Global Health

The Global Health Minor Program at the University of Oregon is an interdisciplinary study of population and public health with an international perspective. Our approach to global health is holistic and critical, centering the social determinants of health organizations, and cultural influences on health and illness experiences.

Students in the program are exposed to diverse disciplinary approaches to research and practice in global health through core and elective coursework in the social and natural sciences and humanities. Students also complete the required global health practicum experience, which is an opportunity to apply concepts learned in the classroom to the real world. 

100%
OF STUDENTS DO FIELD RESEARCH
7
Schools and colleges represented in Global Health
25
majors represented by students in the global health program

What You Can Do with a Global Health Minor

Students minoring in global health have diverse majors, including anthropology, biology, dance, global studies, sociology—and more. Among the professions our students enter after graduating include:

  • Federal, state, and local public health agencies
  • Global, national, and local nonprofits
  • Medicine, nursing, and allied health professions
  • Public and social policy
  • Program evaluation 
  • Human rights work
  • Social work
  • Global disability and accessibility
  • Political advocacy for health care for underserved communities
  • Clinical research coordinator
  • Academia
Nayantara Arora

How Global Health Enriches Your Undergraduate Studies

“I've had so many opportunities to try things out and figure out what I wanted to explore in the future. I got to take a little flavor from every subject throughout my first year, and I had a lot of access to support and mentors who helped me introspect and decide what fields held what kind of potential and what kind of future I could possibly have."

—Nayantara Arora, neuroscience, chemistry and global health, 2024

Our Degree Program

The Global Health studies minor is an interdisciplinary program.

Teach teaching class

Learn from Experts in the Field

The Global Health Program has a holistic and critical approach, and affiliated faculty hail from departments and programs throughout the University of Oregon. Affiliated faculty engage in research that is varied and diverse.

Faculty interest areas include:

  • Social determinants of health
  • Bioethics
  • Health disparities
  • Social epidemiology 
  • Culture and health
  • Historical analyses of health interventions and disease prevention campaigns
a corona corps student from 2020

Get Real-world Experience

In addition to studying interdisciplinary coursework that spans the sciences and humanities, students complete a global health field experience, internship, or practicum.

Practicum experiences can include:

  • Disease tracking and response
  • Peer wellness advocate on campus
  • Study abroad service learning
  • Internships in public and nongovernmental organizations
  • Policy engagement and analysis
  • Individual and collaborative research leading to undergraduate thesis
  • Supporting faculty research

Scholarships and Funding

Students in the Global Health Program can seek funding through the College of Arts and Sciences, which awards various scholarships both to incoming students and to those already attending the UO.

CAS and UO Scholarships

Academic Support

Our academic advisors can help students understand their major or minor requirements, plan their course of study, explore study abroad opportunities, and more.

Undergraduate Advising

Global Health News and CAS Events

June 7, 2024
GLOBAL HEALTH, GLOBAL STUDIES, MULTIDISCIPLINARY SCIENCE, PHYSICS, POLITICAL SCIENCE - Where can a liberal arts degree take you? These College of Arts and Sciences seniors are charting their own course as they pursue careers in the specialty coffee industry, particle physics and public service.
March 11, 2024
GLOBAL HEALTH, GLOBAL STUDIES - Associate Professor Jo Weaver published research in the December 2023 issue of SSM-Mental Health that examines the mental health needs of women in India. Because of the gaps in mental health care that emerge from cultural mismatch, Weaver and her research team urge health workers to prioritize culturally informed methods of distress management and address the social and structural causes of suffering rather than delivering standardized clinical mental healthcare.
January 17, 2024
For 50 years, faculty at the University of Oregon Center for the Study of Women in Society have researched the complexity of women’s lives and the intersecting nature of gender identities and inequalities. In celebration of the center’s fiftieth anniversary, Oregon Quarterly featured five faculty — three of whom are in the College of Arts and Sciences.

All news »


University of Oregon Night at the San Francisco Giants
Jul30
University of Oregon Night at the San Francisco Giants Jul 30 Oracle Park
The BIG 10+ Academia Career Fair
Oct16
The BIG 10+ Academia Career Fair Oct 16
Bob Bussel Labor History Lecture
Apr24
Bob Bussel Labor History Lecture Apr 24 William W. Knight Law Center

All events »