The combined Bachelor of Arts in Public Health and Communication Studies offers an interdisciplinary approach to public health communication. Students combine courses from public health, social sciences, and communication studies to study the important role of communication in shaping the public’s understanding of health issues. The interdisciplinary curriculum is enhanced by experiential learning opportunities and is designed to prepare students for challenging careers that involve crafting messages about health, developing strategies for promoting access to healthcare services, and specific applications such as disease awareness and prevention.
Complete all courses listed below unless otherwise indicated. Also complete any corequisite labs, recitations, clinicals, or tools courses where specified and complete any additional courses needed beyond specific college and major requirements to satisfy graduation credit requirements.
Universitywide Requirements
All undergraduate students are required to complete the Universitywide Requirements.
BA Language Requirements
All BA students are required to complete the BA degree language requirements, for a total of 12 semester hours of language study or demonstrated equivalent proficiency, as described in Additional Requirements for BA students. Successful demonstration of proficiency does not reduce total minimum semester hours of study required to earn the BA degree.
NUpath Requirements
All undergraduate students are required to complete the NUpath Requirements.
Public Health Requirements
Public Health Core Courses
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| PHTH 1260 | The American Healthcare System | 4 |
| or PHTH 1261 | Comparative Healthcare Systems | |
| PHTH 2210 and PHTH 2211 | Foundations of Biostatistics and Recitation for PHTH 2210 | 4 |
| PHTH 2300 | Communication Skills for the Health Professions | 4 |
| or PHTH 2301 | Communication Skills for the Health Professions—Global | |
| PHTH 2350 | Community and Public Health | 4 |
| or PHTH 2351 | Community and Public Health - Global | |
| PHTH 2515 | Healthcare Policy and Administration | 4 |
| PHTH 4120 | Global Perspectives on Discrimination and Health | 4 |
| PHTH 4202 | Principles of Epidemiology in Medicine and Public Health | 4 |
| PHTH 4540 | Health Education and Program Planning | 4 |
Science Core Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| PSYC 1101 | Foundations of Psychology | 4 |
| Biology | ||
| Complete one of the following options: | 8-10 | |
| Option 1 | ||
| Microbes and Society | ||
| The Human Organism | ||
| Option 2 | ||
| General Biology 1 and Lab for BIOL 1111 | ||
| General Biology 2 and Lab for BIOL 1113 | ||
Social Science Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Introductory Course | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 4 | |
| Peoples and Cultures | ||
| Principles of Macroeconomics and Recitation for ECON 1115 | ||
| Principles of Microeconomics and Recitation for ECON 1116 | ||
| Introduction to Health and Humanities | ||
| Social Change and Human Services | ||
| Globalization and International Affairs | ||
| Introduction to Philosophy | ||
| International Relations | ||
| Introduction to Sociology | ||
| Upper-Level Course | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 3-4 | |
| Society and Behavior | ||
| Medical Anthropology | ||
| Psychology of Crime | ||
| Urban Economic Issues | ||
| The (in)Visibility of (dis)Ability in Society | ||
| Health Advocacy | ||
| Social Psychology | ||
| Developmental Psychology | ||
| Learning and Motivation | ||
| Violence and Society | ||
| Sociology of Health and Illness | ||
| Race, Class, and Gender | ||
| Globalization and Global Health | ||
| Epidemiology of Pandemic Diseases and Health Disparities in the African Diaspora | ||
| International Food Policy | ||
| Cities in a Global Context | ||
or INTL 3201 | Cities in a Global Context (Abroad) | |
| International Conflict and Negotiation | ||
| Global Health | ||
| Politics of Developing Nations | ||
| Environmental Health and Climate Change | ||
| Environmental Economics | ||
| Climate and Development | ||
or PPUA 5100 | Climate and Development | |
| Environmental Health | ||
| Climate Change and Global Urbanization | ||
| Law, Policy, and Human Rights | ||
| Law and Economics | ||
| Global Justice | ||
| Ethics and Public Policy | ||
| Public Policy and Administration | ||
| Social Policy | ||
| Critical Issues in Health and Public-Health Policy | ||
| Healthcare Administration and Management | ||
| Health Economics and Healthcare Policy | ||
| Healthcare Management, Innovation, and Design | ||
| Organizational Behavior | ||
| Healthcare Management | ||
| Evaluating Healthcare Quality | ||
| Economic Perspectives on Health Policy | ||
Communication Studies Requirements
Required Courses
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| COMM 1101 | Introduction to Communication Studies | 4 |
| COMM 1112 | Public Speaking | 4 |
| or COMM 2301 | Communication Research Methods | |
Foundation Course
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Complete one of the following: | 4 | |
| Persuasion and Rhetoric | ||
| Communication Theory | ||
| Principles of Organizational Communication | ||
| Communication in a Digital Age | ||
Cluster Course
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Complete one of the following: | 4 | |
| Sex, Relationships, and Communication | ||
| Global and Intercultural Communication | ||
| Communication and Gender | ||
| Communication Law | ||
| Free Speech in Cyberspace | ||
Writing-Intensive Courses
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Complete two of the following: | 8 | |
| Mobile Communication | ||
| Health Communication | ||
| Interpersonal Communication | ||
| Communication and Inclusion | ||
| Political Communication | ||
| Communication Criticism | ||
| Public Relations Principles | ||
| Environmental Issues, Communication, and the Media | ||
| Free Speech: Law and Practice | ||
| Communication and Sexualities | ||
| Theories of Conflict and Negotiation | ||
| Nonverbal Social Interaction | ||
| Youth and Communication Technology | ||
| Crisis Communication and Image Management | ||
Communication Studies Electives
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Complete three additional COMM courses. | 12 | |
Supporting Course Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction to College (based on home college) | 1 | |
| College: An Introduction | ||
| Communication Studies at Northeastern | ||
| Co-op Preparation (based on home college) | 1 | |
| Professional Development for Bouvé Co-op | ||
| Professional Development for Co-op | ||
| Writing Courses | ||
| ENGW 1111 | First-Year Writing | 4 |
| Advanced Writing in the Disciplines | 4 | |
| Complete one of the following: | ||
| Advanced Writing in the Health Professions | ||
| Advanced Writing in the Arts, Media, and Design | ||
| Capstone and Integrative Course | 4 | |
| Complete one of the following: | ||
| Health Science Capstone—Service (Prerequisite course HSCI 4700) | ||
| Health Science Capstone—Research (Prerequisite course HSCI 4700) | ||
| Health Science Capstone Seminar (Prerequisite course HSCI 4700) | ||
| Health Communication Campaigns | ||
General Electives
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Complete 16 semester hours of general electives. | 16 | |
Public Health Major Requirement
A grade of C or higher is required for all BIOL, HSCI, and PHTH courses.
