Study Public Health
The Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) curriculum is for students who want to apply the degree to social and behavioral sciences, while the Bachelor of Science (B.S.) is for students who are interested in a broad-based natural science.
December 11, 2023 | Erin Bluvas, bluvase@sc.edu
Attending USC was a forgone conclusion for JohnAndrew Redmond. The Charleston, South Carolina native is a triple legacy, with both of his parents and his grandfather attending the state’s flagship university.
It was his mother’s footsteps that he decided to follow most closely. An alumna of the Arnold School, Ashley Redmond completed a Master of Public Health in Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior in 1999 – her second Gamecock degree.
“My mom has worked in health care all her life,” Redmond says of the nonprofit and health care executive. “She has been my inspiration and mentor the whole way.”
To learn more about the world of public health, Redmond spent several years working in a health care setting. At Roper St. Francis in his hometown, he learned the ends and outs of hospital life. Beginning as a patient transporter and working his way up to team lead, Redmond managed logistics, monitored vitals, trained team members and learned various programs and systems.
Though a valuable experience, he discovered his true passion during an introduction to environmental health sciences course at the Arnold School. Chair Geoff Scott taught the class and quickly became a mentor.
He got his feet wet with the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium, serving as a community engagement intern on a project related to heat changes in the Charleston area. Working with Scott at his National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences-funded Center for Oceans and Human Health and Climate Change Interactions, Redmond has been researching the presence of Vibrio vulnificus – a bacteria that can cause life-threatening wound infections – along the Eastern seaboard.
“Dr. Scott is passionate and charismatic, and I would not be where I am without him,” Redmond says. “Dr. Dwayne Porter and Dr. Daniel Kilpatrick have also provided amazing guidance for what my academic and professional paths will look like and how to navigate all the options after undergrad.”
Those post-graduate plans include entering directly into the Master of Public Health in Environmental Health Sciences program after his December graduation. With interests in climate change and disaster response, Redmond plans to study how humans interact with their environment. He also plans to learn more about how he can leverage geospatial and remote sensing analysis to better understand science.
Long-term, Redmond would like to work for the Department of Defense or with a federal agency to work toward making the United States a better and safer place. For those considering a career in public health and/or environmental health sciences, he has some advice.
“Public health is a diverse subject and can lead to many career paths,” Redmond says. “There is something for everyone and the faculty are amazing.”
