Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) Public Health Certificate Program

Globally, LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer)-focused public health is a growing field of study, but there is a dearth of training opportunities specifically related to social and behavioral factors. The addition of the Post-Baccalaureate Certificate Program in LGBTQ Public Health helps fulfill the School’s strategic planning goal of strengthening and expanding diversity in terms of training in the School, and thus continuing as a leading institution for social and behavioral training and research in public health.

Educational Objectives:

1.    Assess what is known and unknown in LGBTQ health research and critically read public health literature related to LGBTQ health.
2.    Describe a range of psychological and sociological conceptualizations of LGBTQ health, health behavior, stigma, and illness in a cross-cultural context, and integrate these into culturally competent skills and attitudes.
3.    Apply an ecological perspective to LGBTQ health, linking individual, social, community and environmental causes of disease and LGBTQ community health through theory and research. 
4.    Locate and evaluate health disparities both within and facing LGBTQ populations in the context of social behavioral, socio-ecologic, and other theoretical frameworks.
5.    Analyze changes in political climates and how legal, policy and structural changes affect the translation of research findings regarding the health of LGBTQ populations.
6.    Integrate an ecological perspective on LGBTQ health into the design of effective interventions, translating research findings through communications, advocacy, health policy and the law, to reduce health problems and disparities in LGBTQ populations. 

Please visit our Academic Catalogue to see the full certificate curriculum requirements. Please also review the certificate completion requirements.