HLTH 103Biological Determinants of Health
- Units
- 0.50
- Faculty
- Health
- Subject
- Public Health Sciences
When it runs
- F24
- W25
- S25
- F25
- W26
- S26
- F26
- W27
- S27
Ran in 3 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: not on the schedule. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.
This course is an introduction to the biological determinants of health designed for students who have little formal knowledge of biology, but who wish to train for careers in health promotion, public health or other social and community services.
Prerequisites
None listed.
Antirequisites
- Not completed nor concurrently enrolled in any of the following:
- BIOL130 - Introductory Cell Biology (0.50)
Leads to
No course lists it as a requisite.
Fall 2026 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 2856 | 42 / 50 | TTh 13:00–14:20 |
Reviewed on UW Flow
96% liked it90% easy90% useful
From 25 ratings and 6 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.
Narveen was an okay professor, the slides were confusing and so were her lectures in my opinion. The test material and assignments were easy. Ended with a 91.
Apr 2023 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Took this online during the pandemic - very boring course overall that covers the basics of Biology that are common sense.
Jan 2023 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this
Easier than BIOL 130! Similar content
Aug 2022 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
I found this course overlapped a lot with high school biology. The evaluations (question sets, quizzes, and discussion posts) for the online version of this course were fair but really depended on your TA. It had a lot of good information on basic human biology.
Dec 2020 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
This course was one of my favourite. It's a good review of basic biology and medical concepts. The prof was engaging, clear and helpful! Overall, a great course to take.
Apr 2015 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Discussed on r/uwaterloo
12 posts and comments in 11 threads mention HLTH 103, August 2017 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.
Spring 2024
Attending HLTH 201 1 point, 3 comments
u/Conscious-Dog-9197: “… I am aware that you should be attending all lectures and classes to do well, but some of my previous courses such as HLTH 101 or 103 or even HEALTH 107 I did decent in without attending many in-person lectures as most of the content was posted online and enough to do well on …”
Attending lectures 1 point, 1 comment
u/Conscious-Dog-9197: “… I am aware that you should be attending all lectures and classes to do well, but some of my previous courses such as HLTH 101 or 103 or even HEALTH 107 I did decent in without attending many in-person lectures as most of the content was posted online and enough to do well on …”
Winter 2024
Difference between Public Health and Health Science 4 points, 6 comments
“I saw that Public Health only requires Grade 12 English and Math, and requirement are lower, while Health Science requires more sciences, which requirement is higher. …”
u/tokyopearls: “hey! public health student here! We have really similar classes to health sci but the difference is we’re less science focused and focus on the bigger things in health; instead of focusing on the …”
u/tokyopearls: “in first semester, you’ll have HLTH 103, which is biology. It’s not the hardest and it’s much much easier than BIO130 which health science students will be taking. The admission average in my year (2022) was mid 80s to high 80s. I’m in coop so you need a higher avg”
Fall 2023
RANT (serious): Idk what to do and I'm scared of failing 10 points, 5 comments
“This is a serious post strictly for advice. I'm in public health (1A) and it's not the content that's hard (it's genuinely not) but I don't even know what I'm doing wrong since all the major …”
u/DerangedCuckooClock: “… For courses like hlth 103, a way that I found was effective to study was to rewrite notes, make cue cards key terms, and test yourself. …”
HLTH 103 term test 1 - how did you guys study for it? if you've gone through it, what are some ways to make sure you pass? i had to take a few days off due to health issues 2 points, 0 comments
Spring 2023
On a scale of 1-10, how difficult/easy are the core Health courses for Public Health and how is everything assessed? (HLTH103, HLTH101, HLTH107) 1 point, 5 comments
u/Flaky-Honey-7729: “The professors I have are: HLTH 107 - Michelle Ogrodnik HLTH 103 - Narveen Jardu HLTH 101 - Diane Williams”
u/Master_Inspector3718: “… Can’t speak on HLTH103 but from what I’ve heard it’s pretty light”
How's it like making friends in first year? + General Questions for an incoming first year 4 points, 4 comments
“I'm going into Public Health this September and really wanna make some new friends, the ones I had in high school weren't the best of people and I wanna move on from that side of life? …”
u/Miserable-Ad2744: “… to have a couple courses that line up to be the same for first term (HLTH 101, HEALTH 107, HLTH 103), and likewise for the next term (PSYCH 101 and HLTH 102). …”
Social science courses 1 point, 2 comments
u/S09s02: “… Would health courses (eg HLTH 101, 102, 103, 107, etc) count? …”
Spring 2022
best bird course for fall 2022 for year 1 student 0 points, 8 comments
“yo iam incoming math freshmen pls recommend me the birdies electives for math 2022 fall”
u/whateverrrrr11: “Health 105 (just ahs 105 renamed). It’s a birdy course available online. If you take it, just make sure to follow the rubric in terms of word limits bc that’s where ppl lost marks”
u/MacaroonDependent510: “And Hlth 103, I did take it”
Fall 2017
Any way to disable UWCourseLinker from posting? 16 points, 26 comments
“posting a reply to my comment I find the bot annoying.”
u/Jackhofmann: “PSYCH 483 PSYCH 484 PSYCH 485 PSYCH 486 PSYCH 490R PSYCH 499A PSYCH 499B PSYCH 499C PSYCH 621 PSYCH 630 PSYCH 677A PSYCH 704A PSYCH 704B PSYCH 707 PSYCH 710 PSYCH 714 PSYCH 717 PSYCH 720A PSYCH 721A …”
u/Jackhofmann: “… HIST 766 HIST 767 HIST 768 HIST 769 HIST 770 HIST 771 HIST 775 HIST 776 HIST 777 HLTH 101 HLTH 103 HLTH 173 HLTH 201 HLTH 202 HLTH 204 HLTH 273 HLTH 301 HLTH 303 HLTH 305 HLTH 320 HLTH 333 HLTH 340 HLTH 341 HLTH 344 HLTH 355 HLTH 405 HLTH 407 HLTH 410 HLTH 432A HLTH 432B HLTH …”
Spring 2017
6 Courses In A Term 1 point, 4 comments
“uhmmm so does anything actually happen if I enrol in a sixth course without asking my academic advisor first? I didn't know I had to until I started reading around some more.”
u/playa_arena: “You won't be able to without an override from your academic advisor unless you fulfil the requirements for six courses outlined by your faculty (For example, you can enrol in a sixth course without …”
u/Jo0203: “… My current timetable includes: AHS 107, BIOL 110, ENGL 109, HLTH 101, HLTH 103, MATH 104 Kind of complicated, but maybe not. Technically, BIOL 110 would be the sixth course because ENGL is required to take at some point in the first 2 years of PH to get the degree. …”
Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026
- Undergraduate Calendar, 2026–27The official entry
- Requirements for Fall 2026Waterloo’s requisite checker
- Schedule of Classes, Fall 2026Instructors, rooms, live seats
- Quest Class SearchWhere you enrol
- Course outlinesSyllabi from past terms (UW login)
- UW FlowStudent ratings and reviews
- WClassesPast sections back to 2004, and who taught them