Health Promotion

Career potential

The impacts of an unhealthy lifestyle can be widespread. There are physical, mental and even social effects. For some people, completing simple tasks is difficult.

You can have a life-changing impact on people's lives by pursuing a career in health promotion. You'll receive an immediate satisfaction from helping people achieve goals and objectives that may have been seemingly impossible before.

Emphasis on living, playing, working and eating right to live a longer, healthier life has never been more prevalent in our society than it is now. .Magazines devote full issues to healthy living, and television news shows frequently feature stories on the topic.

The growing emphasis on disease prevention has also increased the need for professionals in leadership positions who are trained in the principles of health promotion.

A Bachelor of Science degree in Health Promotion from the University of North Texas will prepare you to help people develop healthy habits. Health promotion professionals use biology, epidemiology, marketing, kinesiology, psychology and sociology as foundations for planning and implementing health promotion programs.

As a professional in health promotion, you may work as:

• a health educator
• an administrator of a community health care program
• a facilitator of a corporate health fitness program

UNT's Career Center can help you prepare to pursue your career. The center has information about jobs and employers, and the staff can help you with resume and letter writing, job search strategies, and interview preparation.

Majoring in health promotion

The health promotion program will teach you the principles of health and how to develop a healthy lifestyle. Other courses include epidemiology, school and community health promotion, and program planning.

Health promotion faculty members have various areas of expertise, including nutrition, behavioral change strategies, chemical dependency, epidemiology, exercise, human sexuality, culture and health.

As a student, you will have access to UNT's 139,000-square-foot Pohl Recreation Center, which includes a lap pool, leisure pool, soccer gymnasium, 14,500-square-foot weight room, walking and jogging track, aerobics rooms, climbing wall and courts for basketball, badminton and volleyball.

Many departmental scholarships are available for outstanding students in health promotion. You may apply for these scholarships as soon as you enter UNT, and you can declare a major immediately as soon as you enroll as a student.

Getting hands-on experience

If you major in health promotion, you will participate in a community health promotion internship during your last semester of study. Consult with the internship coordinator and your academic advisor one semester before the internship.

Upon completion of 12 semester hours at UNT with at least a 2.5 GPA, you may work in a job related to your field through UNT's Cooperative Education office. All co-op employers positions are paid, and the jobs often can be extended for several semesters, sometimes until graduation.

More than 1,800 employers work with the co-op office to provide excellent learning opportunities, many of which become permanent, full-time positions upon graduation.

Preparing for UNT: High school students

If you are a high school student, we suggest you prepare for college by becoming computer proficient and taking:

• English … 4 years
• Math … 4 years
• Social science — economics, geography, government, history … 4 years
• Science … 3 years
• Foreign language … 3 years
• Fine arts … 1 year

You will need to take courses in most of these subjects under the university core curriculum required of all undergraduates, in addition to your major courses. Talk with your high school counselor about preparing for college, including the entrance exams (SAT or ACT) that you should take during your junior year.

Preparing for UNT: Transfer students

As a benefit for transfer students, UNT participates in the Texas Common Course Numbering System. This system makes it easier to transfer credits for general academic courses from one Texas institution to another.

If you're attending a Texas community college, you should consult the UNT Transfer Guide, the UNT Undergraduate Catalog and an academic advisor/counselor to discuss your degree plan. Proper planning will help you receive the maximum amount of transfer credits.

UNT's Transfer Center will help you make a successful transition to college life at UNT by connecting you to a peer mentor and other valuable campus resources. Each year, we welcome more transfer students than any institution in the state. The center is in the University Union, Room 320. More information is at www.unt.edu/transferprograms.

Charting your path through academic advising

Health promotion faculty members will help you each semester to select the courses you will need to take to obtain your degree and achieve your career goals. You should meet with a faculty member before declaring your major. The Department of Kinesiology, Health Promotion and Recreation also has a degree plan advisor to assist you. The department office is in the Physical Education Building, Room 209.

Curious about courses and other features of this major?
See the current catalog.