Cornell University Registrar

Program Description

Public health is the prevention of illness and promotion of wellness in communities, both large and small. The Global & Public Health Sciences (GPHS) major teaches the tools of public health research, action, and their application to population health issues in the U.S. and globally. The work of public health professionals is distinct from the work of clinical professionals, who typically treat individuals after they have become sick or injured. Public health actions often involve educational and/or governmental approaches that influence many people simultaneously, for example, to address issues such as obesity and diabetes, food security, HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases, quality of food, water and air, and access to health care. Sustained improvement of the health of populations often requires a multidisciplinary approach involving the biomedical, behavioral, social, political and environmental sciences, and careful consideration of the importance of cultural and ethical contexts.

The GPHS major is intended for students who are interested in:

• Health problems of communities as small as a village and as large as a country, and the actions that will protect or improve the lives of large numbers of individuals within communities
• Advanced study leading leadership positions in governmental or non-governmental organizations that deal directly with current and emerging health concerns in the U.S. or internationally

Academic Standards

• All major requirements must be taken for a letter grade.
• A passing grade must be earned to meet major requirements within a course.
• In addition to the major requirements outlined below, all students must meet their college graduation requirements.​

Program Information

• Instruction Mode: In Person
• Location: Ithaca, NY
• Minimum Credits for Degree: 120

Program Requirements

The requirements listed below pertain to all students matriculating in August 2025 and January 2026. In addition to the major requirements indicated below, all students must meet the College of Human Ecology graduation requirements.

Global & Public Health Core Courses (14 Credits)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
NS 1600	Introduction to Public Health	3
NS 2060	Preparation for Engaged Learning in Global and Public Health Sciences	2
NS 2600	Introduction to Global Health	3
NS 3600	Epidemiology	3
NS 4600	Explorations in Global and Public Health	3

Supervised Experiential Learning in Global & Public Health (Variable Credit)

Approval required. May be completed anytime from spring semester sophomore year onward. Must be completed before the fall semester of senior year. 

This experience may be obtained through one of several options, including (but not limited to):

• Cornell Cooperative Extension (Tompkins County and others) (NS 4060)
• Cornell in Washington (NS 4998)
• Public Health Research and Internship (NS 4060)
• Weill Cornell Clinical & Translational Science Center (NS 4060)
• Study abroad programs with a public health focus/internship (NS 4060)

Social & Behavioral Health Selective (3-4 Credits)

Course should cover some aspect of public health (including nutrition) from a social and/or behavioral health perspective. More than half of the course content must be devoted to consideration of issues of public health from a social science perspective (e.g. sociology, anthropology, psychology, economics, communication, and other social science disciplines).

See the Requirements for GPHS majors for regular updates to course options and information; new options are available to all class years.

Choose from the following options, must take a minimum of 3 credits. Courses used to fulfill this requirement must be at the 2000-level or above.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Select one of the following options:
NS 2450	Social Science Perspectives on Food and Nutrition
NS 4480	Economics of Food and Malnutrition
NS 4510	Nutrition and Health Equity
NS 4570/ECON 3910	Health, Poverty, and Inequality: A Global Perspective
ANTHR 2468	Medicine, Culture, and Society
COMM 2850	Communication, Environment, Science, and Health
COMM 4760	Population Health Communication
HD 4600	Professional Development in Geriatric and Palliative Research
GDEV 3020	Political Ecologies of Health
PUBPOL 3180	Health Disparities
PUBPOL/GDEV 3280	Fundamentals of Population Health
PUBPOL 4280/ECON 3710	The Economics of Risky Health Behaviors
SOC 4120	Health and Social Context

Biological Aspects of Public Health Selective (3-4 Credits)

Courses should cover some aspect of public health (including nutrition) from a biological perspective. More than half of the course content must be devoted to consideration of issues of public health from a biological perspective (e.g. biochemistry, molecular biology, physiology, neuroscience, and other biological sciences disciplines). Courses used to fulfill this requirement must be at the 2000-level or above. 

See the Requirements for GPHS majors for regular updates to course options and information; new options are available to all class years. 

