Undergrad student seeking advice

[UniStudent]

Hello everyone,

I am currently enrolled in an undergraduate program studying business. However, I am extremely passionate about health and worked in public health (for the municipal government) for 4 years and was also involved in a number of health promotion initiatives. Also, now at university I am involved in an international health promotion project (going abroad to promote health education).

I decided to go into business since I wanted to keep all my doors open and the school was fairly reputable. After my first year I realized that I am not interested in the traditional business courses (e.g. finance, accounting) and I am considering switching into a different degree. I am also not very interested in the "hard" sciences (e.g. chemistry, biology). I am considering pursuing a degree in psychology, sociology or international development (or a combination - e.g. major/minor). My long-term goals are to work in a government setting (I am very interested in policy development) and pursue a MPH.

Upon researching, I noticed that many MPH programs provide a "Health Policy & Management" track. Since I would be interested in the policy part, I would assume a business background in undergrad would be a plus for this concentration? I could also focus on social/behavioural health (which would be a good fit with a psychology/sociology degree), however the policy side appeals to me more. Now I am facing a dilemma: should I switch from business to a liberal arts degree, continue my health promotion work and apply in a few years to a MPH, or should I stay? Would my non-business undergrad be a disadvantage for the policy & management stream? Also, since I am interested in sociology/psychology and how this relates to health, would it make more sense to follow my interests in undergrad and then apply for a social/behavioural stream? However, I feel that this would lead me away from the policy side?

I am a bit unsure as to how to proceed and how to combine my interests, so any help/insight would be much appreciated.

Thank you so much in advance!

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[cerealrhapsody]

I'm not sure how much help I can be since I'm pursuing epidemiology and don't know much about HPM and the social/behavioral areas. However, that being said, I really wouldn't stress too much about your undergraduate major as it seems that most schools and programs don't care much about it for MPH admissions. I have 3 acceptances so far to top MPH in epidemiology programs and my bachelor's degree is in fine arts, so that just goes to show that it doesn't really matter much.

It sounds like you've already done some research, but I would recommend that you do a lot of research on as many schools and programs as possible to see if they have any prerequisites or preferred majors. If the websites are unclear or not very helpful then you could definitely contact admissions and they could probably point you in the right direction.

Would my non-business undergrad be a disadvantage for the policy & management stream?

I doubt it.


Also, for what it's worth (a bit of anecdotal evidence to be taken with a grain of salt), it seems like there are a LOT of MPH candidates who come from a psychology/sociology/anthropology background. I haven't noticed a lot of people with business backgrounds.

But again, just check the websites of the schools and programs that interest you, and see if you can find statistics on current/past classes.
If HPM departments don't specifically say they require or prefer a business background then you should be fine majoring in whatever you want.

 

[UniStudent]

Thank you so much cerealrhapsody for your reply. After talking to a few academic advisors it seems that a switch will be impossible unless I transfer to a different school, so I'll most likely have to stick with business for now.