Public Health and Sport Sciences

Public Health

The Department of Public Health and Sports Sciences is the central hub for public health research at the University of Exeter. We house SPHERE: the University of Exeter's membership of the NIHR School for Public Health Research, a mark of distinction in research excellence. 

Improving public health through education

We lead an innovative Masters in Public Health programme, a Masters in Environment and Human Health, and CPD courses.

In addition, we supervise public health registrars on the Health Education England South West Public Health (SWPH) training scheme and provide public health training to students on our undergraduate medicine programme.

Research excellence to solve public health problems

Our public health research focuses primarily on five areas of excellence:

Two students looking out over a harbour and chatting

Natural Environment and Health

Five children running together, laughing and jostling each other

Children and Young People’s Mental Health

An older couple running together

Healthy Lives for Older Adults

Petri dish with orange growth

Antimicrobial Resistance

A pile of multicoloured fruit and vegetables, including carrots, apples, cabbage, tomatoes, peppers and potatoes

Food and Nutrition

We are an interdisciplinary group, with backgrounds in epidemiology, psychology, sociology, geography, medicine and nursing, as well as more traditional public health training. We work together to address complex public health problems. 

Expertise and capabilities

We have a strong reputation for our methodological expertise, particularly in the following areas:

A group of people talking together

Impact

We have an excellent track record of regional, national and international impact. All of our work is motivated by a drive to deliver meaningful impact that reduces health inequalities and improves people’s lives.

Find out more about the real-world impact of our research:

Partnerships

Although we are housed in the Department of Public Health and Sport Sciences, we also work closely with our colleagues across the University who conduct public health research, including:

We also work closely with a range of non-academic partners including the World Health Organisation, the NHS and a wide variety of private and voluntary organisations.