Communication Studies Grade Requirement
No more than two grades below a C in COMM courses may be used to fulfill degree requirements.
Public Health and Communication Studies Major Credit Requirement
Minimum of 91 semester hours required
Program Requirement
130 total semester hours required
Four Years/Two Co-ops in Spring/Summer 1—Bouvé Student Sample
| Year 1 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | ||
| HSCI 1000 | 1 | ENGW 1111 | 4 | PHTH 2350 | 4 | ||
| PHTH 1260 | 4 | BIOL course—see options | 4 | General elective | 4 | ||
| PSYC 1101 | 4 | Elementary language course | 4 | ||||
| BIOL course—see options | 4 | General elective | 4 | ||||
| Elementary language course | 4 | ||||||
| 17 | 16 | 8 | |||||
| Year 2 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| HSCI 2000 | 1 | Co-op | Co-op | PHTH 2300 | 4 | ||
| PHTH 2210 and PHTH 2211 | 4 | General elective | 4 | ENGW 3306 | 4 | ||
| COMM 1101 | 4 | ||||||
| COMM 1112 or PHTH 2301 | 4 | ||||||
| COMM elective | 4 | ||||||
| 17 | 0 | 4 | 8 | ||||
| Year 3 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| PHTH 2515 | 4 | Co-op | Co-op | PHTH 4120 | 4 | ||
| Social science course | 4 | General elective | 4 | PHTH 4540 | 4 | ||
| COMM foundation course | 4 | HSCI 4700 | 0 | ||||
| COMM elective | 4 | ||||||
| 16 | 0 | 4 | 8 | ||||
| Year 4 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||||
| PHTH 4202 | 4 | COMM elective | 4 | ||||
| COMM cluster course | 4 | COMM writing-intensive course | 4 | ||||
| HSCI 4720, 4730, or 4740 | 4 | Social science course | 4 | ||||
| COMM writing-intensive course | 4 | Intermediate language course | 4 | ||||
| 16 | 16 | ||||||
| Total Hours: 130 | |||||||
Four Years/Two Co-ops in Summer 2/Fall—CAMD Student Sample
| Year 1 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | ||
| COMM 1000 | 1 | PSYC 1101 | 4 | PHTH 2515 | 4 | ||
| PHTH 1260 | 4 | BIOL course—see options | 4 | General elective | 4 | ||
| ENGW 1111 | 4 | Elementary language course | 4 | ||||
| BIOL course—see options | 4 | General elective | 4 | ||||
| Elementary language course | 4 | ||||||
| 17 | 16 | 8 | |||||
| Year 2 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| COMM 1101 | 4 | EEAM 2000 | 1 | PHTH 2300 | 4 | Co-op | |
| COMM 1112 or 2301 | 4 | PHTH 2210 and PHTH 2211 | 4 | ENGW 3314 | 4 | ||
| COMM foundation course | 4 | PHTH 2350 | 4 | ||||
| COMM elective | 4 | COMM cluster course | 4 | ||||
| Social science course | 4 | ||||||
| 16 | 17 | 8 | 0 | ||||
| Year 3 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer 1 | Hours | Summer 2 | Hours |
| Co-op | PHTH 4202 | 4 | PHTH 4120 | 4 | Co-op | ||
| General elective | 4 | COMM writing-intensive course | 4 | PHTH 4540 | 4 | ||
| COMM elective | 4 | ||||||
| Intermediate language course | 4 | ||||||
| 4 | 16 | 8 | 0 | ||||
| Year 4 | |||||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||||
| Co-op | COMM 4102 | 4 | |||||
| General elective | 4 | COMM elective | 4 | ||||
| COMM writing-intensive course | 4 | ||||||
| Social science course | 4 | ||||||
| 4 | 16 | ||||||
| Total Hours: 130 | |||||||