By Public Health Professionals for Public Health Professionals

Trusted guidance to help advise public health professionals throughout their journey.

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Comprehensive Advice for Public Health Professionals

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Public Health Degree Career Options and Salaries

Entering the public health field isn’t as clear-cut as entering other fields where there’s a set career path or anticipated track to follow after completing a graduate degree.

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Unlocked: Finding Long-Term Career Opportunities with a Public Health Degree

There are many reasons to pursue a public health degree for graduate school, not the least of which is the potential for a varied and interesting career. In this article, we explore the potential pathways.

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What Areas Exist Within Public Health, Where to Start, And Where Do You Fit In?

While the need for public health practice has been great for quite some time, the COVID-19 pandemic propelled the general population’s understanding and awareness of the field substantially.

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Average GRE Scores for MPH Programs

There couldn’t be a larger need for a diverse public health workforce to tackle public health issues, both big and small. The role of MPH graduate programs is to train and mold this future workforce, and we will need a bright professional pool to think innovatively.

Editorial Integrity and our Promise to You.

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By public health experts and career coaches

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Fact-checked, sourced and researched

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Regularly updated and revised

Meet our Editorial Team and Contributors

Katherine Paul

Katherine Paul, MPH

Editorial Lead

Katherine Paul, MPH is a senior project manager at a leading medical communications and publications organization. She supports multidisciplinary teams handling large-scale accounts, the deliverables of which improve health outcomes and patient well-being. Ms. Paul holds a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree in Health Promotion from Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health and passed the Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES) shortly after graduation.

Articles by Katherine
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Wandia Mureithi, MPH

Contributor

Wandia Mureithi, MPH is a public health project manager working in research and evaluation. Wandia received her Master’s in Public Health from Drexel University in 2022. Since beginning her career in 2018, she has been engaged in research projects and program evaluations related to sexual health, human trafficking prevention, tobacco prevention, opioid misuse treatment, and diabetes prevention. 

Articles by Wandia

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Maura Boughter-Dornfeld, MPH

Contributor

Maura Boughter-Dornfeld, MPH, is a burgeoning health policy professional currently conducting research as a project manager of health policy and behavioral economics for one of the top universities in Philadelphia. Maura received her Masters of Public Health from Drexel University's Dornsife School of Public Health in 2020, concentrating in Health Management & Policy (with a specific focus on Health Policy).

Articles by Maura
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Melisa Gebizlioglu, MPH

Contributor

Melisa Gebizlioglu, MPH, is an experienced project manager at a nationally ranked Accountable Care Organization. Her current work focuses on seamless integration of electronic health records (EHR) to enhance care quality for patients. She has previously worked in health systems in the Greater Philadelphia area on numerous quality improvement and population health initiatives. She received her Master of Public Health degree from Drexel University.

Articles by Melisa
Kerra Henkin

Kerra Henkin, MPH, ML

Contributor

Kerra Henkin, MPH, ML, is a program manager at one of the largest academic medical centers in the country. In her current role, she aligns and expands programming with needs identified in the federally mandated community health needs assessment, and deploys organizational resources to support community health improvement. Ms. Henkin holds a Master of Public Health (MPH) and Master in Law (ML) from the University of Pennsylvania. She holds a Bachelors of Science in Health Sciences from Ithaca College.

Articles by Kerra
Julia Sturtz

Julia Sturtz

Contributor

Julia Sturtz is a graduate student currently pursuing her Master of Public Health (MPH) degree in epidemiology with a certificate in health policy and practice at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. At Columbia, she engages deeply in the community by serving as a peer advocate in the Sexual Violence Response program, a teaching assistant for multiple courses, a leader in the Student Well-Being Collective for Mental Health Literacy, and a mentor to first-year students in her certificate program. Academically, she is currently working toward completion of her thesis which focuses on psychiatric-physical comorbidities amongst the children of 9/11 first responders. 

Articles by Julia
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Jessica Weissman

Contributor

Jessica Weissman is a Masters student at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. At Mailman she studies in the Sociomedical Sciences Department and is pursuing a certificate in Sexuality, Sexual and Reproductive Health. Jess is interested in reducing health disparities for sexual and gender minority populations. Jessica holds a Bachelor of Science in Public Health from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Articles by Jessica

Popular Advice & Guides

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Is an MPH Worth It?

by Katherine Paul, MPH

Before asking whether a Masters in Public Health is worth the time, effort and commitment of a masters program, it’s worth asking first what a Masters in Public Health (MPH) degree is. MPH degrees are graduate degrees that are designed to teach students the principles of public health, including the prevention of illness and promotion of well-being, and to develop the skills necessary to become a public health professional upon graduation.

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Getting in and Graduating: Requirements for the Master’s in Public Health

by Wandia Mureithi, MPH

If you're interested in pursuing a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree, you’ll need a thorough understanding of the requirements for getting admitted and graduating. We’ll provide you with a guide of what you need to apply to and graduate from an accredited MPH program.

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Master of Public Health Specializations: What are they and how should you navigate the decision?

by Maura Boughter-Dornfeld, MPH

Picking a specialization in public health is like picking a major in college, only that much tougher. The ability to focus on public health as a content area has evolved to undergraduate as well as graduate school level studies. A public health degree is very sought after given how pervasive of a field it has become.

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Why Study Public Health?

by Katherine Paul, MPH

Public health is one of the fastest growing fields with excellent employment potential immediately after completing a master’s degree, but many people struggle to define the field1. Often, it’s determined by what it is not: someone working in public health is not a doctor, they are not an EMT, and they don’t see patients. So what do we mean by public health and what does someone working in the field do? 

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Attributes For Success As A Public Health Professional

by Maura Boughter-Dornfeld, MPH

We aim to outline some key skillsets that would be beneficial to individuals within all avenues of public health and will ideally support sustaining one’s role within the field.

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One Year MPH Programs: An Accelerated Master of Public Health Graduate Degree

by Maura Boughter-Dornfeld, MPH

In this article we hope to provide a paradigm to help navigate this decision and go deeper into what makes an accelerated, one year MPH appealing.

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MSPH or MPH: Which is the right degree for you?

by Maura Boughter-Dornfeld, MPH

Luckily, the difference between an MSPH and an MPH can be clearly delineated, fitting differently into the scope of what might come next for you. Read on to see which degree might be more appropriate for your needs and next steps.

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MPH Application Timeline

The application process is lengthy and stressful, and the following article will provide an overview of the MPH application process and timeline to aid in this application process.

Recent Advice

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The Best MPH Program For You: A Guide for your Evaluation and Selection Process

by Editorial Contributor

A wealth of incredible MPH programs are available to students looking to enter the public health field. Learn how to choose the best program for you.

Online MPH Programs: Benefits, Job Opportunities, and Costs

by Katherine Paul, MPH

This article will explore many of these questions to help guide your higher education decision-making process and focus on an online master of public health programs.

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