Society & Behavior or Nutrition or ....??

[MPHopeful]

I am very interested in pursuing a career in public health but can't seem to find 'real life' descriptions of my areas of interest.

My background (undergrad and grad) is in a social science discipline, so I'm naturally drawn to Society and Behavior subfield. I'm also very interested in nutrition and have considered becoming an RD.

I'm concerned that these subfields don't pay very well. 35k, 45k -no way!
Are there any subspecialties that do pay a decent wage?

Anybody in these subfields out there? Any advice?

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[jasmine2018]

Well it depends on what exactly you'd want to do after your degree. If you work for a big company (i.e. pharma) you certainly have the potential to bring in 6 digit salaries down the line. If you work for an NGO, you may just scrape by. Then there's government work, research institutions (private or university), etc - many different industries. Do you want to do research in your subdiscipline, practice, program management, etc? There are many different options and generally your wage will depend on the industry you enter. Honestly, the highest paying discipline would be epidemiology (the skills acquired are highly valued by all industries). Should you prefer the subdisciplines you've chosen, you should be fine - but again, much depends on the industry you enter if you have concerns about salary.

 

[MPHopeful]

Thanks for the advice.

I know I'm not interested in teaching at all. I'd rather do research or possibly practice.
I'd prefer either a research (NIH) setting or corporate setting rather than an on the ground clinic. To be honest I'm more comfortable working with information than with people.

I can work with people for research as long as I get to choose the population and topic.
How can I learn more about MPH work in a corporate setting?
Does a researcher at a research institution like NIH/university have choice over their research?

 

[jasmine2018]

Sounds like what you want to do is in line with what my career is focused on (research and practice). As for places to work, some companies/institutes to consider are: Mathematica, Research Triangle International (RTI), John Snow Inc (JSI), Family Health International (FHI), Pfizer, Merck, Amgen, Analytica, etc, etc. The list is endless! Do a google search on some of these places to get their websites and take a look at their employment opps just to get an idea of what kinds of jobs there are out there and what the requirements are. Generally, if you go corporate, you have much less say in terms of what research you'd like to do. These companies will pay you the big bucks, but it is to do THEIR research. Other places may be more flexible. You also have way more leverage in terms of dictating what research you do if you have a PhD rather than just a master's. This is the case at the NIH, CDC, and other government institutions. Finally, the depts of health of big cities also do lots of both research and practice so that's another avenue to consider - esp if you do research more focused on urban environments or relating to municipal health policy.

As an aside, once in an MPH program, you'll have access to the career services at your school so you'll be exposed to a large number of employment opps from many organizations. Also, if you go to conferences while in your program, many of these organizations have booths (like at APHA) where you can talk more about what it's like to work in specific industries - and you can drop your resume. Many big corps show up to these things. Many also have summer internships opps.

 

[MPHopeful]

Thanks Jasmine 2018!
I'm not sure I want to go Pharma but your comments did help point me in a new direction.

 

[hawkmoon269]

I don't have specific job info but I did want to point you to a potential alternative to an MPH. (I've been looking into all sorts of programs this year to try and get at the degree/career I really want.) Tufts' Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy offers an MS in "Food Policy and Applied Nutrition" which appealed to me because of the whole-picture/social science aspect coupled with hard data and research. It would depend on the sort of research you're imagining yourself doing (policy/number-crunching versus bench/microscope-wielding) - but I'm guessing from your previous background, it might be the former? If so, definitely worth a look: http://nutrition.tufts.edu/

Good luck!!

 

[MPHopeful]

Thanks hawkmoon269. The program does look good especially the communications and policy specialies. I've requested more information from the admissions office.

 

[hawkmoon269]

Awesome! I've applied to the Fletcher School at Tufts and I hope to take courses at Friedman, too. Maybe I'll see you there down the road!

 

[dreamsicle]

What kind of starting salary could one expect working in pharma in these kinds of quantitative/research capacities? Thanks. Many people have been telling me that as far as MPH degrees go, the only way to get real remuneration in a decent salary is through the healthcare administration track...is this true?

 

[jasmine2018]

What kind of starting salary could one expect working in pharma in these kinds of quantitative/research capacities? Thanks. Many people have been telling me that as far as MPH degrees go, the only way to get real remuneration in a decent salary is through the healthcare administration track...is this true?

Healthcare admin is definitely not the only way to rake in the $$. Epidemiologists can also bring it in, and are highly recruited by pharma. The starting salary I was offered after my master's (in epi) was in the 6-digit range, but you must keep in mind that I had also been out in the workforce for many years. Other friends who are currently in pharma (all epidemiologists) also earn over 6 digits but started off at about the $70-80,000 range right out of the master's. Anyway, much depends on the company and location (i.e. salaries in NYC will be higher) but the take-home pay is nice. The major downside is that it is a corporate life and you have minimal say in what research you end up doing (a negative only if you have strong interests one way or another). But, it is a way to kill off some of that school debt.

 

[dreamsicle]

So basically epi or admin are the two areas with decent paying jobs? I would be coming into my mph with a nonscience degree, so I'm not sure I would satisfy epi pre-reqs without having taken the science/math basics, unless, there is still a way? What other areas in pub health are decent salary-wise? Thanks again for replying.

 

[MPHopeful]

I would be coming into my mph with a nonscience degree, so I'm not sure I would satisfy epi pre-reqs without having taken the science/math basics, unless, there is still a way? What other areas in pub health are decent salary-wise? Thanks again for replying.

Yeah same here.
Anyone know about Social Behavioral Research at the NIH, CDC etc?
How difficult is it to get a position at places like this? How well do they pay?