What Can You Study in Public Health?

Public health is the study and practice of protecting and improving the health of populations rather than treating one patient at a time. In US higher education it is organized as a set of shared core ideas plus a number of specialty areas, offered at bachelor's, master's and doctoral levels. This guide describes what that looks like in practice and where program details differ. It is a general overview, not a catalog of every program; use the school's own pages for the exact curriculum.

The shared core

Programs that are accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) have to show that graduates are grounded in a common body of knowledge. For master's and doctoral students, the 2024 CEPH criteria list learning objectives under two headings. The first, the profession and science of public health, includes public health history, philosophy and values, the core functions of public health, the role of quantitative and qualitative methods in assessing a population's health, and the science of prevention. The second, factors related to human health, includes environmental, biological and genetic, behavioral and psychological factors, and the cultural, social, political and economic determinants of health.

For bachelor's degrees in public health, the same criteria list eleven foundational domains. They include basic statistics, the foundations of biological and life sciences, the history and philosophy of public health, data collection and analysis, population health, project planning and evaluation, the structure of the US health system, legal, ethical, economic and regulatory dimensions of health policy, and public health communication.

In practical terms, this means almost every public health student, whatever the specialty, takes courses in statistics, health systems and policy, and the social and environmental influences on health.

Areas of study

ASPPH, the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health, lists nine common areas of study:

1. Behavioral and social science
2. Biostatistics and informatics
3. Epidemiology
4. Environmental health
5. Global health
6. Health policy and management
7. Health promotion and communication
8. Maternal and child health
9. Minority health and health disparities

ASPPH's page presents these as a list without detailed descriptions, and it describes them as common, not exhaustive. Schools name and group their concentrations differently. One school may have a single "epidemiology" track, another may split it into infectious disease and chronic disease, and a third may fold it into a broader "population health" concentration. If you are interested in one area, such as epidemiology, look at the actual course list rather than the track name.

CEPH's criteria add a useful point about naming. A "concentration" is any area of study that a school advertises in its catalog or website. If a program does not name a concentration, it is by default treated as a "generalist" degree. So a generalist MPH is a normal, recognized option and not a lesser one; it simply means you will not carry a named specialty on your degree.

Degree levels

ASPPH's degree guide describes the main levels this way:

• Bachelor's (BS, BA, BSPH). These lay the groundwork for a public health career and prepare graduates for entry-level jobs at health departments, nonprofits and private-sector employers. ASPPH notes that you do not need one of these degrees to apply to a graduate public health program. The page does not explain how the BS, BA and BSPH differ; see BA vs BS in public health.
• Master of Public Health (MPH). ASPPH calls it the most common graduate degree at CEPH-accredited programs and describes it as aimed at professional practice rather than teaching or research. See MPH degrees.
• MS and MHS. Academic degrees for students who want to teach or do research, typically leading to a doctorate. See MPH vs MSPH.
• Master of Health Administration (MHA). ASPPH describes it as preparing students for leadership in hospital administration, health policy and health service management. See public health vs healthcare administration.
• Doctoral degrees (PhD, ScD, DrPH). ASPPH describes the PhD as preparing students for teaching and research, groups the ScD with it, and describes the DrPH as an applied research degree for senior leadership roles in public health practice. See DrPH vs PhD and the DrPH degree page.

What a typical program asks you to do

For the MPH, CEPH's criteria require that students complete applied practice experiences and an integrative learning experience near the end of the program. The applied practice experience can take several forms, including a practicum or internship, course-based projects, service learning or a mix, and students must produce practical work products for a partner organization. The integrative learning experience is a culminating written product, which may come from a capstone course, a practice-based project or a comprehensive essay exam. CEPH also sets a minimum MPH length of 42 semester credits, 56 quarter credits or the equivalent. Individual schools may require more.

If you are looking at the master's level, these three things (core courses, practice experience, culminating project) are worth comparing across schools, because the quality and structure differ even when the requirements are all met.

How to narrow your options

Start with the question you want to work on rather than the degree title. Some people are drawn to data and disease patterns, some to community programs, some to policy, some to environmental exposures, and some to global settings. Then ask:

• Does the school offer a named concentration in that area, or a generalist degree with electives?
• Which courses make up the concentration, and how many credits are they?
• What kinds of practice sites does the school place students in?
• Is the program on campus, online, or hybrid? See online MPH practicums and campus requirements.

ASPPH offers an Academic Program Finder that lets you compare accredited programs by location, specialization, degree type or keyword. On this site you can browse by state, by subject, and side by side with the compare tool. The directory does not claim to list every program in the country, so check the school and the accreditor directly before relying on any listing; our methodology page explains what we include.

Things that are easy to assume wrongly

• Public health is not clinical training. A public health degree is an academic qualification. It does not on its own license you to treat patients. Separate credentials, such as the CHES health education credential, have their own requirements; see public health careers and further study.
• Accredited does not mean identical. CEPH accreditation shows that a school or program meets a published set of criteria, but programs still differ in size, specialties and teaching approach. See understanding public health accreditation.
• Concentration names are not standard. Two programs with the same track name can have different course lists.

Where to go next

If you are still deciding on level, read how to choose an MPH program once you know you want a master's. If you are earlier in the process, the bachelor's guide may help more. Either way, confirm current details, such as curriculum and admission requirements, with the school.