Public Health BSc (Hons)

 

Course Code

UCAS Code: L431
International Code: HLSU220

Location

Coventry University (Coventry)

 

Study mode

Full-time

Duration

3 years full-time

Start date

September 2022

How to apply
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Course overview

Study level: Undergraduate

Public health practitioners make a difference by improving the health of individuals and communities, in a wide variety of roles.

  • Taught by current Public Health experts from a range of practice, research, academic and leadership backgrounds.
  • Simulation-based learning opportunities and local field trips to see Public Health at work*.
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Global Ready

An international outlook, with global opportunities
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Teaching excellence

Taught by lecturers who are experts in their field
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Employability

Career ready graduates, with the skills to succeed

Why you should study this course

Public health is focused on preventing health problems to help create healthy and happy societies. It is the science and art of detecting and preventing disease, enhancing people’s quality of life, and promoting physical, mental, and environmental health amongst populations so people can live healthier, for longer.

Our Public Health BSc (Hons) offers the opportunity to develop knowledge around differing health needs, influences on health, and how to prevent ill health and promote health and wellbeing. Public health principles and guiding values are based around the responsibility to protect and improve health of all people, and this course has a particular emphasis in reducing inequalities in health.

The curriculum, which is mapped to the UK Public Health Skills and Knowledge Framework, aims to equip you with the knowledge and skills across the three pillars of public health – prevention, protection, promotion – to enable you the chance to apply appropriate strategies into practice. The concepts, theories and methods applied to real life situations are designed to prepare you, upon graduation, for a range of varied roles within the field of public health.

You will be taught using a mixture of lectures and small-group seminars, ‘hands-on’ skills workshops, student-led discussions and interactive simulation. These interactive, creative and hands-on learning sessions aim to support you to explore important health issues theoretically as well as practically. You will also have inter-professional learning opportunities allowing students from a diverse range of health-related courses the opportunity to share, learn and work together.

Through the teaching of the prevention pillar, and upon successful completion of this course, you will gain an understanding of the causes and consequences of diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. You will explore how to tackle the challenges facing disease prevention efforts. Through the protection pillar, you will study communicable diseases such as influenza, tuberculosis, and HIV; their surveillance, and the reaction to and control of communicable disease outbreaks. Through the promotion pillar, the theories and tools used to promote health and wellbeing are examined, drawing on behavioural psychology and sociology, as well as actual health promotion policies in operation.

Within the study of all three pillars of public health there is an emphasis on helping you have the opportunity to develop your understanding and application to practice, of the scientific approaches to disease prevention, contributing to improved healthcare quality and delivery, empowering individuals to make sound health decisions, and influencing policy in public health.

You may have opportunities to attend out-of-classroom field trips related to aspects of public health, and you will also have access to a range of international experience opportunities*.

This course has been designed following extensive consultation with healthcare organisations and professionals from various public health disciplines to ensure it reflects the latest thinking in public health and to help prepare you for your career options in the field upon graduation.

Upon successful completion of this course, you will have developed an understanding of health disparities and health inequalities at local, national and international levels. You will also have the knowledge to be able to improve health outcomes through the effective planning, execution and evaluation of health interventions to change behaviour.

What you'll study

In year 1 you are introduced to the basic concepts, principles and methods on which public health practice is grounded. Upon successful completion, your personal and professional skills will be developed to enable you to recognise, describe and appreciate the principles, concepts and approaches to public health practice (prevention, promotion and protection) to improve health outcomes and reduce health inequalities.

Modules

  • This module introduces you to the essential concepts, principles, models and processes used within the field of public health. It provides a broad overview of the three pillars of public health (prevention, protection, promotion), and enables you to understand the important role of public health at local, national and international levels. The module familiarises you with key public health events, definitions, terminology, determinants and inequalities.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • This module aims to introduce, describe and explore communication strategies used in public health. You will learn how to communicate health messages to different audiences and appreciate the challenges, advantages and disadvantages of communication in public health at local, national and international levels.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • The aim of this module is to develop your ability to study at a degree level, which includes the development of personal and professional skills. You will learn how to practice self-awareness, self-monitoring and critical reflection on good academic practice. You will learn how to demonstrate awareness of your own strengths and weaknesses in order to optimise your learning and scholarship in the course.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • This module introduces you to the foundational elements of health research. It outlines the purpose and methods for generating evidence in order to understand situations influencing health outcomes and inequalities. The module will introduce you to research terminology, types of study designs and it will begin to explore the range of application for these methods. In addition to the above, digital technologies for searching and appraising a range of data sources will be explored.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • The aim of this module is to introduce you to the diversity of organisations and systems involved in activities for improving healthcare and population health. You will learn about the influence of different organisational objectives, motives and governance on population health outcomes and health inequalities.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • This module introduces you to the foundational principles and theories which underpin health interventions and your evaluations. You will learn about the rights and values that drive ethically sound interventions for improving health. The module will explore how to plan, evaluate and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of health interventions in a range of contexts.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