Choose from the following options, must take a minimum of 3 credits. Courses used to fulfill this requirement must be at the 2000-level or above.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Select one of the following options:
NS 3060	Nutrition and Global Health
NS 3150	Obesity and the Regulation of Body Weight
NS 4140	Maternal and Child Nutrition and Health
NS 4200	Diet and the Microbiome
NS 4210	Precision Nutrition and Health
NS 4300	Proteins, Transcripts, and Metabolism: Big Data in Molecular Nutrition
NS 4410	Nutrition and Disease
NS 5510	Nutrition Assessment
BIOMG 4390	Molecular Basis of Disease
BIOMG 4870	Human Genomics
BIOMI 2600	Microbiology of Human Contagious Diseases
BIOMI 2950	Biology of Infectious Disease: From Molecules to Ecosystems
BIOMI 3210	The Gut Microbiome
BIOMI 4040	Pathogenic Bacteriology
BIONB 3920	Drugs and the Brain
ENTOM 4000	Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases
PLSCI 2100	Medical Ethnobotany

Environmental Health Selective (3-4 Credits)

Courses should cover some aspect of public health (including nutrition) from an environmental perspective. More than half of the course content must be devoted to consideration of issues of public health from an environmental perspective (e.g. entomology, design and environmental analysis, microbiology, and other related disciplines). Courses used to fulfill this requirement must be at the 2000-level or above.

See the Requirements for GPHS majors for regular updates to course options and information; new options are available to all class years. 

Choose from the following options, must take a minimum of 3 credits. Courses used to fulfill this requirement must be at the 2000-level or above.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Select one of the following options:
DEA 2700	Healthy Places: Design, Planning and Public Health
GDEV 3020	Political Ecologies of Health
GDEV 3400	Agriculture, Food, Sustainability and Social Justice
BIOMI 2500	Public Health Microbiology
BIOMI 2950	Biology of Infectious Disease: From Molecules to Ecosystems
BIOMI/BIOMS 4310	Medical Parasitology
COMM 2850/STS 2851	Communication, Environment, Science, and Health
ENTOM 2100/BSOC 2101	Plagues and People
ENTOM 4520	Biology of Disease Vectors
FDSC 3960	Food Safety Assurance
PLSCI 2100	Medical Ethnobotany
PLSCI 2400	Green World, Blue Planet
PLSCI 4140	Global Cropping Systems and Sustainable Development
PLSCI 4450	Urban Plants and Public Health

Health Policy & Practice Selective (3-4 Credits)

Courses should cover some aspect of public health (including nutrition) from a health policy and/or practice perspective. More than half of the course content must be devoted to consideration of issues of public health from a health policy and/or practice perspective (e.g. policy analysis and management, developmental sociology, economics, government, nutritional sciences, and other public policy and practice disciplines). Courses used to fulfill this requirement must be at the 2000-level or above. 

See the Requirements for GPHS majors for regular updates to course options and information; new options are available to all class years. 

Choose from the following options, must take a minimum of 3 credits. Courses used to fulfill this requirement must be at the 2000-level or above.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Select one of the following:		3
NS 4450	Toward a Sustainable Global Food System: Food Policy for Developing Countries
NS 4500	Public Health Nutrition
NS 4510	Nutrition and Health Equity
NS 4570/ECON 3910	Health, Poverty, and Inequality: A Global Perspective
AMST/GOVT 2225/ILROB 2220/PUBPOL/SOC 2220/PHIL 1950	Controversies About Inequality
ANTHR/EDUC/FGSS 4458	Girls, Women, and Education in Global Perspective: Feminist Ethnography and Praxis
CRP 3430	Affordable Housing Policy and Programs
GDEV 3020	Political Ecologies of Health
PUBPOL/SOC 2208	Social Inequality
GDEV 3700/SOC 3710	Comparative Social Inequalities
GOVT 3032	Politics of Public Policy in the U.S.
HD 4600	Professional Development in Geriatric and Palliative Research
PUBPOL 2030	Population and Public Policy
PUBPOL 2350	The U.S. Health Care System
PUBPOL 3110	Pharmaceutical Management and Policy
PUBPOL 3230	Public Policy for an Aging Society
PUBPOL 3650	Social Care Navigation to Advance Health Equity
PUBPOL 3780	Sick Around the World? Comparing Health Care Systems Around the World
PUBPOL 3870/5870	Economic Evaluations in Health Care

