Hey everyone,
I am in the process of finishing up my MS in psychology, but have decided instead of pursuing a PhD in psych (which was my initial intention) I would like to switch gears and go towards public health... probably epidemiology. And one of the key questions I keep debating about is whether to go for a MPH or a PhD. In a certain sense already having one masters it seems foolish to go right out and get another, but if a PhD is not really crucial to go far in the public health field (which is what I've heard)then its not really worth the extra years. So I was curious as to what people's opinions are for the worth of a PhD. I want to do research, don't really want to teach, so would I be ok and make good money with just a MPH?? And how realistic is it to get into a PhD program with no actual public health experience?
Also funding is a very big issue. I was very fortunate to find an MS program in Psych where I got full funding and an assistanship, but I still have my loans to pay off from undergrad and I really would not like to add to much onto that. I've been looking at various programs: Univ of Minn, Yale, Columbia, UPitt, etc but funding seems to be a rare thing. Are there good MPH programs that do provide a good amount of funding for students?
I am in the process of finishing up my MS in psychology, but have decided instead of pursuing a PhD in psych (which was my initial intention) I would like to switch gears and go towards public health... probably epidemiology. And one of the key questions I keep debating about is whether to go for a MPH or a PhD. In a certain sense already having one masters it seems foolish to go right out and get another, but if a PhD is not really crucial to go far in the public health field (which is what I've heard)then its not really worth the extra years. So I was curious as to what people's opinions are for the worth of a PhD. I want to do research, don't really want to teach, so would I be ok and make good money with just a MPH?? And how realistic is it to get into a PhD program with no actual public health experience?
Also funding is a very big issue. I was very fortunate to find an MS program in Psych where I got full funding and an assistanship, but I still have my loans to pay off from undergrad and I really would not like to add to much onto that. I've been looking at various programs: Univ of Minn, Yale, Columbia, UPitt, etc but funding seems to be a rare thing. Are there good MPH programs that do provide a good amount of funding for students?