Penn State Greater Allegheny and Penn State New Kensington have been granted joint authorization to deliver the bachelor of science in biobehavioral health (BBH) program. The new four-year major will begin in fall 2016.
The goal of biobehavioral health is
to address and solve problems of human health and illness. With classes in
chemistry, biology, physiology, and genetics, students will have the opportunity
to understand the science behind physical health.
?The
BBH degree prepares students for a wide variety of entry level positions. Some examples include researchers or lab
technicians in clinical settings; health promotion specialists for non-profit
organizations, government agencies, and corporations; public health service for
state and federal agencies; and sales representatives for biomedical and
pharmaceutical companies,? said John Peles, interim associate director of academic affairs at
Penn State Greater Allegheny, who also serves as the academic adviser for those
interested in pre-med. ?The
degree also provides excellent preparation for students intending to pursue
graduate study or professional training in areas such as medicine and allied health.?
The
Pittsburgh Regional Alliance has identified health care and life sciences as
one of five ?key sectors? of the region?s economy, making the addition of the
biobehavioral health major an exciting one for the Greater Allegheny and New
Kensington campuses.
Victoria
Garwood, director of Enrollment Management, said, ?Previously, students who
started at our campuses and had an interest in a health related major had no
choice but to leave our environments in which many of them thrive academically
and personally. Offering BBH at the campus will allow
students to start and finish their degrees in our region.?
With the addition of
the new program, the Greater Allegheny campus will now offer nine baccalaureate
degrees. Students can earn bachelor of science degrees in administration
of justice; biobehavioral health; business; information sciences and technology; psychology; and bachelor of arts degrees in administration
of justice; communications; English; letters, arts, and sciences; and
psychology.
Penn State Greater Allegheny has been
ranked the eighth safest college in the country,
according to homeInsurance.com, 2013 FBI reporting comparing 400 campuses.
The BBH program will be co-coordinated by Peles at Greater Allegheny and
Jyotsna Kalavar, professor of human development and family studies at New
Kensington. To learn more about
the BBH major, call the Penn State Greater Allegheny Admissions Office at
412-675-9010 or email them at psuga@psu.edu.