Program Overview
In ancient times, the health of people, animals, plants and the environment were believed to be interconnected. Now, we know that they are also interdependent. Our globalized world serves as a multiplier for these dependencies, positives, and negatives, and provides the platform for local issues to become global.
The One Health Certificate has been created to bring together graduate students and professionals interested in expanding their knowledge around the complexity of health in the era of big data. The program is composed of 4 courses covering a 12 credit curriculum and is tailored to accommodate the interests of multidisciplinary students while grounding training in one health systems thinking. The certificate is taken fully online.
The objective is to develop a common language and momentum to explore areas at the interface between animal, plant, human, environmental health, and other disciplines, to allow our students to broaden their views and be more competitive in professional environments.
The certificate will provide the opportunity and the tools to create a new generation of interdisciplinary professionals who will be able to make unique contributions to the field of health.
One Health Certificate: 12 credits total
The certificate consists of 3 required core courses PHC 6446: Systems Thinking in One Health, PHC 6326: Environmental and One Health and PHC6937: Applying a One Health Framework to Public Health Issues. The Systems Thinking in One Health course aims to give students a structured space for dialogue, in order to master the transversal tools that are essential for every professional who engages in understanding the complexity of health. Sessions will be delivered by expert speakers on cross-cutting topics and coupled with specific problems and how these can be viewed and approached through a One Health lens of embracing complex systems thinking. The Environmental and One Health course will approach complex issues through an environmental lens, so students learn how to consider the influence and impact the environment has on human and animal interfaces. The One Health Framework course will evaluate case studies that showcase how a One Health approach is applied to real-world applications.
The remaining 3 elective credits will offer basic knowledge in different areas of health. These courses will allow students to explore different viewpoints, increase their understanding of interdisciplinary convergence, and enhance their awareness of how different disciplines can intersect health.
The objective is to enroll a group of students with a broad array of professional backgrounds, ranging from philosophy to biotechnology.
Learning Objectives
- Describe genetic, physiological, social, environmental, political and economic factors that contribute to health issues that can be solved using a One Health approach.
- Develop an understanding of the multidisciplinary nature of the One Health paradigm.
- Implement a systems thinking based approach to complex health problems that span across human, animal, and environmental health.
- Communicate with stakeholders and communities on the direct and indirect human, animal, and ecological impacts of major environmental hazards.
- Identify and create collaborative relationships and research networks in One Health
Certificate Requirements
A total of 12 graduate credits are needed for this certificate. Students in the certificate program will take a combination of core and elective courses that provide applied and theoretical training.
Each student is required to take the following core courses:
- PHC 6446: Systems Thinking in One Health (3 credits)
- PHC 6326: Environmental and One Health (3 credits)
- PHC 6937: Applying a One Health Framework to Public Health Issues (3 credits)
Students take one 3 credit elective course of interest through permission of the program director. Examples include:
- PHC 6515: One Health: Applied Techniques in Public Health Entomology
- PHC 6046: Environmental Epidemiology
- PHC 6304: Environmental Toxicology in Public Health
- PHC 6424: Environmental Policy and Risk Management
- PHC 7738: Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic Modeling in Toxicology and Risk Assessment
- PHC 6937: Social Determinants of Health
Admissions and Cost
Deadlines to apply for the One Health Certificate are rolling. Participants may choose to begin their program at the start of fall terms as defined by the University of Florida schedule. The Department of Environmental and Global Health will begin offering the certificate program in Fall 2024.
Tuition costs for the program are approximately $650 per credit hour plus fees. For more information about this certificate program, please feel free to contact the Department of Environmental and Global Health at egh-programs@phhp.ufl.edu.
Apply Here
Non-UF Students
If you are not currently enrolled as a student at the University of Florida and wish to apply to this certificate program, please fill out the form below.
You must also submit a University of Florida Online Application for Graduate Admission found at https://admissions.ufl.edu/apply/more and pay the $30 non-refundable application fee in addition to the form. Please feel free to contact the Department at egh-programs@phhp.ufl.edu for more information.
EEP, State Tuition Waivers, and UF Graduate Assistantships
Our online programs are not eligible for any of these funding sources. If you are a UF employee seeking to use your EEP benefit, a state of Florida employee seeking to use a State Tuition waiver or a UF graduate student on an Assistantship, the cost of enrollment in our online courses and programs will not be covered by these programs.
Current UF Students
Current UF students are not eligible to receive dual credit for any course(s) taken within the One Health Certificate curriculum or receive the graduate certificate because this is an off-book program. Students who are interested in the One Health curriculum can, however, still take part in the courses. To register, please contact the individual departments offering the courses you are interested in.
“Approval to pursue an academic goal such as a certificate program does not guarantee that the goal will be supported/funded by the student’s financial aid and/or scholarships or that the student will not incur an excess hours surcharge. Students should review all approved academic plans with the Financial Aid Office and consult their Excess Hours screen to ensure they know what, if anything, will be funded or incur a surcharge. - University of Florida, Academic Advising Center”