Environmental health
Improve public health by identifying, preventing, tracking, mitigating, and understanding risk factors that impact human and environmental health
Career opportunities: State and federal agencies, departments of health, food safety centers, academic research institutions, national parks and zoos, specialist positions in environmental health and the built environment.
Overview
Professionals trained in environmental health study the impacts of our surrounding environment on individual and population health. For example, this includes understanding environmental risk factors associated with diseases like asthma, cancer, and food poisoning. Environmental health professionals make up approximately half of the public health workforce and the field accounts for about half of public health expenditures. Students interested in environmental health typically have a background in biological or physical sciences, engineering, nursing, medicine, and veterinary medicine. Prior experience in chemistry, biology, statistics, and Microsoft Excel and Word software is desirable.
Those who graduate with an MPH in environmental health find challenging positions in federal, state, and county departments of health and environmental protection, other federal agencies, non-governmental organizations, consulting and research companies, academic institutions, and industry. Environmental health concentration graduates of the MPH program are positioned to transfer up to 30 credits of core and elective courses toward a doctoral degree in Public Health with an Environmental Health or One Health concentration.
The MPH in environmental health provides advising through faculty in the College’s Department of Environmental and Global Health. Many faculty who teach in the environmental health concentration have research laboratories in the Emerging Pathogens Institute or the Center for Environmental and Human Toxicology. Some faculty members hold joint appointments in other UF colleges, including the College of Veterinary Medicine and the College of Medicine. The Department of Environmental and Global Health conducts research and implements programs that offer depth into the effects of chemical exposures and biological agents on human health and the environment. Required concentration core courses include general toxicology, human health risk assessment, risk communication, and exposure assessment. Environmental health courses draw on the extensive expertise of the University of Florida faculty to bridge environmental and public health in diverse and changing environmental landscapes in Florida, the southeastern United States, and globally.
If you are interested in the environmental health concentration, please check out our step-by-step MPH application instructions webpage, Department of Environmental and Global Health webpage, and contact askmph@phhp.ufl.edu with any questions.
Environmental Health Curriculum
For detailed information on the curriculum, including plans of study, please refer to the MPH Student Handbook.
- Students admitted before Fall 2025: Standard 48-credit/42-credit MPH Curriculum, Environmental Health Concentration
- Students admitted Fall 2025 and later: Standard 48-credit/42-credit MPH Curriculum, Environmental Health Concentration
- All MPH students complete an Applied Practice Experience and Capstone.
Environmental Health Core Courses
| Environmental Health Core Courses Before Fall 2025 | Environmental Health Core Courses Fall 2025 and Later |
|---|---|
| PHC 6304 Environmental Toxicology Applications in Public Health* | PHC 6326 Environmental & One Health |
| PHC 6424 Environmental Policy and Risk Management | PHC 6304 Environmental Toxicology Applications in Public Health* |
| PHC 6702 Environmental Monitoring & Exposure Assessment** | PHC 6424 Environmental Policy and Risk Management |
| PHC 6018 Environmental Ecology of Human Pathogens | PHC 6702 Environmental Monitoring & Exposure Assessment** |
| PHC 6764 Global Health and Development I | PHC 6XXX AI in Environmental & Global Health |
| –– | PHC 6706 Scientific Communication in Public Health |
*PHC 6304 Environmental Toxicology Applications in Public Health: Prereq: working knowledge of bio, physiology, and biochem
**PHC 6702 Environmental Monitoring & Exposure Management: Prereq: calc, stats & some chem, physics and/or bio
Concentration Competencies
Upon completion of the MPH program, students with a concentration in environmental health should have mastered the following competencies:
- Examine the direct and indirect human and ecological health effects of major environmental agents
- Develop a quantitative risk assessment framework for environmental hazards
- Apply knowledge of environmental legislation to case studies to determine jurisdiction and approach
- Apply approaches for assessing environmental exposures, including exposure assessment design and methods
- Demonstrate cultural sensitivity and appropriate communication when engaged in public health practice and research
Interested in the other concentrations offered in the MPH program? Explore more options on the Concentrations page.