DEGREE: Master of Science in Environmental Health
Apply Online Now | Learning Objectives | Program Curriculum and Course Requirements | Typical Schedule
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Learning Objectives
Upon satisfactory completion of the MS degree in the Environmental Health program, students will be able to:
- characterize major sources of chemical or microbial contamination of environmental media including water, air, soil, and food;
- identify current regulatory programs and legislative authorities directed at management of contamination of environmental media including water, air, soil, and food;
- describe major processes in human and natural environments that affect transport, dispersion, transformation, and accumulation of hazardous agents and identify characteristics of the agent, the environment and the conditions of release that influence environmental fate and distinguish key factors for a given scenario;
- characterize mechanisms and processes by which toxic or infectious hazards reach target populations and predict the most significant exposure pathways in a given scenario;
- describe and apply means by which exposures of target populations to toxic or infectious hazards can be measured and/or modeled; indicate how these approaches would depend upon the properties of specific contaminants; and identify sources and magnitudes of uncertainties associated with these characterizations;
- describe and apply means of preventing or controlling adverse effects of contamination of environmental media on public health that are available to local, state, and federal regulatory agencies or the private sector; and
- communicate effectively with the public and professionals regarding potential public health impacts, mitigation strategies and associated uncertainties related to chemical, or microbial contamination of environmental media including water, air, soil, and food.
Program Curriculum and Course Requirements
MS students in the Environmental Health program are required to complete the MS core courses, the EH required courses, and nine credits of EH representative electives.
| Course # | Course Name | Credits Required | Quarter | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BIOST 511 or 517 or higher[1] | Medical Biometry I or Applied Biost. I | 4 | A (511, 517), Su (511) | |
| EPI 511 | Introduction to Epidemiology | 4 | A | |
| ENV H 580 | Environmental & Occupational Health Seminar | 3 | A, W, Sp | |
| ENV H 581 | Environmental Health Reading I | 1 | A | |
| ENV H 583 | Environmental Health Reading III | 1 | Sp | |
| ENV H 700 | Master's Thesis | 9 | A, W, Sp, Su | |
| [1] HIgher level Biostatistics and Epidemiology courses can be substituted for BIOST 511 or 517, and EPI 511. | ||||
| Course # | Course Name | Credits Required | Quarter | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENV H 405 | Toxic Chemicals and Human Health | 3 | Sp | |
| ENV H 453 | Industrial Hygiene | 3 | A | |
| ENV H 541 | Ecology of Environmentally Transmitted Microbial Hazards | 3 | A | |
| ENV H 543 OR ENV H 577 |
Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment OR Risk Assessment for Env. Health Hazards |
3 OR 3/4 |
Sp OR A |
|
| ENV H 552 | Environmental Chemistry of Pollution | 3 | W | |
| ENV H 594 | Current Topics in Environmental Health | 1, max. 2 | W | |
| Choose courses from 2 of the following 3 areas: (If more than two courses are taken, the additional courses may be counted toward the elective credit requirement.) | ||||
| Waste Management ENV H 445 OR ENV H 446 |
Solid Waste Management OR Hazardous Waste Management |
3 OR 3 |
Sp OR W |
|
| Air Pollution
ENV H 490 |
3 |
Sp |
Community Air Pollution |
|
| Water and Wastewater
ENV H 545 |
4 |
A |
Water, Wastewater, and Health |
|
| Course # | Course Name | Credits | Quarter | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENV H 441 | Food Protection | 3 | W | |
| ENV H 442 | Vector Control | 3 | Sp | |
| ENV H 449 | Health Effects of Air Pollution | 2 | W (even yrs) | |
| ENV H 457 | Industrial and Environmental Noise | 3 | Sp (even yrs) | |
| ENV H 461 | Air Pollution Control | 4 | A | |
| ENV H 471 | Environmental Health Regulation | 3 | W | |
| ENV H 512 | Waste Management, Recycling & Pollution Control | 3 | * | |
| ENV H 541 | Ecology of Environmentally Transmitted Microbial Hazards | 3 | A | |
| ENV H 542 | Detection and Control of Environmentally Transmistted Microbial Hazards | 3 | W | |
| ENV H 543 | Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment | 3 | Sp | |
| ENV H 550 | Microscopy: Image Aquisition and Analysis | 2 | * | |
| ENV H 556 | Quantitative Occupational Exposure Analysis | 3 | W (odd yrs) | |
| ENV H 568 | Molecular Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases | 2 | W | |
| ENV H/EPI 570 | Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology | 3 | Sp | |
