The micro-credential provides a means to develop skills and a knowledge base for addressing health inequities. Developed for the non-profit and for-profit communities and open to anyone who has completed an undergraduate degree (including all UB graduate students), this program consists of two courses and a portfolio-building experience.
The courses will help you to gain content expertise on the origins of health inequities and tools for intervening to eliminate health disparities. The additional portfolio-building experience lets you demonstrate your ability to design a strategy for reducing health disparities such as a program, policy initiative or other intervention. You can complete the micro-credential online in one or two semesters.
After completing the micro-credential, you will be able to:
To earn the micro-credential, you must complete the following requirements:
Although admissions are ongoing, you must submit your application by July 1 to begin the micro-credential in the fall semester and by December 1 to begin in the spring semester.
To participate in the micro-credential, you must first apply to become a non-degree seeking student at the University at Buffalo. Once your application has been reviewed, you will be able to register for the micro-credential courses of your choosing. Follow the steps highlighted below to apply:
1) Make sure you have what you need to apply. The application requires:
2) Apply by completing the Community Health and Health Behavior Non-Degree Student application.
On this page, select that you are starting a new application. The application will populate to “School of Public Health and Health Professions.” Once you begin your application, you will need to select the “program of study” tab. Select that you are applying to the “public health-non-degree student” program.
Complete the other following information in the application:
Note: You do not need to complete the following on the application; languages, employment history, activities and distinctions, and recommendations.
3) Once your application is complete and submitted, you will be sent an email for instructions on paying the UB application fee. Please follow the instructions in this email to pay your fee.
4) Your application will be reviewed. Please contact Paige Miller at pcm6@buffalo.edy to confirm all of your application materials have been received.
UB graduate students may enroll in the micro-credential at any stage in their career, including after they have completed the necessary coursework. To begin our application process, please email Paige C. Miller at pcm6@buffalo.edu.
For all questions, please contact Paige C. Miller, Academic and Business Services Coordinator at pcm6@buffalo.edu.
3 Credits, Summer Semester
Prerequisite: None
This course provides you with a survey of topics related to aging and health in contemporary society. We cover how interactions of biological, psychological, emotional, spiritual, socioeconomic and environmental factors effect older adults. Readings and discussion include a review of the epidemiology and demographic trends of aging, theoretical and developmental models in aging, health policies, intergenerational relationships, retirement preparation and support resources related to illness and end of life. The course also presents an overview of health behaviors and morbidities related to aging in U.S. society.
This course completes some of the requirements for the Strategies in Eliminating Health Inequities Micro-Credential.
Format: Online
3 Credits, Fall Semester
Prerequisite: None
Models and principles of program planning and evaluation are presented and contrasted. Data gathering techniques, design considerations and implementation strategies are covered. Other topics include systems theory applications, strategic planning methods, proposal development and report writing.
This course can be used to satisfy some of the requirements for the Strategies in Eliminating Health Inequities Micro-Credential.
Format: Seated and Online
3 Credits, Fall Semester
Health Equity is designed to give students an in-depth understanding of the social determinants of health and how their ills and benefits are unequally distributed across society. We will cover differences in health status associated with race, ethnicity, immigrant status, education, income, disability, geographic location, gender, sexual orientation and gender identity. We will examine the multiple pathways through which these inequities are produced and reinforced, including structural and interpersonal discrimination and stigma. The course will provide historical and theoretical perspectives on health disparities and provide a critical examination of empiric research on explanatory pathways. We will also discuss methods for conducting research and intervening in disadvantaged communities. Students will have an opportunity to engage in work on a health disparities topic of their choosing.
Instructor: Orom
Format: Remote
3 Credits, Spring Semester
Prerequisite: None
Indigenous populations experience lower life expectancy, lower quality of life, and a higher prevalence of several chronic and infectious diseases in comparison to other populations within their respective regions, counties, states and countries. Using an evidence-based approach, this course will provide an overview of the many health issues impacting Indigenous populations today and into the future. This course is designed to embrace the concepts of the social determinants of health, intergenerational trauma, health equity, and racism and health. Students will examine the real histories of Indigenous peoples, cultural norms and adaptations, traditional healing and the impacts of colonization at the advancement of westernization. This course is intended to raise awareness and support future public health leaders who become experts in promoting better health worldwide.
This course can be used to satisfy some of the requirements for the Strategies in Eliminating Health Inequities Micro-Credential.
Format: Hybrid; in-person and remote offering
3 Credits, Spring Semester
This course provides an introduction to both the global and local health issues related to refugee populations. Health, cultural issues, barriers to care, and services for refugee populations in the United States will be featured, with an emphasis on Western New York's (WNY) refugee groups. Global historical and policy issues related to refugees and refugee health also will be studied.
Format: Remote
3 Credits, Spring Semester
The course will introduce students to historical trends in the population burden of sexual risk behaviors, the social ecology of these risks, and current controversies in practice and policy. We will also examine surveillance systems and nationally representative samples used to monitor trends in high-risk sexual behaviors and related consequences. Students will critically examine the logic and impact of current domestic standards for sexual health policy and practice through a comparative look at sexual health needs (e.g., contraceptive use, STI prevention and treatment, and HIV-related services) in a range of diverse clinical and social settings with different populations (adolescents, young adults, older adults). Using a variety of teaching methods, students will receive an overview of the dynamics of high-risk sexual activity among individuals, communities, and populations. Topics will include an assessment of current peer-reviewed research and professional guidelines for effective sexual risk reduction; federal and state policies related to sexuality, pregnancy, contraception and HIV/STI prevention; and current curricula at the national and state level for sexuality education.
Instructor: Przybyla
Format: Seated
3 Credits, Spring Semester
This course uses a systemic structural racism framework to explore the role of race, class, and gender in the American city-building process. The course seeks to understand market forces' role in etching race and class into the residential landscape and its implications for the racialization of residential space for different racial and ethnic groups. URP/END centers "the neighborhood" in its exploration of race, class, gender, and the city. It places the "neighborhood" within the broader context of the urban metropolis. For this course's purpose, the "urban metropolis" refers to the county where the central city is located.
Format: Seated