Occupational Health Curriculum
The UC Berkeley Occupational Health curriculum is part of the environmental health science MPH program and includes industrial hygiene, human factors and ergonomics, and occupational epidemiology.
Current courses
PBHLTH 298 Occupational Health Seminar
This is a Graduate level seminar (upper-level undergraduates can enroll in 198 with permission) with the goal of providing students with a field experience at a government, labor or industry. The experience will provide an example of how occupational health and safety is applied in practice and help develop professional and networking skills in the field. Additionally, students will learn about emerging research in various occupational and health topics by attending monthly ERC webinars and group discussions. Students will prepare a report on their field experience in which they will discuss the occupational health components and their professional skills development.
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• syllabus
PBHLTH 298 Occupational Health Practicum
This graduate-level Occupational Health Practicum provides students with hands-on experience conducting an applied occupational health project in partnership with a government, labor, or industry organization. Students develop projectspecific technical and professional skills by learning and applying a new analytical method (e.g., advanced data collection techniques or simulation software) under faculty and staff mentorship. The practicum includes literature review, site visits, field data collection, hazard and risk analysis, and development of practical mitigation strategies. Students produce a professional report for the partner organization at the end of the semester, which may be used to support professional certification requirements (e.g., BCPE), and gain valuable experience in project management, stakeholder engagement, and professional networking.
Curriculumn for 2026-2028
| Course # | Course Name | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PB HlTH 142 | Biostatistics – Probability and Statistics (250A & 142 recommended to be taken concurrently) | 4 |
| PB HLTH 200J | Health Policy & Management Breadth | 2 |
| PB HLTH 200L | Health and Social Behavior Breadth | 2 |
| PB HLTH 220C | Health Risk Assessment, Regulation, & Policy | 3 |
| PB HLTH 245 | Introduction to Multivariate Statistics | 4 |
| PB HLTH 250A | Epidemiology Methods I (250A & 142 recommended to be taken concurrently) | 3 |
| PB HLTH 270 | Intro to Environmental Health Sciences | 3 |
| PB HLTH 270A | Exposure Assessment and Control I | 3 |
| PB HLTH 270B | Toxicology | 3 |
| PB HLTH 271E | Science and Policy for Environmental Health | 3 |
| PB HLTH 291 | Leadership for Public Health Changemakers | 1 |
| PB HLTH 292 | EHS Career Pathways Seminar | 1 |
| PB HLTH 292 | EHS MPH ILE Seminar | 3 |
| PB HLTH 297 | Field Study in Public Health (summer practicum) | 3 |
| Course # | Course Name | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PB HLTH 271J | Social Justice and Worker Health (occupational health recommended) | 2 |
| PB HLTH 290 | Health Equity & the Environment: Theory & Praxis | 3 |
Industrial Hygiene
| Course # | Course Name | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PB HLTH 254 | Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology | 3 |
| PB HLTH 269C | Occupational Biomechanics | 2-4 |
| PB HLTH 271H | Greener Solutions: A Safer Design Partnership | 4 |
| PB HLTH 290 | Global Occupational Health and Safety (even years) | 3 |
| PB HLTH 290 | Exposure Assessment & Control II (Spring) | 3 |
| PB HLTH 298 | Occupational Health Practicum | 1 |
| PB HLTH 298 | Occupational Health Seminar (Occ Health Applied Skills Lab Independent Study) | 1 |
| PB HLTH 298 | Foundations of Occupational Health Safety (OSHA 30 certification) | 1 |
Human Factors & Ergonomics
| Course # | Course Name | Units |
|---|---|---|
| IEOR 170 | HFE in Industrial Design | 3 |
| PB HLTH 254 | Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology | 3 |
| PB HLTH 269C | Occupational Biomechanics | 4 |
| PB HLTH 269D | Ergonomics Seminar | 2 |
| PB HLTH 298 | Occupational Health Practicum | 1 |
| PB HLTH 298 | Occupational Health Seminar (Occ Health Applied Skills Lab Independent Study) | 1 |
| PB HLTH 298 | Foundations of Occupational Health Safety (OSHA 30 certification) | 1 |
| Course # | Course Name | Units |
|---|---|---|
| PB HLTH 241 | Intermediate Biostatistics for Public Health | 4 |
| PB HLTH 269E | Current Topics in Environmental Medicine | 2 |
| PB HLTH 298 | Occupational Toxicology | 2 |
| PB HLTH 299 | Independent Research | 1-4 |