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Environmental, Agricultural & Occupational Health Graduate Degree In Environmental Health, Occupational Health and Toxicology Accepting Applications for Fall 2008 Enrollment The University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) College of Public Health (CoPH) is creating an intercampus, multidisciplinary graduate program leading to M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in environmental health, occupational health, and toxicology. It will be a revision and expansion of the existing Toxicology graduate program to accommodate the broader graduate education goals of the College. The program will provide students with the knowledge base, laboratory skills, and problem-solving abilities to become independent, innovative investigators using state-of-the-art approaches to address scientific problems in the fields of environmental health, ecological health, occupational health and safety, and toxicology. A unique aspect of the program will be a focus on the impact of agricultural practices on human and environmental health. In states, such as Nebraska, where the economy is primarily based on agriculture, this focus will provide effective training for students interested in agricultural issues. Specific objectives of the graduate education and training program are to provide students with: 1) basic knowledge in ecological, environmental, agricultural and occupational health, as well as toxicology; 2) broad understanding of relevant problems in the various areas of ecological health, environmental health, occupational health and safety or toxicology, with particular emphasis on agriculture; and 3) the ability to apply this information to important scientific questions and solve problems in these areas. Graduates of this program will be well equipped to pursue careers in environmental health, occupational health, toxicology and related fields.
Applications for enrollment in the Fall 2008 semester are being accepted. Contact Sherry Cherek
at 559-8924 or email scherek@unmc.edu
Degree Program Information
Public awareness of environmental hazards has grown tremendously over the past four decades.
Toxicologists and other environmental and population scientists play an essential role in ensuring
that we are not endangering our health or the environment with the products and by-products of
modern and comfortable living. This is especially true in states such as Nebraska, where production
agriculture dominates the economy, but the potential impacts of such intense agricultural production
on human health and environment are unclear. As a consequence, there are increased demands for
new and better ways to determine the potential harmful effects of chemical agents, development
of conditions under which toxic chemicals can be used safely, assessment of the probability that
particular chemicals present a significant risk to human health and/or the environment, and the
establishment of rules and regulations aimed at protecting and preserving human health and the
environment.
With the increase in health consciousness, as well as concern for our environment, a wide and
growing variety of career opportunities exists in environmental health, ecological health,
occupational health and safety, and toxicology. Professionals with advanced degrees in these
areas participate in basic research using the most advanced techniques in molecular biology,
chemistry, and biomedical sciences; work with chemical, pharmaceutical, agrichemical and many
other industries to test and ensure that their products and workplaces are safe; work for
local and federal governments and agencies to develop and enforce laws to ensure that chemicals
are produced, used and disposed of safely or to ensure that natural watersheds and local air
quality criteria are maintained at appropriate levels; and work in academic institutions to
teach others about the safe use of chemicals and to train future scientists.
Agriculture is the backbone of the regional economy. There are many health and safety concerns
associated with work in production agriculture in food processing, such as meat packing plants
and the growing biofuels sector. All will serve as strong partners in our effort to provide
educational opportunities and training for our students. Giving students access to their businesses
for research projects will be critical to the success of our program. Collaborations currently
exist with several businesses addressing occupational health and safety issues. Additional
potential collaborators include pharmaceutical and other medical research and service companies,
construction and trucking companies, environmental consulting and engineering firms in the
Lincoln and Omaha area involved in site assessments and remediation and local, state and
federal agencies.
Faculty participating in the degree program are drawn from various departments and colleges
listed below:
A strong effort is being made to build on existing collaborations with other universities,
particularly those in adjoining states. Specific collaborations are anticipated, for example
with the Iowa State College of Veterinary Sciences, which has a collaborative arrangement with
the UNL Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources and has areas of mutual interest with
the College of Public Health. Extramural support for students and their research projects will
be sought through programs of the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health,
U.S. Department of Agriculture, and other federal agencies. State agencies with expected
collaborations include Health and Human Services, the Department of Environmental Quality,
Department of Agriculture, and the Game and Parks Commission.
The Ph.D. degree in each of the four tracks includes satisfactory completion of required and
elective courses (21 hours), completion of a grant proposal outside the student’s area of
dissertation research with oral defense, submission of at least one article from the dissertation
research for publication in a peer-reviewed journal, and completion of a dissertation with oral
defense.
An M.S. degree in each of the four tracks will be offered, including both options as currently
listed in the University’s Graduate Studies Bulletins: Option 1: [Ph.D. track] minimum 30
hours; 20-24 hours course work and 6-10 hours thesis; half of total credit hours, including
thesis, must be in the major, or Option 2: [non-Ph.D. track] minimum 36 hours; minimum 18
hours major, or two minors of 9 hrs with 15 hour major, no thesis; 12 hours must be in exclusive
upper level courses (800/900 level). All students must take the required courses for their
educational track. Option 1 students must give an oral defense of their thesis research. Eleanor Rogan, PhD | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||