UAMS College of Public Health Announces New Doctoral Program

LITTLE ROCK — The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health will offer an Environmental Health Sciences (EHS) doctoral program beginning in the fall 2025 semester. Students in the multidisciplinary program will learn how the environment impacts human health.

According to Gunnar Boysen, Ph.D., associate professor in the college’s Department of Environmental Health Sciences, students will receive in-depth training in a spectrum of disciplines such as:

• Environmental Toxicology

• Environmental Origins of Cancer Exposure Science

• Exposure Assessment

• Nutrition and Dietary Supplements

• Public Health Microbiology

• Geographical Information Systems

• Biomarkers of Exposure

• Climate Change and Public Health

“Environmental Health Sciences is an interdisciplinary field that bridges studies of the environment with human health — specifically population health and behavior,” Boysen said.

The department conducted surveys among academic institutions, government agencies and public health industries, which confirmed the need for more environmental health specialists in Arkansas. Currently, no comparable doctoral program exists in the state, forcing employers to self-train or recruit out-of-state personnel for specialized positions.

Undergraduate and master’s level Environmental Health Science programs have seen a steady increase in enrollment in recent semesters. “Those developments demonstrate a demand for this doctoral program,” Boysen said.

The program will position students for a career in the environmental health sciences while also training them on how to conduct original research, analyze their findings and contribute to the advancing environmental health sciences knowledge.

“Our doctoral program will be targeted to the field of environmental health sciences’ needs, thereby complementing other Ph.D. program at UAMS and in the state,” Boysen said.

“The EHS program will give young Arkansans an additional educational opportunity in-state that can lead to a high paying job that itself will have a positive impact in the state for generations to come,” he added.

For more information about the program visit publichealth.uams.edu/academics/doctoral/phd-in-environmental-health-sciences/.