Public Health Careers--Social and Behavioral Sciences
What are my job options in Social and Behavioral Sciences in Public Health with a Psychology degree?
Consider using your Psychology degree to begin a career in the Social and Behavioral Sciences in Public Health. Your career will involve investigating social and behavioral determinants of public health problems (e.g., alcohol and drug abuse, tobacco control, mental health, domestic violence, and prevention of STDs--including HIV), and you will work to encourage people to make healthy choices.
Graduate degrees in public health are offered at both the Master's level (Master of Public Health-MPH, Master of Science in Public Health-MSPH) and Doctoral level (Doctor of Public Health-DrPH, Doctor of Science in Public Health-ScD).
Master's programs in public health usually require 2 years of graduate school to complete your thesis research project. Typically you must pay tuition. A graduate degree such as an MPH or MSPH offers greater job opportunities and greater salary than a Bachelor’s degree--the same is true for a Doctoral degree. If you decide to pursue a Doctoral degree you should be aware that your training will emphasize creating new knowledge, and you will likely be aiming for a job at a college or university their career goal. It usually takes 4-6 years to earn a Docoral degree, and you must first earn a Master's degree at the same or a different university. Again it is typically the case that you must pay tuition in this type of Doctoral program.
Here is a site for specific job opportunities with a Masters in Public Health.
Salary Information
mediansalary.com lists the average yearly income for a Behavioral Science/Health Education worker at $59,000.
Click here to read important steps to Public Health Careers with a Graduate Degree.
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Click on the links below to read about other Public Health careers that only require a Bachelor's Degree:
Public Health Careers--Nutritionist/Dietician
Public Health Careers--Health Educator/Worker
Click on the links below to read about other Public Health careers that require a graduate degree:
Public Health Careers--Biostatistics
Public Health Careers--Environmental Health