Decisions! Environmental Health Sciences in Industrial Hygiene

[roger0770]

Hello Everyone,

I am currently in a dilemma, and I am seeking advice from people to make the best decision. So here is my situation. I graduated from college in the summer of 2010, and got a job working as a health & safety specialist primarily doing compliance and safety type of work at university research laboratories. I like my job, and I love what I do, so I decided to pursue a MPH in industrial hygiene / hazardous substances. I honestly do not know what schools I wanted to go to, so I applied 10 schools this past fall. I am fortunate to have choices of where to go, but I am also trying to think if it's a good move to let go of my current job (which pays awesome). So I am debating what I should do that is the most practical and helpful financially and professionally.

Choice 1
Michigan School of Public Health - highly ranked and a great school to attend, but tuition is ~39k / year as an out of state student + living expense.

Choice 2
Tulane School of Public Health & Tropical Medicine - distance learning, which allows me to keep my current job w/ a steady income, partial tuition assistance from employer, but I am not sure the career / job outcome vs. a highly ranked school.

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[OneDay81]

Tulane is not THAT low ranked and it does have a good reputation, so having a degree from there should not be looked at as a possible disadvantage. It seems like the best option for you - as long as you feel that each program will meet your needs - may be Tulane. Although you will miss the classroom experience and face interaction with the professors, you will have a job during and after the program (hopefully) and assistance paying for it. You aren't really looking to make a career change, so I think the online program might work just fine for you.

 

[codym]

Tulane.

Tulane.

Tulane.

 

[Stories]

If you like your job now, have you considered doing a local part-time program where you could still work while studying towards the MPH? That way, you gain more experience at your job, learn new skills at the MPH that could be used to move up within your current position, and worry less about debt.

You'll also not have to worry about finding a new job at graduation.

 

[roger0770]

If you like your job now, have you considered doing a local part-time program where you could still work while studying towards the MPH? That way, you gain more experience at your job, learn new skills at the MPH that could be used to move up within your current position, and worry less about debt.

You'll also not have to worry about finding a new job at graduation.

yes, i did. i applied to berkeley, but still waiting to hear from them.

 

[biscuitbitty]

I am also an industrial hygienist. Many of my supervisors have said that they believe that they learned more in "on the job training" as an IH then they have ever learned in school, which I can definitely understand. IH is very hands on and requires a lot of field work, especially because the field itself is very multidisciplinary and requires knowledge about a lot of different stuff. Trying to learn IH theoretically without working in the field can be difficult, but im sure that could be said for a lot of fields. you want to chose the option thats going to prepare you for the CIH exam in the best way. employers tend to care more about the certification than the degree. IMO that would be working and going to school but that can be a little daunting for your personal life/happiness. also ive found that with schools who offer online programs, you find graduates all over the place. generally for graduate school, people suggest that you go to school where you want to work because thats pretty much where the network extends. thats not the case with tulane. either way, hygienists more or less make good money and 40k is not toooooooooooooo bad.