The connection between engineering and public health has a long history. Innovation in areas such as clean drinking water and sanitization enabled the development of today’s cities. Many shared challenges remain in relation to home and occupational exposures and the impact of environmental pollution on health.
Most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has further increased interest in public health — from the design and production of new personal protective equipment, optimization of building systems, development of new disinfecting tools and modeling viral transmission. Moreover, transformation of global infrastructure over the coming decade to mitigate climate change will increasingly require engineers who are able to recognise and leverage public health connections.
All U of T Engineering undergraduate students are eligible to participate in this certificate program. Students who complete the requirements of the Certificate will receive a notation on their transcript upon graduation.
Requirements
The requirements for the Certificate are the successful completion of the following courses:
- APS 470H1: Engineering and Public Health (see course information below)
- One Public Health elective from the Faculty of Arts & Science:
- HST 209H1: Introduction to Health: Determinants of Health & Health Care
- HST 211H1: Health Policy in Canada
- HST 330H1: Population Health
- GGR 433H1: Built Environment & Health
- GGR 434H1: Building Community Resilience
- One public-health related Engineering elective:
- CHE 416H1: Chemical Engineering in Human Health
- CHE 561H1: Risk-Based Safety Management
- CHE 460H1: Environmental Pathways & Impact Assessment
- CIV 536H1: Urban Activities, Air Pollution & Health
- CIV 577H1: Infrastructure for Sustainable Cities
- CIV 550H1: Water Resources Engineering
- MIE 368H1: Analytics in Action
- MIE 542H1: Human Factors Integration
- MIE 561H1: Healthcare Systems
Notes
Availability of the courses (including the foundational courses) for timetabling purposes is not guaranteed; the onus is on the student to ensure compatibility with their timetable. Students must secure approval from their home department before selecting any elective outside their departmental approved list.
New Engineering Course Opportunity!
APS470H1 F - Engineering and Public Health
Are you interested in public health? Do you want to learn more about protecting and promoting public health with an engineering background? Are you interested in learning how your engineering knowledge can help?
This new course provides students with an introduction to the disciplines of public health and its connections with engineering.
This is a foundational course in the Faculty’s new Public Health and Engineering Certificate and will be taught by Professor Victoria Arrandale from the Dalla Lana School of Public Health.
The first half of the course will introduce the major disciplines of public health. Students will learn about the structure and regulations of the public health and healthcare system; quantitative and qualitative public health methods; study designs and statistical analysis; and the legal, regulatory and ethical frameworks applicable to public health.
The second half of the course will focus on examples of common occupational and environmental public health hazards to illustrate the importance of public health toxicology, exposure measurement and modelling, as well as prevention strategies in protecting and promoting public health.
To learn more about the course, read the course syllabus available here.
This course is eligible as a Technical Elective (if approved by your department) composed of 70% Engineering Science and 30% Complementary Studies.