Public Health (MPH)

What is A Public Health (MPH) Degree?

Public Health as a field is sort of hard to define.  It basically involves making sure that all people in a society or community are provided with an environment that is healthy to live in.  Most people look to the government to provide environmental controls like water and air testing and treatment, regulations that control how factories invade the environment with smoke and toxic water run-off, and laws about products and their threats to human life and health. So public health officials do these things and also try to make sure that sufficient personnel and services are there to meet the medical needs of the residents.  Citizens have high expectations for this service.

The Master’s degree in Public Health will prepare you to use an evidence-based approach to addressing public health problems to bring about positive change. You’ll learn how to analyze data, design and implement solutions, and assess the solutions for effectiveness. Most programs include core courses in things like integrative methods, health systems law/policy, leadership and management, and community and population health, followed by a sequence of courses in a selected concentration area which might include environmental health, health policy and law, epidemiology and biostatistics, or global health programs.  Depending on the program, it may be possible to couple your primary area with a particular context, like a maternal and child health setting or a human rights and social justice emphasis.  With the MPH degree you’ll be able to work as an epidemiologist, health administrator, health informatics officer, as well as in other professional positions.

The video below discusses a “typical” program, so it should help regardless of which school you are considering.