Community and Public Health

In UMF’s Community and Public Health program, you’ll develop the knowledge and skills to assess community health needs, design and implement effective health promotion programs, and advocate for policies that improve public health. You’ll study topics like epidemiology, health communication, program planning, and health behavior, preparing you to address health challenges in diverse communities.

You will get to choose interesting classes specifically tailored to this program, such as:

• Health Behavior Change Theory
• Contemporary Health Issues
• Global Health
• Nutrition and Obesity
• Violence Across the Lifespan
• Environmental Health
• Child and Adolescent Health
• Sex and Gender Health
• Athletic Injuries: Prevention & Emergency Response
• Substance Abuse Prevention

You will also take courses in the Arts, Humanities, Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences.

Program Requirements

See requirements in this program

At Farmington, you’ll participate in extensive outside-the-classroom fieldwork, including a required practicum and internship. Through your community placement (which we’ll do for you) you’ll work in the field of health education — going out into a workplace to apply the knowledge you’ve studied in the classroom.

You’ll get to assess individual and community needs for health education; plan, implement, and administer health education strategies, interventions, and programs; conduct evaluation and research related to health education; serve as a health education resource person; and communicate and advocate for health and health education.

Your field experience will be under the co-supervision of UMF faculty and the participating agency’s staff.

Graduates from this program have gone on to a variety of careers, such as:

• Patient Service Representative and Express Care Manager, Mercy Hospital
• Specialist, Central Maine Learning Center
• Project Coordinator, Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital – NYC
• Sports & Activities Coordinator, Penobscot Bay YMCA
• Health Teacher, Lewiston High School
• Specialist, Disability Research Center, Arnold School of Public Health – SC
• Account Rep – Real Estate/Not for Profit/Entertainment, Alliant Insurance – NYC
• Special Education Teacher, Caribou High School
• Master’s in Public Health – Policy & Clinical Practice, Dartmouth College
• Master’s in Public Health – Epidemiology, University of South Carolina
• NorthEast Telehealth Resource Center Project Manager, Medical Care Development
• Master’s in Public Health – Public Health Policy & Management, New York University
• Project Assistant for Community Health, LincolnHealth/MaineHealth
• Master’s in Educational Leadership – Administration, UMF
• Healthy Kids/Healthy Future Project Coordinator, MCD Public Health
• Business Office Director, Avita of Wells
• Community Programs Coordinator, Evidence Based Programs, MaineGeneral Health
• Master’s in Public Health, George Washington University
• WIC/CACFP Administrative Assistant, Western Maine Community Action
• Master’s in Exercise Science & Health Promotion, California University of Pennsylvania
• Health Educator, Maine General Health
• Program and Planning Coordinator, Healthy Community Coalition
• Master’s in Public Health, University of New England
• Logistics Solutions Engineer, Corporate Traffic

You can also choose one of our optional value-added certificates and minors.

These are career-building options designed to further bolster your resume and fill your skills toolbox.

• Alpine Operations Certificate
• Child and Adolescent Health minor
• Coaching minor
• Health & Medicine minor
• Community and Public Health minor
• Nutrition minor
• Outdoor Recreation minor
• Physical Activity minor

At UMF you can experience, first-hand, what it’s like to work in the Community and Public Health fields while you learn valuable career skills and develop a strong network of professional contacts.

Here’s a short list of where our Community and Public Health students have recently interned:

• South Portland High School Athletics Dept
• Boys & Girls Club of Greater Waterville
• Healthy Community Coalition
• Franklin Health Internal Medicine
• Foxcroft Academy
• Healthy Communities of the Capital Area
• Somerset Public Health
• River Valley Healthy Communities Coalition
• Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School
• UMF Alpine Ski Team
• Tri-Valley United Way
• Maine Behavioral Health
• Mt. Blue High School Athletics Dept.