Hi! I’m finding it hard to find colleges that offer public health as a major. A lot I’ve seen only have it as a minor. Does anyone have suggestions?
I have not checked recently, but I thought Michigan or Michigan State had it. Not sure if it is under grad, though. It may be a discipline that is more common at the graduate level.
Possibly emory? These suggestions are based on where friends in the field have taught. …
@gardenstategal Emory has it as a minor unfortunately. I’ll check up on Michigan State though.
If you Google “undergraduate public health programs” you will find several lists.
Public health is typically a graduate degree (MPH), which is why you’re probably seeing so few schools with this.
Duke has a “Global Health” undergraduate co-major. It is similar in scope to public health. Look for Duke Global Health Institute.
@cnc2000
Most uni’s will not have a public health major specifically, however they will have a health major which will seg-way into an MPH. Emory would be the best fit for what you are looking for as they offer a HUMAN HLTH major, Global Health minor, and a Health and Business concentration. Tulane is also a great option.
What do you want to do?
As others have said, going into public health doesn’t require an undergrad PH major. It might require a masters, MPH or one of the more specific areas (epidemiology, etc). It may not matter much what your undergrad major is.
@OHMomof2 I’m actually planning on going to medical school. And I like the scope of public health.
Public Health Studies is one of the most popular majors at Johns Hopkins, which also has the Bloomberg School of Public Health.
@mdphd92 I’m just concerned about the cutthroat environment at JHU. I don’t think I would enjoy it.
If your goal is med school, then don’t get dogged down by trying to find a rare undergrad major that med schools won’t give a crap about.
What are your stats? What is your home state? How much will your parents pay?
@mom2collegekids Previously, I was planning on majoring in biochemistry then I realised that I wasn’t that interested in it(even tough I’m strong in the sciences) That’s when I found out about public health.
I don’t go to high school in the US(though I’m a citizen) but I have an address in Oklahoma.
I took the SAT this October so I’ve not gotten it back yet but I’m hoping for a 1450 or higher. I have a 4.0UW gpa. My school doesn’t offer AP classes(it’s not in the curriculum). I have a lot of ECs
My parents are willing to pay $9000 a year.
Its fairly common for med students to either get an MPH right after finishing med school, or combined MD/MPH. If you’re interested in health policy, epidemiology or any other of the fields that relate to public health, then a combined program may be a good fit for you.
However as others point out, don’t try to major in public health as an undergrad. For the MPH it doesn’t matter what you major in. Just try to major in something that you can get high of grades as possible, because med school admissions is almost entirely driven by GPA/MCAT.
@sgopal2 so if I major in public health as an undergrad it may be problematic? What kind of problems will I encounter?
@sgopal2 Because I’m pretty confused about what I should major in 
Med schools are overwhelmed with biology, biochemistry, neuroscience, psychology majors. There are very few students who major in the fine arts, English, history, etc and then apply to med school. The reason is that the pre-med requirements are difficult to finish unless you also major in a science.
So to stand out for med school the best you can do is major in something else besides science. Then do well in all of your pre-med reqs. Just major in something that you’re interested in. Majoring in undergrad public health will be fine, but just keep in mind that you’ll be competing against lots of other science type students.
If for some reason you don’t get accepted into a medical school, it will be difficult to find work with just a bachelors degree in public health. Most employers will want to see at least a MPH. But if you major in another field, you’ll have a lot of backup options in case you don’t get into med school.
@sgopal2 Public health was actually my back up option. I originally wanted to major in biochemistry.
Besides the majors you listed above, what other majors can be seen as a back up (besides engineering)? I’m actually more of a science student than a liberal arts one. And when you say the pre med requirements are difficult to finish, do you mean that I might not understand or that my courses would not overlap, making me work more?
Public policy might have a lot of courses in the public health area, and be more common at the undergrad level.
@cnc2000 There are many avenues to involve yourself in the medical field.
http://globalhealth.duke.edu/education-and-training/undergraduate/major
An MBA/HSM may be of interest. https://centers.fuqua.duke.edu/hsm/
https://centers.fuqua.duke.edu/hsm/home/about/history/
Additionally, Master of Health Sciences in Clinical Leadership
Summer program…http://bioethics.yale.edu/sherwin-b-nuland-summer-institute-bioethics
Try Cornell, Tulane, or UC Denver. If you don’t end up going to med school, look into county and state health departments for jobs.