In year 2 there is a focus on helping you with the chance to create and build on your skills to apply, appraise and evaluate public health concepts, principles and methods for improving population health. Upon successful completion of the course, you will be able to evaluate population health needs, understand and appraise relationships between health policy and wider systems, as well as using creative approaches in developing and planning public health activities.

Modules

  • This module aims to provide you with the basic analytical and statistical knowledge and skills required for effective public health practice and research. It enables you to understand the basic concepts and principles such as individual and population health, data analysis, and the application of quantitative methods within the context of epidemiology, biostatistics, demography, and decision sciences in making decisions for public health improvement and reducing inequalities.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: exam

  • This module aims to enable you to identify suitable methods to investigate local, national or international public health issues and challenges drawing on appropriate sources of evidence. The module will enable you to develop your ability to write research proposals for addressing health inequalities and improving health and health services delivery.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • This module aims to provide you with understanding of strategies for solving health problems in various social and community settings. You will develop knowledge about environmental and workplace hazards, risks posed by genetic and environmental factors interactions, and practical approaches to solving related health problems.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • The aim of the module is to enable you understand health disparities and develop skills for using evidence as the basis for promoting individual and population health. It prepares you to work in diverse spheres such as governmental organizations, advocacy groups, voluntary organizations, and community-based primary care settings at the local, national and international levels.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • This module enables you to apply economic and political analyses to the design, implementation and management of public health policies. It explores the context of public and private healthcare organizations and NGO activities al local, national and international levels. You will acquire skills in interpreting and evaluating access to services, healthcare quality and policy analysis.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • The module aims to introduce you to, and prepare you for, the range of careers and employment options related to public health. You will have the opportunity to develop the skills, knowledge and behaviours which health employers expect graduates to demonstrate in order to maximise employability in a public health field.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

The final year of the course aims to concentrate on activities that are concerned with preparing you to become a critical thinker in order to enable you to critique, interpret and manipulate public health activities, approaches and evidence in a variety of contexts at local, national and international levels. It is designed to help prepare you for your career options in Public Health practice upon graduation, which may involve options in senior positions, by encouraging you to apply leadership and management principles to activities for improving health outcomes and reducing health inequalities.

Modules

  • This module aims to prepare you for leadership and management careers in the unique environment of public health. It provides you with practical management skills such as leading and managing people and programmes, service quality improvement, and taking actions to improve organizational performance using the skills and strategies for collaborating with a range of stakeholders in public health.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework and group presentation

  • The module aims to prepare you for roles in public health as analysts and managers. It explores the existing and emerging domain of public health with emphasis on developing your methodological and analytical skills gained since Level 4 to examine prevalence, causes, and consequences of today's population health challenges at local, national or international levels.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • In this module, you will explore the influence of global economic, cultural, political, demographic, and epidemiological developments and factors on optimal solutions to the challenges faced in delivering public health. Focusing at the local, national, or international levels, the module develops student skills for evaluating health financing tools, policies, and trends so that they can understand their health consequences across global health systems.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • This is a competency-based module designed to provide you with knowledge and skills for prioritising implementation of a range of public health interventions. Building on the foundations of knowledge and skills at Level 4, it emphasizes generating and using evidence about effectiveness and efficiency in deciding which interventions to adopt, implementation cycle, and Total Quality Management in relation to desired health outcomes.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework and OSCE (Objective Structured Clinical Exam)

  • The module aims to develop student skills for access and applying a range of digital technologies involving relevant computer packages, data analysis software and apps appropriate to improving public health delivery. You will learn to use information and different communication technologies for enhancing digital literacy and capability in a variety of public health contexts.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

  • The aim of the dissertation is for you to demonstrate your analytical, qualitative or quantitative skills for identifying the implications of interventions, practices, decisions, and policies in public health. It prepares you for research responsibilities and leadership roles in evaluating to improve key aspects of public health delivery.

    Compulsory

    Assessment: coursework

How you'll learn

At all levels of your study, you will have the opportunity to:

  • Explore topics through face-to-face delivery via lectures, seminars and tutorials
  • Work in smaller groups for seminars and tutorials
  • Engage in student-led discussions (group presentations, case-studies and scenario analyses) to facilitate shared learning and practice experiences
  • Hear from professionals in practice drawn from a range of Public Health-related fields (subject to availability).
  • Utilise a virtual learning environment to access updates on the course and modules, and other relevant materials for supporting learning such as videos and podcasts
  • Participate in a simulation exercise which mimics real-world challenges and cross-profession working (subject to availability)
  • Attend a public health related field visit (e.g. water treatment plant) or event (e.g. Public Health film festival).*

These strategies should help you to connect concepts covered in the course with real-life experience and are designed to enhance your career options following graduation.

You will typically have around 9 hours of teaching contact time each week which consists of lectures, seminars and tutorials in three modules. In addition, you will be expected to undertake further independent learning activities which consists of wider reading, group work, research and preparation for assignments for three modules.

Assessment

Your learning will be assessed in ways that are designed to reflect real-world public health practice such as: writing a funding bid, reflecting on a real-world simulation event, critically analysing real health events, creating and presenting posters, CV and covering letter writing. There are also traditional essays and exams. In year 3, you will be asked to undertake your own research project. Public Health problems often require creative solutions, and we have designed our assessments to reflect that notion.

The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.

Job ready

We aim to create confident, knowledgeable Public Health graduates who are ready to make meaningful change in population health locally, nationally and internationally. With a wide range of career options concerning public health activity within a variety of organisations, upon successful completion, this course is designed to fulfil the need for a well-prepared, flexible workforce, and has a strong emphasis on practical, real life situations. You will have the opportunity to develop the knowledge and skills help prepare you for a variety of career options in a wide range of public health related roles upon graduation. We aim to optimise employability skills development through our dedicated public health employability module

This course has been designed following extensive consultation with healthcare organisations and professionals from various public health disciplines to ensure it reflects the latest thinking in public health and to help prepare you for your career options in the field upon graduatio

International experience opportunities

This course is designed to encourage and support international learning opportunities such as participation in Collaborative Online Internationalised Learning (COIL), field trips to attend international conferences or opportunities to gain intercultural experiences outside teaching times. It also enables you the opportunity to gain voluntary work and related placements abroad supported through the university’s Talent Team.*

Entry requirements

Typical offer for 2022 entry.

Requirement What we're looking for
A level BBC (excludes General Studies)
GCSE 5 GCSE's grade 9-4 / A*-C or above including English Language and Mathematics or specified equivalents
BTEC DMM
Access Diploma Minimum of 60 credits of which 45 Credits should be at Level 3 and 15 Credits at Level 2, and have achieved 112 UCAS points from the level 3 modules
IB Diploma 29 points to include 14 points at Higher level

We recognise a breadth of qualifications, speak to one of our advisers today to find out how we can help you.

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Are you eligible for the Fair Access Scheme?

We believe every student should have the opportunity to dream big, reach their potential and succeed, regardless of their background.

Fair Access Scheme

Select your region to find detailed information about entry requirements:

Europe

Americas

Middle East

South Asia

South East Asia

East Asia

Africa

Russia and Central Asia


You can view our full list of country specific entry requirements on our Entry requirements page.

If you do not have the typical entry requirements, you may want to consider studying this course with an international foundation year. Upon successful completion our International Foundation Year - Public Health will provide you with the knowledge and skills you need to progress onto this undergraduate degree.

Alternatively, visit our International hub for further advice and guidance on finding in-country agents and representatives, joining our in-country events and how to apply.

English language requirements

  • IELTS: 6.0 overall, with no component lower than 5.5 

If you don't meet the English language requirements, you can achieve the level you need by successfully completing a pre-sessional English programme before you start your course. 

For more information on our approved English language tests visit our English language requirements page.

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2022/23 Tuition fees

Student Full time Part time
UK £9,250 per year Not available
International £15,300 per year Not available

For advice and guidance on tuition fees and student loans visit our Undergraduate Finance page and see The University’s Tuition Fee and Refund Terms and Conditions.

