What is Public Health?

"The Mission of Public Health is fulfilling society’s interest in assuring conditions in which people can be healthy.”

The Future of Public Health.  Institute of Medicine, 1988

Public health professionals represent a critical resource to maintaining and/or promoting the conditions in which people can be healthy. As opposed to focusing on individual-level clinical care, public health professionals focus on implementing population-level strategies to promote health

So Why Chose a Career in Public Health?

1. Public health offers many varied career pathways.

The discipline of public health offers numerous dynamic career pathways. Public health professionals work in a variety of different areas (such as environmental health, communicable disease, maternal and child health), settings (for example, governmental agencies, hospitals, community-based organizations), and position types (such as, health educator, epidemiologist, community health program manager). Hence, you can tailor your career pathway to your interests and strengths.

2. To make a difference in your community.

The U.S. has made significant strides in addressing many of the disease and injuries that plagued our country in the early 20th century due to the implementation of public health measures such as immunizations, improved sanitation, and facilitating the adoption of healthy behaviors. However, much work remains to address the burden of chronic diseases, emerging infectious diseases, and injury. Public health professionals are vital front-line workers needed to improve the health of all community members.

3. Because as aptly stated by C. Everett Koop “Health care matters to some of us some of the time but public health matters to all of us all of the time.”  What is Public Health?  Association of Schools of Public Health, 2008.

Why Study Public Health at UNH?

The UNH MPH and PHC Programs are designed to provide current and aspiring public health professionals with the core competencies needed to be an effective public health professional. Key strengths of our Program include:

• Quality faculty – faculty come from a range of public health practice settings (academic, private, governmental) and bring their knowledge and “real world” experiences to the classroom.
• Applied Focus – Coursework focuses on the application of knowledge to the “real world” of public health practice
• Small class sizes
• Affordable Tuition. UNH’s tuition is lower than that of most other New England universities offering MPH Programs. In addition, because the MPH Program is offered at UNH Manchester, tuition for out-of-state students is only 10% above the in-state rate.
• An evening class schedule that accommodates working professionals
• Convenient location off the 1-293 Interstate in Manchester, NH

See what our Alumni are saying about the Program

The UNH MPH program helped me to not only learn about some of the most pressing issues of our day, but provided me with the knowledge and credentials to pursue a new career. –Patrick Miller, Research Associate Professor NH Institute for Health Policy and Practice, UNH

The UNH MPH program has provided me with the knowledge, tools and expertise I was looking for, and it has already helped me to further my career in the public health arena. –Rick Rumba, Environmental Health Program Administrator NH Department of Environmental Services

The MPH program at UNH fostered my understanding, for the first time, of the interconnectedness of public health. By leading me through a progression of courses addressing the various aspects of public health and how they relate to one another, I am now able to make those connections and appreciate the implications of policies and issues for public health that I did not have previously. I have developed a much deeper appreciation of the power and necessity of public health to take the lead in setting priorities and to address critical issues facing our society today. –Maureen Quinn, Public Health Analyst, US Dept. of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration