About the School

Founded in July 2007, the School of Public Health is a new interdisciplinary entity at the University of Saskatchewan that offers innovative opportunities for graduate training, public health research and programming to ensure our public health system is responsive to future health challenges.  Working closely with the various research centres and leading national and international scientists, industry experts and practitioners within the University of Saskatchewan, the School of Public Health offers academic and research excellence in a number of areas, such as:  

• Aboriginal peoples’ health
• Agricultural and rural public health
• Applied public health
• Environmental health 
• Global health
• Human-animal interface in infectious disease
• Social and behavioural health
• Vaccinology and immunotherapeutics

Graduate students enrolled in the School of Public Health have access to many world-class research facilities at the University of Saskatchewan:

• The Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) – The WCVM has research expertise in areas such as environmental water safety and quality, food safety and quality, and the epidemiology of animal-borne human disease, such as West Nile virus and cryptosporidium. The WCVM hosts the Canadian centre that monitors and reports on wild animal diseases across Canada, such as chronic wasting disease in deer and elk.
• Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO) – VIDO is a world leader in research on infectious diseases, with strength and expertise in study of disease pathogenesis and the development of novel vaccines and vaccination technologies. VIDO has achieved five world firsts in vaccine developments, has been awarded 80 patents and has more than 30 patents pending.
• The Canadian Light Source (CLS) – The CLS is Canada’s only high-energy synchrotron. It is a $135 million dollar facility that produces high-energy light so bright that it allows scientists to “see” the molecular structure of matter. Medical beam lines enable high-resolution imaging of protein structures to help create better vaccines.
• Innovation Place - Adjacent to the University of Saskatchewan, Innovation Place is one of the most successful university-related research parks in North America. It is home to many organizations within the research and development community in Saskatchewan, particularly in biotechnology and other applied sciences.

In addition, the University of Saskatchewan is currently constructing two facilities that will be of great importance to the School of Public Health. These include:

• Academic Health Sciences Complex – This $100 million facility will house interdisciplinary health sciences education and state-of-the-art research laboratories. The new building will ensure a top-quality environment for health sciences education, and will be the home of the School of Public Health. (Click here for a fly-by video of the Academic Health Sciences Complex)
• International Vaccine Centre (InterVac) – The University of Saskatchewan has started construction on a $140 million facility which will be one of the largest vaccine research laboratories in North America. InterVac will be a biosafety Level 3 containment facility, which will allow research on diseases such as hepatitis C, SARS, HIV, tuberculosis and avian influenza.