Introductory Chemistry (4-8 Credits)

This fulfills the college distribution natural sciences requirement.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Select one of the following options:
Option A: (two-semester sequence required for pre-health)
CHEM 2070 & CHEM 2071 & CHEM 2080 & CHEM 2081	General Chemistry I and General Chemistry I Laboratory and General Chemistry II and General Chemistry II Laboratory
Option B: (single semester not adequate for pre-health)
CHEM 2070 & CHEM 2071	General Chemistry I and General Chemistry I Laboratory 1, 2
Option C: (not for pre-health)
CHEM 1560 & CHEM 1561	Introduction to General Chemistry and Introduction to General Chemistry Laboratory 1
Option D: (not for pre-health)
CHEM 2150	Honors General and Inorganic Chemistry 2, 3

¹

Students may use an AP Chemistry score of 5 to place out of CHEM 2070 + CHEM 2071. However, GPHS students must take at least one semester of general chemistry at Cornell—i.e., students who use AP credit toward their general chemistry requirement must take an additional general chemistry course (i.e., CHEM 2080 + CHEM 2081, CHEM 2150, or other, but not CHEM 1560 + CHEM 1561). Students interested in the pre-health track should take two semesters of chemistry at Cornell.

²

Students who take CHEM 2070 + CHEM 2071 forfeit AP credit. Students who take CHEM 2150 may keep AP credit.

³

Students should only select option (d) if they are very strong in chemistry and are not considering a pre-health (e.g. pre-med) track.

Introductory Biology (8 Credits)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Select one of the following labs:		2-3
BIOG 1500	Investigative Biology Laboratory
BIOSM 1500	Investigative Marine Biology Laboratory
Select two out of the three lecture options: 1		6-7
BIOMG 1350	Introductory Biology: Cell and Developmental Biology
BIOG 1440	Introductory Biology: Comparative Physiology 2
or BIOG 1445	Introduction to Comparative Anatomy and Physiology, Individualized Instruction
BIOEE 1610	Introductory Biology: Ecology and the Environment 2
or BIOEE 1780	An Introduction to Evolutionary Biology and Diversity

¹

Students may use an AP Biology score of 5 to place out of one introductory biology lecture. Pre-health (e.g. pre-med) students should not use AP scores to fulfill biology requirements.

²

Cannot take both courses within one category to fulfill this requirement.

Organic Chemistry Lecture (3+ Credits)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Select one of the following options:		3-8
Option A:
CHEM 1570	Introduction to Organic and Biological Chemistry (not for pre-health)
Option B:
CHEM 3530	Principles of Organic Chemistry
Option C:
CHEM 3570 & CHEM 3580	Organic Chemistry for the Life Sciences and Organic Chemistry for the Life Sciences
Option D:
CHEM 3570	Organic Chemistry for the Life Sciences (single course not adequate for pre-health) 1
Option E:
CHEM 3590 & CHEM 3600	Honors Organic Chemistry I and Honors Organic Chemistry II 2

¹

Students interested in pre-health tracks should take a two-course sequence of organic chemistry lectures (option C or E above).

²

Students who select option e above must take both courses in sequence; one course alone will not fulfill the requirement.

Physiology (3-4 Credits)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Select one of the following:		3-4
NS 3410	Human Anatomy and Physiology 1
BIOG 1440	Introductory Biology: Comparative Physiology 2
or BIOG 1445	Introduction to Comparative Anatomy and Physiology, Individualized Instruction
NS 1150	Nutrition, Health, and Society
NS 1220	Nutrition and the Life Cycle

¹

Pre-health students might also consider taking NS 3420 Human Anatomy and Physiology Laboratory (2 cr).

²

Cannot take both to fulfill this requirement. Can only be used to fulfill the physiology requirement if not used to fulfill the introductory biology requirement.

