An interdisciplinary approach to learning
The Northwest Center for Occupational Health and Safety (NWCOHS) trains future occupational health professionals through our interdisciplinary programs.
NWCOHS is housed in the University of Washington Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences and brings together faculty from the UW Schools of Public Health, Nursing and Medicine.
Students are actively engaged in research and professional development activities. Opportunities include internships, practica, field research, professional conferences, networking and cross-sector collaboration.
We work with partners across our four-state region, including governments, businesses, labor, nonprofit organizations and peer academic institutions. This gives students opportunities to engage with community partners, develop professional connections and increase their health impact.
Our students pursue Graduate Certificates and MS, MPH and PhD degrees in:
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Industrial Hygiene/Exposure Science trains MS and PhD professionals and scientists how to recognize, evaluate and control hazardous exposures in the workplace.
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Occupational Health Nursing emphasizes a socio-ecological view of population health through which employment and work experiences are understood to operate as social determinants of worker health.
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Occupational Medicine Residency is a two-year, accredited training program for physicians, leading to board eligibility in occupational medicine with certification through the American Board of Preventive Medicine. Most trainees complete the Occupational and Environmental Medicine MPH program.
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The Occupational Health Services Research program culminates in a PhD degree in Health Services, with a research focus in occupational health. Trainees receive grounding in theory and methods applied to health services research from the disciplines of health services, biostatistics, epidemiology, policy analysis, economics and other social and behavioral sciences.
- Occupational Health at the Human-Animal Interface supports students in developing new competencies for research and the provision of preventive occupational health services to workers in a wide range of animal contact settings,from research facilities to veterinary hospitals, zoos and agriculture using an innovative “One Health” paradigm.
- Work and Health Graduate Certificate supports UW graduate students in all disciplines and professions to explore and consider how dimensions and contexts of work influence the health and well-being of populations and can better inform their own disciplinary research or practice.