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Strive for healthier communities
Public health is a fast-paced and critical component of our healthcare system that promotes and protects the health of people and their communities. The public health field is experiencing a bright outlook in Colorado. The state expects to see 85,000 related job positions in 2025.
Public health principles are fundamental guidelines and practices aimed at improving the well-being of communities and preventing health problems. In simple terms, these principles include things like promoting good hygiene, ensuring clean water, preventing diseases, and encouraging healthy lifestyles.
Principles of Public Health provides a historical context for the development of the public health field, reviews the public health infrastructure and workforce, and explores the application of evidence-based practices addressing public health issues our communities face today.
MSU Denver’s Principles of Public Health 8-week online course offers career paths in government, nonprofit organizations, healthcare, and education. After successfully completing this course, you can jump right into the workforce with an entry-level position or continue on to a degree in Public Health at MSU Denver.
In the workforce, you can leverage your education from the public health principles online course by providing support to the following systems:
- Health Education: Educating people about healthy habits and practices to prevent illnesses.
- Disease Prevention: Implementing measures to stop the spread of diseases, like vaccination programs.
- Environmental Safety: Ensuring a safe and clean environment to reduce health risks.
- Health Policy: Developing and enforcing public health principles and policies that protect public health, such as smoking bans or food safety regulations.
- Healthcare Access: Making healthcare services accessible to all, regardless of income or background.
Flexible schedule
Course is 8 weeks long, entirely online, and self-paced.
Career advisement
Receive a personal advising session with an industry leader.
High job demand
You will enhance your resume with critical skills.
Career Pathways in Public Health
Approximate return on investment for each academic pathway
Pathway 1: Enter the workforce quickly. Complete the Principles of Public Health course and immediately enter the workforce with job titles like Clinical Data Coordinator, Outreach Worker, Health Medical Scribe, Research Assistant, Administration Tech, and Community Health Worker.
- Median salary is $34,500 year.
Pathway 2: Continue your academic journey and earn a degree in public health, which allows you to increase your earning potential. You can find positions like Policy Associate, Community Partnerships Coordinator, Infection Control Coordinator, Infection Prevention Program Coordinator, Health Data Science Coordinator, Health Educator, and Environmental Protection Specialist.
- Median salary is $59,600 a year.
Take the course to upskill your resume to advance in your career or discover a new passion.
About Principles of Public Health
The Principles of Public Health course will introduce you to the field of public health by providing a broad overview of strategies and interventions that regulate population level health. The course will examine health disparities, quality and accessibility as well as the best practices that have been taken by the public health workforce to promote health equity and healthy lifestyles, taking a focused approach to current issues and strategies in the field.
The course also provides an overview of history and achievements in Public Health, discusses health laws, policies, and principles of ethics in public health in relation to public health issues, and more.
The course is $395, with a $35 transaction fee per payment. There are no books to purchase.
- Course begins – February 1, 2024
- Last day to register – March 1, 2024
- Course ends – April 1, 2024
Note: due to the course being self-paced, you can register up until March 1 and still complete the course by April 1.
Once you successfully complete the Principles of Public Health online course, you can immediately enter the workforce with newly learned skills. You will receive a digital badge embedded with the competencies learned. You can include this badge on your resume, LinkedIn page, portfolio, or share it with an employer. Students will also receive a certificate of completion.
Students can also convert the course to three credits and continue to an MSU Denver certificate or degree, bolster your resume, advance your career, or uncover a new passion in the realm of public health principles. See FAQs for more information.
Learning objectives:
- Identify the key features of the historical development of public health, including the most important achievements of public health
- Distinguish differences between federal, state, and local public health organizations
- Describe a public health approach using a structured framework and apply to a new public health problem
- Identify characteristics of reputable sources of evidence-based public health literature
- Describe the basic principles of epidemiology, including rates, risk factors, disease determinants, causation, and statistical analysis
- Identify the categories of health determinants, basic health behavior models, and behavior change frameworks and theories
- Identify the scope of health law, policy, and principles of ethics in public health in relation to a public health issue
- Identify the needs of vulnerable as well as at-risk populations in relation to the most important public health problems
Competencies to be gained:
- Students will be able to describe the history and philosophy of public health principles as well as its core values, concepts, and functions across the globe and in society
- Students will be able to communicate concepts of population health, and the basic processes, approaches and interventions that identify and address the major health-related needs and concerns of populations
- Students will be able to define basic concepts of public health investigation, population health data, health behavior theory models, and analyze the application of evidence-based approaches essential to public health practice
Dr. Erin Seedorf has 20 years of experience in different professional roles in various public health settings (i.e., local public health, state public health, and academia). She joined the Department of Health Professions at Metropolitan State University of Denver in Fall 2010 as affiliate faculty. She now serves as Associate Professor coordinating the MSU Denver Public Health Program.
Previously, she served as a program manager and evaluation specialist at University of Colorado Denver.
Instructor, Dr. Kristin Banks
Dr. Banks has over 20 years of experience in the healthcare sector as an operational leader and expert in quality and performance improvement. Currently, she is a Senior Director at DaVita, where she leads a national performance improvement team that supports independent nephrology practices as they transition to value-based care. Before joining DaVita, Dr. Banks worked at Kaiser Permanente for 13 years in various leadership capacities, including population health, primary and specialty care operations, and health services research. Kristin holds a Doctorate of Public Health from the University of Colorado, a Master of Public Health from Boston University, and a Black Belt in Process Improvement.
Shane Walker, MHA, was born and raised in Colorado. He enjoys doing the typical Colorado activities such as snowboarding, fishing and hiking, and is an avid fan of the local sports teams.
He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Colorado Mesa University in Kinesiology and Health Promotion in 2017. and a Master’s degree in Health Administration from MSU Denver in 2021. His thesis focused on what factors affected Colorado’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution strategy.
He previously served as a Community Relations Coordinator for Keystone Health and Wellness and now works for Children’s Hospital of Colorado as a Physician Relations Representative.
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Office Location:
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3rd Floor – #330
Auraria Campus
Mailing Address:
Metropolitan State University of Denver
Innovative and Lifelong Learning
P.O. Box 173362
Campus Box 6
Denver, CO 80217-3362