.
Interdisciplinary Coursework
Draw connections between public health disciplines with core courses ranging from anatomy and physiology to ecosystems and biodiversity, gender, sexuality, and culture to the sociology of immigration.
CEPH Accreditation
Every program in the School of Public Health and Health Sciences is fully accredited by the Council of Education for Public Health, a key benefit of attending UMass Amherst.
Alumni spotlight
In the spotlight
“I find public health to be the ideal intersection of medicine and activism. Public health addresses social factors like race and economic status as large contributors to the health of individuals. Public health as a field tries to address health inequities and discrepancies in treatment of individuals, and I want to help do that as well.”
Featured faculty
Gloria DiFulvio
Senior Lecturer in Community Health Education
Co-Director, Center for Program Evaluation
Focus on substance abuse prevention, suicide prevention, adolescent health, LGBT health, evaluation.
Laura Vandenberg
Professor of Environmental Health Sciences
Focus on endocrine disruptors, hazard assessment, developmental biology, endocrinology
Daniel Gerber
Focus on community health, partnership, adult learning.
Cassandra Spracklen
Focus on genetic epidemiology; genetics of cardiometabolic traits; reproductive and perinatal epidemiology; life course epidemiology
In the news
In the Media: News Roundup (June 23, 2023)
SPHHS researchers comment in multiple media outlets on health-related topics.
SPHHS Celebrates Class of 2023
The SPHHS held its Senior Recognition Ceremony on May 27, recognizing the approximately 600 graduating seniors in the undergraduate Class of 2023.
Four SPHHS Students Featured in UMass Amherst Senior Series
Four graduating seniors — Gabrielle Dieu, Hellen Muma, Clare Sheedy, and Maíra Lima Silva — are featured in the 2023 UMass Amherst Senior Series.
Public Health Sciences
Building the foundations for careers in public health and clinical professions.