We offer a range of International scholarships to students all over the world. For more information, visit our International Scholarships page.

Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessments, facilities and support services. There may be additional costs not covered by this fee such as accommodation and living costs, recommended reading books, stationery, printing and re-assessments should you need them. Find out what's included in your tuition costs.

Facilities

Alison Gingell Building

You'll have the opportunity to study in our multi-million-pound Alison Gingell Building with facilities including a mock ambulance, hospital wards and full-size community houses as well as study spaces, classrooms and more.

Inside of a big building with hanging lights and big staircase

Careers and opportunities

The course is designed to align your knowledge and skills with the requirements of employers in Public Health and for your skills to be able to make an impact on population experiences and health outcomes in a range of career options upon graduation. By successfully completing the course, this should help to enhance your employability in a variety of career options in the field of Public Health, by being able to offer the skills and competences that should address employers' objectives and expectations from graduates wishing to pursue a career as a public health practitioner.

Graduates can pursue a variety of career options, such as a public health practitioner, health protection practitioner, health improvement practitioner, health data analyst, healthy lifestyles coordinator, health and wellbeing coordinator, public health project manager, and many other types of analysts, managers or researcher roles within the diverse field of public health practice.

This course aims to equip you with the tools for developing necessary competences for potential employment within a wide range of organisations, including local authorities, NHS, not-for-profit organisations and charities, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), upon graduation.

Where our graduates work

Organisations that generally employ people within public health roles include local authorities, NHS, national public health agencies, charities, not-for-profit organisations, and non-governmental organisations, etc. These organisations can be situated across the world.

Further study

You can choose to continue your studies at Coventry University with the Public Health Nutrition MSc. You may be entitled to an alumni discount on your fees if you decide to extend your time with us by progressing from undergraduate to postgraduate study.

How to apply

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Your next steps

Student life
Accommodation
Fees and funding

  • Student Contract

    By accepting your offer of a place and enrolling with us, a Student Contract will be formed between you and the university. A copy of the 2021/22 Contract can be found here. The Contract details your rights and the obligations you will be bound by during your time as a student and contains the obligations that the university will owe to you. You should read the Contract before you accept an offer of a place and before you enrol at the university.

    Tuition fees

    The tuition fee for the course that is stated on the course webpage and in the prospectus for the first year of study will apply. We will review our tuition fees each year. For UK and EU students, if Parliament permit an increase in tuition fees, we may increase fees for each subsequent year of study in line with any such changes. Note that any increase is expected to be in line with inflation. Following the UK’s exit from the European Union, EU students should be aware that there may be a change to UK laws following the UK’s exit, this may change their student status, their eligibility to study part time, and/or their eligibility for student finance. We will act in accordance with the UK’s laws in force in relation to student tuition fees and finance from time to time.

    For International students the tuition fee that is stated on the course webpage and in the prospectus for the first year of study will apply. We will review our tuition fees each year. For international students, we may increase fees for each subsequent year of study but such increases will be no more than 5% above inflation.

    Accreditations

    The majority of our courses have been formally recognised by professional bodies, which means the courses have been reviewed and tested to ensure they reach a set standard. In some instances, studying on an accredited course can give you additional benefits such as exemptions from professional exams (subject to availability, fees may apply). Accreditations, partnerships, exemptions and memberships shall be renewed in accordance with the relevant bodies’ standard review process and subject to the university maintaining the same high standards of course delivery. 

    Facilities

    Facilities mentioned on this page may not be relevant for every course. Due to the ongoing restrictions relating to COVID-19, some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) and some non-academic offerings (particularly in relation to international experiences), may vary from those advertised and may have reduced availability or restrictions on their use.

    Placements and study abroad opportunities

    Please note that we are unable to guarantee any placement or study abroad opportunities and that all such opportunities may be subject to additional costs (e.g. travel, visas and accommodation etc.), competitive application, availability and/or meeting any applicable visa requirements. To ensure that you fully understand the requirements in this regard, please contact the International Office for further details if you are an EU or International student.

    Additional costs

    This course may incur additional costs associated with any field trips, placements or work experience, study abroad opportunities or any other opportunity (whether required or optional), which could include (but is not limited to), equipment, materials, bench fees, studio or facilities hire, travel, accommodation and visas).