The University of Iowa’s Department of Occupational & Environmental Health has the only Agricultural Safety & Health degree program in the country.
Our MS program will teach you about the industry of agriculture and the occupational and environmental exposures and risks associated with that industry. You will learn the necessary skills for anticipation, diagnosis, exposure assessment, treatment, and prevention of agricultural illnesses and injuries. You will graduate prepared to work as an agricultural safety and health specialist in education, health care, insurance, and agribusinesses.
Working with your advisor, you may choose elective courses for a concentration in one of these focus areas: industrial hygiene, injury prevention, environmental health, or communication. This additional specialization will help you stand out in the job market.
Overview
Number of credit hours: 42
Average time to degree: Two years.
Prerequisites:
- Minimum cumulative grade-point average: 3.0
- GRE requirement waived for fall 2021 applicants – Minimum GRE score: Verbal: 151, Quantitative: 153
A bachelor’s degree is required. Our students come from a variety of undergraduate majors, but your undergraduate preparation should include previous coursework in mathematics, biology, chemistry, and either physics or engineering.
Funding opportunities: Many of our students in this degree program receive financial support. Financial support may be in the form of tuition payment and/or a monthly stipend.
Thesis: You will be required to complete a research project and thesis.
When and how to apply: The application deadline is May 1. You should apply as soon as possible to secure your position and funding. Learn more about how to apply to the Department of Occupational and Environmental Health.
How and where courses are delivered: All courses are delivered in person at our Iowa City campus, with most taking place in the College of Public Health building.
Full-time or part-time study options: Most students study full-time, but it’s possible to study part-time.
Funding
All of our students in this degree program receive financial support—100% tuition paid and a monthly stipend.
This funding, which is only available to U.S. citizens, is provided by the Heartland Center for Occupational Health & Safety through a grant from NIOSH.
Sample Plan of Study
Semester 1, Fall
| Number | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| OEH:6120 | Topics in Agriculture and Rural Health | 1 s.h. |
| OEH:5620 | Occupational Health | 3 s.h. |
| EPID:4400 | Epidemiology I: Principles | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:5010 | OEH Seminar | 0 s.h. |
| Elective | 3 s.h. | |
| CPH:6100 | Essentials of Public Health | 2 s.h. |
| CPH:7270 | Principles of Scholarly Integrity: Public Health | 0 s.h. |
| Total | 12 s.h. |
Semester 2, Spring
| Number | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| OEH:6110 | Rural Health and Agricultural Medicine | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:6120 | Topics in Agriculture and Rural Health | 1 s.h. |
| OEH:6710 | Human Toxicology and Risk Assessment | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:5010 | OEH Seminar | 0 s.h. |
| CPH:7270 | Principles of Scholarly Integrity: Public Health | 1 s.h. |
| Elective | 3 s.h. | |
| Total | 11 s.h. |
Semester 3, Fall
| Number | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| OEH:4240 | Global Environmental Health | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:4540 | Statistics for Experimenters | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:7040 | Preceptorship in Rural Health | 1 s.h. |
| Elective | 3 s.h. | |
| Total | 10 s.h. |
Semester 4, Spring
| Number | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| OEH:5410 | Occupational Safety | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:6120 | Topics in Agricultural and Rural Health | 1 s.h. |
| OEH:5010 | OEH Seminar | 1 s.h. |
| OEH:7000 | Thesis | 4 s.h. |
| Total | 9 s.h. | |
| Grand Total | 42 s.h. |
Required Courses
Required Courses
All of the following:
| Number | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| OEH:6110 | Rural Health and Agricultural Medicine | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:6120 | Topics in Agriculture and Rural Health | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:7040 | Preceptorship in OEH | 1 s.h. |
| OEH:4240 | Global Environmental Health | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:5620 | Occupational Health | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:5410 | Occupational Safety | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:6710 | Human Toxicology and Risk Assessment | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:5010 | OEH Seminar | 1 s.h. |
| OEH:4540 | Statistics for Experimenters OR | 3 s.h. |
| BIOS:4120 | Introduction to Biostatistics | |
| EPID:4400 | Epidemiology I: Principles | 3 s.h. |
| CPH:6100 | Essentials of Public Health | 2 s.h. |
| CPH:7270 | Principles of Scholarly Integrity: Public Health | 1 s.h. |
Elective Credits
Students should complete at least 9 s.h. of electives; it is recommended that students select elective courses from the list below and work with their advisor to identify appropriate areas of emphasis (e.g. industrial hygiene, injury prevention, environmental health, or communication).
Recommended Elective Courses
(this is a partial list of OEH courses, any OEH course can fulfill an elective requirement)
| Number | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| OEH:6420 | Methods in Exposure Science | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:6431 | Assessing Noise Hazards | 1 s.h. |
| OEH:6432 | Assessing Non-Ionizing Radiation Hazards | 1 s.h. |
| OEH:6433 | Assessing Ionizing Radiation Hazards | 1 s.h. |
| OEH:6440 | Control of Occupational Hazards | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:4310 | Occupational Ergonomics: Principles | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:6510 | Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:4510 | Injury and Violence Prevention | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:6520 | Injury Epidemiology | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:4260 | Global Water and Health | 3 s.h. |
| OEH:6720 | Advanced Toxicology | 4 s.h. |
| CPH:4200 | Agriculture, Food Systems & Sustainability | 3 s.h. |
Approved Elective Courses in other departments
(additional courses may be considered with your advisor’s approval)
| Number | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ISE:3400 | Human Factors | 3 s.h. |
| EPID:6400 | Epidemiology II: Advanced Methods | 4 s.h. |
| EPID:5600 | Intro to Epi Data Management & Analysis | 3 s.h. |
| CBH:4105 | Intro to Health Promotion and Disease Prevention | 3 s.h. |
| CBH:5305 | Evaluation: Approaches and Applications | 3 s.h. |
| CBH:6220 | Health Communication Campaigns | 3 s.h. |
| CBH:5235 | Community-Based Participatory Research | 3 s.h. |
Thesis
Completion and acceptance of a master’s thesis is required. A maximum of 4 semester hours will be allowed for thesis credit hours.
| Number | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| OEH:7000 | Thesis/Dissertation | 4 s.h. |
Total Semester Hours Required for MS Degree (Minimum): 42 s.h.
Degree Description and Learner Competencies
The Agricultural Safety and Health MS program will provide graduate students with knowledge about the industry of agriculture and the related occupational and environmental exposures and risks. Students will gain the necessary skills for anticipation, diagnosis, exposure assessment, treatment and prevention of agricultural illnesses and injuries. Graduates of the program will be prepared for positions in education, health care, insurance and agribusinesses as agricultural safety and health specialists.
Students must complete the required courses and all of the courses from one of the focus areas below.
Graduates of the MS in Agricultural Safety & Health will be able to:
- Describe basic concepts and theories of agricultural safety and health.
- Comprehend epidemiological principles that can be used to determine health outcomes associated with exposure to occupational hazards.
- Apply biostatistical methods for interpreting the significance of occupationally derived data relative to an exposure or health outcome.
- Explain appropriate research design, methodological, and analytical approaches in relation to the field of agricultural safety and health science.
- Demonstrate the ability to critically analyze agricultural safety and health intervention programs.
- Design and implement a research project relevant to the peer-reviewed literature in agricultural safety and health.
- Interpret and communicate orally and in writing the results and conclusions of a research project.