Biochemistry (4-6 Credits)

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Select one of the following: 1		4-6
NS 3200	Introduction to Human Biochemistry (F)
BIOMG 3300	Principles of Biochemistry, Individualized Instruction (F/S)
BIOMG 3310 & BIOMG 3320	Principles of Biochemistry: Proteins and Metabolism and Principles of Biochemistry: Molecular Biology 2
BIOMG 3310 & BIOMI 2900	Principles of Biochemistry: Proteins and Metabolism and General Microbiology Lectures 3
BIOMG 3350	Principles of Biochemistry: Proteins, Metabolism, and Molecular Biology (S)

¹

Students who take only one semester of introductory chemistry should talk with their advisors and biochemistry instructors as early as possible to determine which biochemistry course is best for them and how they may access resources for the best chance of success.

Social Sciences

Students in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS): 

Students in CALS fulfill this requirement with Human Diversity (D-AG) and CALS Cultural, Social & Historical Understanding. Students must take one (1) course with attribute Human Diversity (D-AG) and must complete two (2) courses of the below distributions, with a maximum of one (1) course in each category. Cultural Analysis (CA-AG), Foreign Language (FL-AG), Historical Analysis (HA-AG), Literature and the Arts (LA-AG), and Social and Behavioral Analysis (SBA-AG).  See the CALS Graduation Requirements for more information.

Students in Cornell Human Ecology (CHE):

Students in CHE fulfill this requirement with the CHE Social Sciences Distribution Requirement by completing one course in any two of the following four areas:

Statistics (4 Credits)

This fulfills the college distribution quantitative and analytical courses requirement. Must be taken at Cornell; AP Statistics is not accepted.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Select one of the following:
STSCI 2150	Introductory Statistics for Biology	4
or BTRY 3010	Statistics I

Global and Public Health Sciences majors must take two first year writing seminar courses during their first two semesters at Cornell. ¹

¹

Also fulfills the Human Ecology First Year Writing Seminar Requirement. For CALS students, these courses may count towards the CALS Oral and Written Expression distribution requirement.

University Graduation Requirements

Requirements for All Students

In order to receive a Cornell degree, a student must satisfy academic and non-academic requirements.

Academic Requirements

A student’s college determines degree requirements such as residency, number of credits, distribution of credits, and grade averages. It is the student’s responsibility to be aware of the specific major, degree, distribution, college, and graduation requirements for completing their chosen program of study. See the individual requirements listed by each college or school or contact the college registrar’s office for more information.

Non-academic Requirements

Conduct Matters. Students must satisfy any outstanding sanctions, penalties or remedies imposed or agreed to under the Student Code of Conduct (Code) or Policy 6.4. Where a formal complaint under the Code or Policy 6.4 is pending, the University will withhold awarding a degree otherwise earned until the adjudication process set forth in those procedures is complete, including the satisfaction of any sanctions, penalties or remedies imposed.

Financial Obligations. Outstanding financial obligations will not impact the awarding of a degree otherwise earned or a student’s ability to access their official transcript. However, the University may withhold issuing a diploma until any outstanding financial obligations owing to the University are satisfied.

Additional Requirements for Undergraduate Students

The University has two requirements for graduation that must be fulfilled by all undergraduate students: the swim requirement, and completion of two physical education courses. For additional information about fulfilling University Graduation Requirements, see the Physical Education website.

Physical Education

All incoming undergraduate students are required to take two credits (two courses) of Physical Education prior to graduation. It is recommended they complete the two courses during their first year at Cornell. Credit in Physical Education may be earned by participating in courses offered by the Department of Athletics and Physical Education and Cornell Outdoor Education, by being a registered participant on a varsity athletic team, or performing in the marching band.

Students with medical concerns should contact the Office of Student Disability Services. 

College of Human Ecology Graduation Requirements

It is important for students to track their graduation progress by comparing their Advisement Report in Student Center and current transcript with an appropriate curriculum sheet. Official transcripts may be obtained at the Office of the University Registrar (B07 Day Hall). Curriculum sheets are available on the Human Ecology website. Students are responsible for planning course selections to ensure that graduation requirements are fulfilled in eight semesters. Transfer students are allowed fewer semesters based on the number of transferable credits granted at admission. Students requiring additional semesters to fulfill their graduation requirements must meet with a Human Ecology counselor (1210 MVR Hall) and request to petition for an extension.

