Bachelor of Health Sciences

The Health Education major prepares you with the knowledge, skills, and understanding to work with individuals and groups in a range of health settings. Students develop extensive facilitation skills and gain confidence in presenting to a range of people. 

Experiential learning in a variety of contexts (e.g. mental health, sexuality, and nutrition) supports your ability to recognise the factors that influence health and the consequences for wellbeing. You will develop an extensive toolbox of pedagogical strategies that can be used to enhance wellbeing at the personal, interpersonal, and community level.

This major engages in debate and critical reflection on a range of contemporary health issues. Through this, you will develop an in-depth understanding of ethical issues and principles, a respect for the autonomy and choice of both individuals and groups, and cultural competency in collaborative and consultative ways of working.

Career options for students who major in Health Education include employment in health-related institutions and agencies such as community and public health (in nutrition, sexuality, health promoting schools, and mental health teams), drug and alcohol agencies, Family Planning, Mental Health Foundation, nutrition advisories, and Red Cross.

When planning your Health Education major, please select the following courses along with the compulsory courses for the Bachelor of Health Sciences. Find out how to plan your Bachelor of Health Sciences. 

Health Education Major courses 

100-level

• HLED 121 Introduction to Health Education
• HLED 122 Building Resilience

200-level

• HLED 222 Sexualities Education
• HLED 223 Physical Activity Promotion

300-level

• HLED 321 Health Education in Practice – Internship
• HLED 322 Critical Analysis of Contemporary Health Issues
• One course chosen from these options

E ngā mana, e ngā reo, nāia te reo pōwhiri ki a koutou. Tēnā koutou katoa.

The purpose of the Māori and Indigenous Health major is to prepare culturally competent graduates who are able to use, apply, and integrate Māori, bicultural, and indigenous knowledge and practices in their chosen health and social services related careers.

The holistic Māori view of health and wellbeing is an important component of the major that includes knowledge and skills in the following areas:

• Te Ao Tangata — Engaging with Māori: understanding, respect, te reo, interpersonal and cross-cultural communication/dialogue, and Māori health-based experiences
• Te Ao Hauora — Working with health professionals: promoting students' understanding of the multiple disciplines and roles involved in delivering health care to Māori, including clinicians (eg, pharmacists, doctors, physiotherapists, and psychologists), the cultural/community/clinical interface, and interprofessional/interdisciplinary collaboration
• Ngā Ratonga Hauora — Working with health services and health systems: providing students with a thorough grounding in sociohistorical health developments and current health system structures, including Māori and iwi community-based health and social services.

Career options include research and policy analysis or advice, health promotion and community health liaison roles in non-governmental organisations focused on health and wellbeing, Māori and iwi health and development organisations, Te Whatu Ora and local government.

When planning your Māori and Indigenous Health major, please select the following courses along with the compulsory courses for the Bachelor of Health Sciences. Find out how to plan your Bachelor of Health Sciences. 

Māori and Indigenous Health Major courses

100-level

• MAOR 108 Aotearoa: Introduction to New Zealand Treaty Society
• MAOR 107 Aotearoa: Introduction to Traditional Māori Society OR MAOR 172 Science, Māori and Indigenous Knowledge

200-level

• HSRV 201 Communication in the Human Services
• MAOR 212 Māori and Indigenous Development

300-level

• MAOR 301 Ngāti Apopo: Māori Futures
• MAOR 323 Research Essay

Health psychology is concerned with understanding human behaviour in the context of physical health and illness. As such the field is a large one and this course aims to introduce students to a range of topics in the field. Topics include health promotion and prevention, determinants of health-related behaviours (e.g. smoking, diet, exercise), stress and coping, patient-practitioner communication, pain and its management, and management of chronic and serious illness.

Health psychology applies theories from various psychological sub-disciples and as such has a natural affinity with several other courses at the undergraduate and graduate level including abnormal, social, personality, developmental and industrial-organisational psychology.

The BHSc major in Psychology is a pathway to the postgraduate qualifications required for professional or research careers. Those who exit after a BHSc majoring in Psychology will look for work in areas resembling those open to other Psychology majors, but with a particular bias to health-related jobs. These will generally be in some kind of human service organisation or in roles such as health and safety trainers/promoters. We anticipate that most BHSc graduates majoring in Psychology will seek postgraduate qualifications.

When planning your Psychology major, please select the following courses along with the compulsory courses for the Bachelor of Health Sciences. Find out how to plan your Bachelor of Health Sciences. 

Psychology Major courses

100-level

• PSYC 105 Introductory Psychology – Brain, Behaviour and Cognition
• PSYC 106 Introductory Psychology – Social, Personality and Developmental

200-level

• PSYC 206 Research Design and Statistics
• Three 200-level PSYC courses

300-level

• PSYC 374 Health Psychology
• 45 points of 300-level PSYC courses

Students majoring in Public Health will develop knowledge and skills in science and health, experience in critical appraisal and scientific investigation, an understanding of values and ethics in health and the ability to apply these to improving health and wellbeing. Graduates will meet the knowledge components of the generic public health competencies and the health promotion competencies for New Zealand.

The major in Public Health aims to:

• provide a strong foundation in health sciences, with detailed knowledge in public health;
• equip students to meet the Aotearoa New Zealand competencies for public health, and health promotion (endorsed by the Health Promotion forum)
• provide the knowledge and skills to operate effectively in health sector organisations (such as Te Whatu Ora, health boards, primary care organisations, public health units, Māori health organisations, and non-governmental organisations)
• contribute to the health sector workforce by preparing students to work as effective members of multidisciplinary teams in the health sector
• contribute to meeting national health workforce development goals
• provide the required foundation for students who wish to undertake postgraduate study in health-related fields.

Graduates are able to work effectively as members of multidisciplinary teams. Examples of career pathways include community development roles in public health units, Te Whatu Ora, NGOs, local government, health promoters, public health analysts, and postgraduate students studying towards a research career in public health.

When planning your Public Health major, please select the following courses along with the compulsory courses for the Bachelor of Health Sciences. Find out how to plan your Bachelor of Health Sciences. 

100-level

• HLTH 111 Global Health

200-level

• HLTH 213 Health Systems and Policy
• HLTH 214 Environmental and Occupational Health

300-level

• HLTH 312 Health Planning, Implementation and Evaluation
• One course chosen from these options