Undergraduate public health education: past, present, and future

The IOM's 2003 report Who Will Keep the Public Healthy? recommended that "...all undergraduates should have access to education in public health." They justified their recommendations stating that "public health is an essential part of the training of citizens." The IOM recommendations have catalyzed a movement linking undergraduate public health education with arts and sciences' Liberal Education and America's Promise (LEAP), an initiative designed to produce an educated citizenry. Schools and programs in public health rapidly adopted the IOM recommendations and efforts to reach the other 1900 4-year colleges and universities are now underway. A November 2006 Consensus Conference on Undergraduate Public Health Education brought together public health, arts and science, and clinical health professions educators. The recommendations of the Consensus Conference supported the development of core undergraduate public health curricula designed to fulfill general education requirement in institutions with and without graduate public health education. Minors built upon required core curricula, utilizing faculty and institution strengths, and providing opportunities for experiential learning such as service-learning were encouraged. A curriculum guide, faculty development program, and multiple presentations, websites, and publications have sought to implement these recommendations. The IOM has recently approved a multi-year Roundtable on Undergraduate Public Health Education to help develop the strategies and collaboration needed to bring these efforts to fruition. Enduring understandings for three core courses-Public Health 101, Epidemiology 101, and Global Health 101-are included to help guide the development of undergraduate public health education.