Grade Point Average (GPA) Requirement for Graduation

• Students must earn a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 (C) or better to graduate.

Credit Requirements

Cornell Credit Requirements

• To graduate, a student must earn a minimum of 120 academic credits. Physical education credits and 10XX courses do not count toward the 120 required credits.
• Of the 120 credits required to graduate, at least 60 credits must be earned at Cornell University (applicable to transfer students).
• Students who matriculate as first-years may apply a maximum of 15 non-Cornell credits earned toward the 120 credits required for graduation. These credits include AP, IB, and college credits earned elsewhere. Refer to Advanced Placement Credit for full details.
• No college credit earned before matriculation and used to meet Cornell's minimum admission requirements may be counted in the 120 credits required for graduation. This policy does not apply to transfer students.
• Courses taught by a college in the high school setting or counted toward high school graduation are not allowed to count for either credits or fulfillment of requirements (i.e., Syracuse Project Advance).
• Cornell extramural credit (defined below) is limited to 15 credits toward the 120 required.
• Strict limitations exist on the number of credits that can be applied toward the 120-credit minimum for special studies courses (including but not limited to 4000, 4010, 4020), for 4030 courses, and for courses taken with an optional S–U grade. Details follow.

Human Ecology Credit Requirements

The college divides the 120 minimum required academic credits into four general categories. (Students should refer to curriculum sheets for their major for specific details on course selections. Curriculum sheets are available on the college website.) These categories are detailed below.

• College distribution
  • Natural sciences
  • Social sciences
  • First-year writing seminars
  • Humanities
  • Quantitative and analytical courses (math and statistics)
• Major Requirements
• Elective credits
• Physical education

Human Ecology General Requirements 

Human Ecology Core Courses 

Students must complete these three courses in their first three semesters (beginning with students entering in Fall 2024):

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
HE 1800	Blazing Your Trail in Human Ecology (Required in the first fall semester of matriculation to HE (first-year students only))	1
HE 1850	Introduction to Human Ecology (Required in the first spring semester of matriculation to HE Human Ecology (first-year, internal & external transfers) )	1
HE 2000	Social Justice, Thriving, and the Human Experience (First-Year students will complete HE 2000 in their third semester. ) 1	3

¹

Internal and external transfer students must complete HE 2000 in their first fall in Human Ecology.

Human Ecology Credits: 45 credits from College Distribution, Major Requirements and Electives. 

• Courses from: DEA, FSAD, HD, NS, PUBPOL at any level or Human Ecology (HE) non-departmental courses above the 1500-level.

• Students must enroll in a minimum of one 3-credit course each semester in HE for their first four semesters, excluding winter and summer sessions.
• Additional course-specific rules are listed below.

S–U grading rules for this requirement are as follows:

1. If a course is a requirement in College Distribution or Major Requirements, the course may not be taken for an S–U grade (unless it is the only grade option offered for the course).
2. Courses used to count toward Electives that are taken for an S–U grade may also count toward the 45 credit requirement.
3. Students should refer to the section on S–U grading rules for full S–U grading details.

​Human Ecology Credits Outside the Major: 11 credits  

• Students must complete 11 Human Ecology (HE) credits from outside their major department or PUBPOL at any level or HE above 1500 level.  ​
• FWS, HE non-departmental courses below the 1500 level, Statistics and Research Methods courses (PUBPOL 2100, PUBPOL 3120, DEA 3550, or 
• HD 2830), Special Studies (4000, 4010, 4020), and teaching assistantships (HE 4030) do not count toward this requirement.
• These can be taken S/U only if course is NOT used to fulfill a curriculum requirement.
• A maximum of 3 credits from the 4000–4020 special-studies series may be applied to this requirement. 
• Additional course-specific rules are listed below.

S–U grading rules for this requirement are as follows:

1. If a course counting toward the 9 credit outside-the-major requirement is also a requirement in College Distribution or Major Requirements, the course may not be taken for an S–U grade unless it is the only grade option offered for the course.
2. Courses used to count toward Electives that are taken for an S–U grade may also count toward the 9 credit outside-the-major requirement.
3. Students should refer to the section on S–U grading rules for full S–U grading details.

