Health Communication Certificate

The Health Communication Undergraduate Certificate is a joint program of the Department of Communication, the College of Public Health, and the Department of Kinesiology and Health Promotion for undergraduate students.

The certificate is designed to give students an enhanced education in communication skills critical to health-related professions, beyond what would normally be received from the UK Core. Upon completion of the certificate students will be able to determine how communication impacts the major contributors for disease prevention and control as well as how to identify and analyze communication strategies that are most effective for health promotion and wellness.

The Certificate in Health Communication is feasibly combined with a broad array of majors across UK’s colleges including the College of Public Health, the College of Education, the College of Arts and Sciences, but particularly the College of Communication and Information and the College of Health Sciences.

Health Communication Certificate Standards

In order to remain in good standing in the program, students must have a 2.0 overall GPA at the end of their first year, and a 2.0 in certificate classes to graduate from the certificate. Students are also required to take three core classes as requirements for the certificate program, as well as program electives.

Courses taken within three years prior to admission to the certificate can be used in the certificate.
Certificates will only be awarded to students who successfully complete a Bachelor’s degree, or have completed a four-year degree.
The certificate requires 15 hours and a minimum of 12 credits of course work in the certificate must be taken for a letter grade.
The certificate requires 9 core hours of credit (2 communication core and 1 public health core) courses be completed.
No more than 9 credits taken for a certificate can be used to satisfy the requirements for the student’s major or minor, or another certificate, exclusive of free or unrestricted electives.
The Director approves the individual certificate curriculum for each student and informs the Registrar when the certificate is complete and may be awarded.
The awarded certificate is to be posted on the student’s official transcript.

Health Communication Curriculum

Certificate Core Classes

Communication Core

COM 311 - TAKING CONTROL OF YOUR HEALTH: PATIENT-PROVIDER COMMUNICATION Credit(s): 3
COM 471 - INTRODUCTION TO HEALTH COMMUNICATION Credit(s): 3

Public Health Core

Students must take at least one course from the following courses outside of Communication:

CPH 201 - AN INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC HEALTH: THEORY AND METHODS Credit(s): 3
CPH 202 - PUBLIC HEALTH THROUGH POPULAR FILM Credit(s): 3
CPH 440 - FOUNDATIONS OF HEALTH BEHAVIOR Credit(s): 3

Electives

In addition to meeting the Communication and Public Health Core requirements, students must take two additional electives from:

COM 287 - PERSUASIVE SPEAKING Credit(s): 3
COM 482 - STUDIES IN PERSUASION Credit(s): 3
COM 454 - HONORS SEMINAR IN COMMUNICATION: SUBTITLE REQUIRED Credit(s): 3
COM 525 - ADVANCED ISSUES IN ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION: SUBTITLE REQUIRED Credit(s): 3 *
COM 535 - RISK AND CRISIS COMMUNICATION Credit(s): 3
COM 571 - INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION IN HEALTH CONTEXTS Credit(s): 3
COM 572 - HEALTH COMMUNICATION CAMPAIGNS AND COMMUNITIES Credit(s): 3
CI 629 - INTRODUCTION TO MEDICAL INFORMATICS Credit(s): 3
OR
LIS 629 - INTRODUCTION TO MEDICAL INFORMATICS Credit(s): 3
CPH 202 - PUBLIC HEALTH THROUGH POPULAR FILM Credit(s): 3
CPH 310 - DISEASE DETECTIVES: EPIDEMIOLOGY IN ACTION Credit(s): 3
CPH 440 - FOUNDATIONS OF HEALTH BEHAVIOR Credit(s): 3
KHP 230 - HUMAN HEALTH AND WELLNESS Credit(s): 3

Total required hours: 15

*When offered with the subtitle Communication in Healthcare Organizations.

For more information, contact Faculty Director Dr. Kelly McAninch at comm@uky.edu