Hi, all,
My question is below, but first a bit of background:
I'm a current MPH student studying in the health education track of my degree program. Academically, my MPH program doesn't offer a plan of study specific to mental health (i.e., there is no mental health certificate or concentration available), an interest I realized I had a bit late in the game.
So, my question is: with an MPH in a standard track (health education), is it redundant to get an MHS (master of health science) as a second master's degree? The one I'm thinking of is an MHS offered at John's Hopkins in the Department of Mental Health. The Hopkins DMH master's tracks are very specific (e.g., psychiatric epi), so the training is not as broad as an MPH.
Again, is this redundant? Would employers think I got the same degree twice? Or would I be more marketable for public mental health jobs because I would have a broad understanding of public health (MPH in health education) as well as a very specific skill set (MHS in psychiatric epi)?
Thanks in advance for your input on all these questions.
First, woohoo!
😀 It is great to see someone else also interested in mental health. I hold a doctorate in clinical psychology, currently finishing my postdoc fellowship. I will be pursuing my MPH this fall.
I see your dilemma. Mental health is typically a separate issue from public health, though the mental well being of a population is obviously a public health concern. Why mental health is separate from public health is a discussion for another day.
😉 Public health programs typically lack or have limited mental health related coursework. Your program is not unique in this regard. I would argue that the closest concentration/track that may reflect mental health issues is the social and behavioral concentration and, to a lesser degree, the community health concentration. Programs that do integrate mental health into public health curriculum include UCLA, Columbia, UNC, and U of Michigan.
The MHS at Hopkins is an excellent program. The curriculum is specific to mental health, and while it takes a public health approach to conceptualizing and addressing mental health issues, this approach is not redundant with other public health programs in general and with health education in particular. You will be knee deep in mental health with the Hopkins MHS. The curriculum emphasizes research skills, including technical skills. These are highly valued in the job sector. I do think the MHS is a different degree than the MPH in health education. However, this does not address why you want the MHS on top of the MPH.
You have to make a convincing argument (for admissions officers as well as prospective employers) why you want to pursue the MHS on top of the degree you already have. Will the MHS be supplementary or complementary to your MPH? What will the MHS offer that the MPH did not provide with regards to your short-term and long-term goals, above and beyond your interest in mental health? This latter question is a critical one because employers can teach content but want technical skills. In other words is it not possible to learn the content of mental health in the job without having to pursue the MHS? For instance, you might be a health educator in a college campus, and in the job, you may have opportunities to collaborate with the counseling center there to initiate and develop programming specific to the mental well being of the students. You do not need a separate MHS to do this. If you wish to pursue a research career, I can see how the Hopkins MHS, which is heavily research based anyway, may be ultimately the right path to take. My suggestion is to reflect on what kind of job you wish to do and work your way backwards. Is the MHS necessary?
A case in point is my experience. While a doctoral degree is advantageous as an applicant, I made sure to address in my personal statement why I want to pursue another degree - in this case, the MPH with a focus on health policy. I am interested in mental health policy and see myself as a policy advisor/consultant in the longer term. In my view I could not do this with only the doctorate, particularly since my training is heavily clinical. Having said that, I would not have wanted my experience any differently. I am glad to have pursued the doctorate because in the last 6 years it has given me an invaluable lens through which mental health policy affect my patients. In a way I have fieldwork experience with the very population that is directly affected by health policy.
Can you make a similar argument with the MHS? This is something to consider.
Good luck!