Course-specific rules that apply to both the 45 Human Ecology credit requirement and the 11 Human Ecology credit outside-the-major requirement:

1. Human Ecology (prefix HE) courses below the 1500-level (e.g., HE 1115) do not count toward either the 45 credit requirement or the 11 credit outside-the-major requirement. These HE–prefix courses that are below 1500-level may be used as elective credit.
2. Experiential credit is applied to Human Ecology's 45 and 11 credit outside-the-major requirements as follows:
   • Capital Semester (HE 4970). All students earn:
     • Human Ecology credits and 8 credits toward the 9 credit outside-the-major requirement.

• Cornell in Washington (PUBPOL 4060).
  • For this entire semester, Public Policy majors earn 8 credits toward the 43 credit requirement, which also count as 8 Public Policy credits.
  • Non–Public Policy majors earn 8 credits toward the 45 credit requirement, which also count as 8 credits toward the 11 credit outside-the-major requirement. The remainder of the credits counts as elective credit.

Elective Credits

Students have individual objectives in choosing courses beyond the minimum requirements of the major. The university is diverse; the departments, centers, and special programs numerous; and the fields of study almost unlimited. Counselors and faculty advisors are available to discuss which courses may interest students and best round out their education. Elective credits can be earned in the endowed and contract colleges of Cornell.

Course Distribution Requirements

Course Distributions are groups of courses categorized by course content. Some requirements on your Curriculum Sheet direct you to choose courses with a specific distribution. This is common for Humanities or Additional Credit requirements, depending on your major.

Minimum Semester Requirements

1. Students enrolling in the college as first-years must enroll in a minimum of one 3-credit course each semester in HE for their first four semesters, excluding winter and summer sessions (beginning with students entering in fall 2022).
2. Students must carry 12 credits each semester, excluding physical education, to be matriculated as full-time students. Mature students must carry a minimum of 6 credits each semester (see Mature Student Guidelines for details).
3. In special cases, a student may petition to carry between 8 and 12 credits. Forms for petitioning this exception and advice on how to proceed are available in the Human Ecology Registrar's Office (1204 MVR Hall).

Special Studies

• A maximum of 12 credits of special study course work from Human Ecology or other colleges will count towards the 120 overall credits. Courses will be indicated on the class roster with a Component of either IND or RSC. (Additional credits can be taken but will not be applied.)
• A maximum of 12 credits of 4000-4030 may count toward the 43 HE credit requirement.
• A maximum of 3 credits of 4000-4020 (not including 4030) may count towards the 9 HE credits outside the major requirement as long as the special study is in a department outside the student's major.
• Students cannot TA (4030) the same course for credit more than once or take and TA the same course simultaneously.  4030 does not fulfill any requirements towards the major.  Registration for 4030 may not exceed 5 credit hours per semester.

10XX Courses

• 10XX numbered courses do not count toward graduation requirements but do count toward full-time semester status.

Requirements for Majors

• Students must fulfill the requirements specified for a major that are in effect at the time of their matriculation or thereafter. The requirements are detailed in curriculum sheets that are maintained for each academic year.

S-U Grade Options

• The S-U grading option may not be used for College Distribution courses or required major courses unless it is the only grade option offered for those courses. S-U grades may be used for the 9 credits of Human Ecology course work outside of one's major and for Electives.
• Students may apply no more than 12 credits of S-U toward the 120 credits required for graduation. If a required course is offered only S-U, it will not count toward this limit. Also, Honors Research 4990 taken S-U does not count against the 12 maximum limit. Students may take more S-U courses if they choose, but the additional credit may not be applied toward graduation.

First-Year Writing Seminars

In each of their first two semesters of matriculation at the College of Human Ecology, students are required to take a Knight Program First-Year Writing Seminar. This policy also applies to transfer students. One or more of the seminars may be waived for transfer students if the college registrar grants credit for equivalent course work taken before matriculation at Cornell.

Those who do not fulfill this requirement on time will be referred to the Committee on Academic Status. Refer to Criteria for Good Standing on Policies and Procedures page for specifics on warning statuses that the committee applies to students who do not complete this requirement.

