What does a bachelor’s in public health mean?

A public health bachelor's is an undergraduate degree program covering community health practices and policies, epidemiology and biostatistics, and responses to disease outbreaks and emergencies. Public health differs from healthcare administration and management, which focus on care delivery in healthcare facilities.

How does public health differ from medicine?

Medicine focuses on treating medical conditions in individual patients, while public health focuses on protecting and maintaining the health of larger populations. To these ends, medicine emphasizes diagnostics, treatments, and their deployment in healthcare settings, while public health deals more with disease prevention and management.

Is public health the same as healthcare administration?

No, public health has a community-wide focus that extends beyond clinical environments into field settings. Healthcare administration deals exclusively with care delivery issues in hospitals, clinics, and similar institutions.

Is a public health major the same as nursing?

No, public health programs explore practices for maintaining community health, preventing disease, managing disease outbreaks and emergencies, and conducting fieldwork and research. Nursing programs teach methods for providing direct care to patients with illnesses, injuries, or other medical conditions.

Is a bachelor's in public health hard?

Whether or not you find your studies in public health difficult depends on your proficiencies, knowledge, and strengths as a student. Public health coursework includes technical topics like epidemiology and biostatistics, which engage advanced scientific perspectives and mathematics. You may find these courses particularly challenging, especially if you don't already come from a STEM-focused knowledge background.

Bachelor's degrees in public health

If you aspire to have a career in public health, a bachelor's degree in public health makes an excellent start. Find public health bachelor's programs and learn where the degree can take you.

Explore online bachelor’s in public health programs

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Why pursue an online bachelor's in public health degree?

Qualify for advanced public health education

A public health bachelor's is an ideal educational base for an MS or master's in public health.

Learn healthcare research methods

Public health professionals rely on evidence-based methodologies. Bachelor's programs build important research proficiencies.

Impact community health

Whether you work in a frontline or behind-the-scenes role, you'll have many opportunities to positively impact your community in your public health career.

Browse online bachelor’s in public health programs

What jobs can you get with an online bachelor's in public health degree?

Public health bachelor's degrees lead most directly to entry-level positions with community-focused health agencies. You can also work in research or the private sector, particularly in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries.

Some of the specific careers you could pursue include:

Community health worker
Environmental science specialist
Health educator
Pharmaceutical sales representative

While job duties vary by role, these career paths generally leverage your specialized knowledge of public health research methods and practices to protect and improve community-wide health outcomes.

With experience and/or advanced degrees, you can grow into management-level roles in pharmaceutical sales, medical services management, or healthcare administration.

Salary expectations and career outlook for public health

Here are some of the roles available to professionals with a bachelor's in public health degree, with salary and job outlook data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS):

Community health worker

These frontline professionals implement health programs and connect people with health-focused services and resources to help people embrace healthy habits.

Median annual salary (May 2023): $48,200
Projected job growth (2023-33): +13%

Environmental science specialist

Public health-focused environmental scientists conduct studies and research into environmental conditions or events that could impact the health of nearby human populations.

Median annual salary (May 2023): $78,980
Projected job growth (2023-33): +7%

Health educator

Health educators design and lead programs that teach community members about specific health and safety practices.

Median annual salary (May 2023): $62,860
Projected job growth (2023-33): +7%

Pharmaceutical sales representative

These professionals help pharmaceutical manufacturers market medicines with the potential to positively impact community health.

Median annual salary (May 2023): $99,710
Projected job growth (2023-33): +3%

What can you learn in an online bachelor's in public health program?

Public health bachelor's programs typically cover community health advocacy, public health research methods, and responses to public health emergencies and disease outbreaks.

You can pursue a generalist degree or a concentration in a focused field, such as:

Clinical health
Gerontological health
Health service administration
Public health policy
School health

Whether you opt for a general or specialized degree, your program will typically cover about 120 semester credits. General public health courses in your curriculum may include:

Fundamentals of epidemiology
Health informatics and biostatistics
Human anatomy and physiology
Human behavior and public health
Public health policy and program design

Many programs include optional or mandatory fieldwork components, such as research practicums or internships. If you elect to learn online, remember that you must complete these requirements in person.

Related bachelor's degrees in public health

Bachelor's in health administration: Health administration programs focus on care delivery in healthcare facilities. They typically cover topics like operations management, healthcare technologies, compliance standards, and ethics.
Bachelor's in nursing: Bachelor's programs in nursing train students for frontline careers in healthcare delivery and prepare them to become licensed registered nurses. They mainly focus on nursing science with supplementary coverage of research, leadership, and other practical topics.
Bachelor's in health science: These versatile interdisciplinary programs combine the study of biology, physiology, and healthcare delivery with psychology, sociology, and other social science topics.