| ENV H 574 | Probabilistic Exposure Analysis | 3 | Sp | |
| AMATH 503 | Mathematical Biology I | 3 | A* | |
| AMATH 504 | Mathematical Biology II | 3 | W* | |
| BIOST 512 | Medical Biometry II | 4 | W | |
| BIOST 518 | Applied Biostatistics II | 4 | W | |
| CEE 462 | Applied Limnology and Pollutant Effects on Freshwater | 3/5 | * | |
| CEE 480 | Air Quality Modeling | 3 | * | |
| CEE 482 | Wastewater Treatment and Reuse | 3 | * | |
| CEE 483 | Drinking Water Treatment | 3 | * | |
| CEE 484 | Decentralized and On-Site Watewater Management and Reuse | 3 | * | |
| CEE 486 | Environmental Analysis Laboratory | 3 | * | |
| CEE 493 | Air-Pollution Source Testing and Equipment Evaluation | 3 | * | |
| CEE 540 | Microbiological Process Fundamentals | 3 | * | |
| CEE 541 | Biological Treatment Systems | 3 | * | |
| CEE 542 | Bioremediation of Environmental Pollutants | 3 | * | |
| CEE 543 | Aquatic Chemistry | 4 | * | |
| CEE 547 | Lake and Watershed Management | 3 | * | |
| EPI 503 | Public Health Informatics and Surveillance | 3 | * | |
| EPI 520 | Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases | 3 | W* | |
| EPI 526 | Epidemiology of Diseases Communicable from Nature | 3 | Sp* | |
| EPI 529 | Emerging Infections of International Public Health Importance | 3 | W (even yrs)* | |
| EPI 532 | Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases in Resource-Limited Countries | 3 | * | |
| FISH 404 | Diseases of Aquatic Animals | 5 | * | |
| GEOG 460 | Geographic Information Systems Analysis | 5 | A* | |
| GEOG 461 | Urban Geographic Information Systems | 5 | W* | |
| GEOG 463 | Geographic Information Systems Workshop | 5 | Sp* | |
| HSERV 541 | Topics in Maternal and Child Health I | 3 | * | |
| HSERV 550 | Policy and Economics: Fundamentals and Applications | 3 | W* | |
| HSERV 552 | Health Policy Development | 3 | * | |
| MEDCH 401 | Immunizing and Antimicrobial Agents | 4 | Sp* | |
| MICROM 435 | Microbial Ecology | 3 | Sp (even yrs)* | |
| MICROM 442 | Medical Bacteriology | 3 | W* | |
| MICROM 444 | Medical Mycology and Parasitology | 4 | Sp* | |
| MICROM 445 | Medical Virology | 2 | Sp* | |
| MICROM 450 | Molecular Biology of Viruses | 3 | W* | |
| MICROM 490 | Aquatic Microbiology | 3/5 | Sp (odd yrs)* | |
| OCEAN 452 | Spacial Info Technologies in Ecosystem Sciences | 3 | A* | |
| ORALB 521 | Medical Microbiology and Immunology | 3 | Sp* | |
| PABIO 536 | Bioinformatics and Gene Sequence Analysis | 3 | A, Sp* | |
| PABIO 540 | Antibiotic Resistance Mechanisms and their Impact on Public Health | 3 | * | |
| PABIO 551 | Biochemistry and Genetics of Pathogens and Their Hosts | 4 | * | |
| PABIO 553 | Survival Skills for Scientific Research | 2 | Sp* | |
| PA AF 513 | Public Policy Analysis | 3 | A* | |
| PA AF 590 | Environmental Policy Processes | 3 | * | |
| URBDP 420 | Database Systems and Planning Analysis | 3 | * | |
| URBDP 422 | Urban and Regional Geospatial Analysis | 5 | W* | |
| URBDP 429 | Computer-Aided Planning of Urban Systems | 3 | * | |
| URBDP 467 | Urban Planning Uses of Remote Sensing | 3 | * | |
| URBDP 468 | Land Use From Satellite Data | 3 | * | |
| * Course schedules are subject to change. Please check the UW Time Schedule or contact the department to confirm quarters offered. | ||||
Typical Schedule
| Autumn Quarter | Winter Quarter | Spring Quarter | Summer Quarter |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENV H 453 Industrial Hygiene |
ENV H 446 Hazardous Waste Mgmt [1] |
ENV H 445 Solid Waste Mgmt [1] |
ENVH 700 Master's Thesis and/or Elective [4] |
| ENV H 541 Ecology of Env. Transmitted Microb. Hazards [2] |
ENV H 552 Env. Chemistry of Pollution |
ENV H 490 Comm Air Pollution [1] |
|
| ENV H 580 EH Seminar |
ENV H 580 EH Seminar |
ENV H 543 Quantitative Microb. Risk Assessment [2] [3] |
|
| ENV H 581 EH Reading I |
ENV H 594 Current Topics in EH |
ENV H 580 EH Seminar |
|
| BIOST 511 or 517 Medical Biometry I or Applied Biostat I OR EPI 511 Intro to Epidemiology |
Electives (2-3) | ENV H 583 EH Reading III |
|
| Electives (1-3) | Electives (5-6) |
| Autumn Quarter | Winter Quarter | Spring Quarter |
|---|---|---|
| ENV H 545 Water, Wastewater, and Health [1] |
ENV H 700 Master's Thesis |
ENV H 405 Toxic Chemicals and Human Health |
| ENV H 577 Risk Assessment [3] |
Electives (3) | ENV H 700 Master's Thesis |
| EPI 511 Intro to Epidemiology OR BIOST 511 or 517 Medical Biometry I or Applied Biostat I |
[1] Choose courses from 2 of the 3 program areas (Waste Management-445 or 446, Air Pollution-490, Water and Wastewater-445)
[2] Students with microbiology-oriented interests/projects should take ENV H 541 and ENV H 543 in the first year. Otherwise these courses can be taken in the second year.
[3] Take either ENV H 543 or ENV H 577
[4] Students receiving support during summer quarter must be registered for 2 credit hours.