First-year writing seminars must be taken at Cornell and may not be taken in absentia. Students who receive a score of 5 on either the English Literature and Composition or English Language and Composition Advanced Placement (AP) exams can be exempt from one semester of their first-year writing seminar requirements. No other AP scores will allow a student this exemption or allow for elective credits in the college. Students should be aware that the add/drop period for first-year writing seminars may be shorter in duration than the add/drop period for most Cornell classes.

Ithaca College and Study Abroad Credits

Any credits earned with the Ithaca College exchange program are considered Cornell credits for the purpose of fulfilling the 60 Cornell credit graduation requirement. They may not be used for Human Ecology credit. Study abroad, including exchange, courses may also count as Cornell credit (but not for Human Ecology credit).

Advanced Placement Credit

Students can earn advanced placement credit from one of the following:

1. The requisite score on a departmental examination at Cornell (usually given during orientation week) or on a College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB) achievement test. The requisite scores for the CEEB exams are determined by the relevant department at Cornell, vary by subject, and are listed in the beginning of this catalog. College-specific rules apply toward many AP courses such as biology, English literature, English composition, and statistics.
2. A regular course taught at an accredited college to college students and approved by the relevant department at Cornell. Some departments have delegated the review of courses to college staff according to guidelines they have formulated. Some departments review each request individually. Some departments accept credit from virtually all accredited colleges; some do not.
3. Credit from the International Baccalaureates (IB) is evaluated individually.
4. Refer to Cornell Credit Requirements for details on how many Advanced Placement (AP) credits can be applied toward the 120 credits needed for graduation.

Note: Cornell does not accept credit for courses sponsored by colleges but taught in high schools to high school students, at colleges if enrollment is targeted at high school students, or if the course was used toward high school credit. This is true even if the college provides a transcript of such work. These courses also may not be used to fulfill college requirements. Students who have taken such courses may, however, take the appropriate CEEB test to qualify for credit as in paragraph 1 above. For further information and limitations on Advanced Placement credit, see the front pages of this catalog.

Foreign Language Study and Placement

Students who studied a foreign language before coming to Cornell and who want to continue must take either the CEEB test in that language or a Cornell departmental language placement test. Students should contact the appropriate language department for testing schedules. Human Ecology students who plan to work with non-English–speaking people in this country or abroad often find it necessary to be proficient in another language. Many study abroad programs in non–English-speaking countries require the equivalent of two years of college-level language study.

Extramural Credit

Extramural credit is administered by the Office of Continuing Education and Summer Sessions (B20 Day Hall, (607) 255-4987). Extramural credit is charged by the credit hour at the endowed tuition rate. Students may count only 15 credits of extramural credit toward their degree requirements. A student may enroll for extramural credit during the fall or spring semester only if he or she is not registered in the College of Human Ecology. For example, some students enroll for extramural credit before matriculating at Cornell.

An exception to this rule is credit earned in the Ithaca College exchange program. Students enrolled in this program simultaneously maintains their status as students registered in the College of Human Ecology.

Math Requirement

Students may meet the college level requirement in one of the following ways.

• Any Cornell math course except MATH 1101 Calculus Preparation or MATH 1710 Statistical Theory and Application in the Real World.
  or
• Any Cornell statistics course
  or
• Score of 4 or 5 on the AP Calculus BC exam. (Other AP math credit could be used toward graduation credit but may not be used to meet the math requirement)

Notes:

• Departments may impose additional requirements for majors or specify courses within this requirement.
• Students entering as transfers may apply to have their statistics or math courses approved, but pre-calculus courses will no longer meet this requirement or receive graduation credit.

Learning Outcomes

Upon graduation with the GPHS major, students should be able to:

• Integrate knowledge from the biological and social sciences and experiential learning to address public health problems facing populations.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the complex and evolving nature of scientific knowledge in the promotion of health and the etiology and prevention of disease.
• Demonstrate the ability to use epidemiological principles to evaluate critically scientific information from the primary research literature investigating influences on human health and disease.
• Develop positions on public health issues. Communicate positions on public health issues to colleagues and lay/target audiences.
• Demonstrate knowledge of ethical principles, considerations and dilemmas relevant to the research and practice of public health.