Gulzar Shah, Ph.D., department chair and professor of health and community health policy at Georgia Southern University’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health / Source: GSU
Perhaps a silver lining can be found in the COVID-19 pandemic as interest in public health education soars at US colleges and universities, says renowned public health professor national.
Public health education has become a logical choice for students when considering changing trends in public health practice and their implications for public health education, explained Gulzar Shah, Ph.D., author of a guest editorial in the magazine’s March issue American Journal of Public Health (AJPH).
Shah is Department Chair and Professor of Health and Community Health Policy at Georgia Southern University’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health. Her editorial is titled “Public Health Education and Changing Public Health Realities in the Era of Public Health 3.0”.
“For many of the 19 million students who enroll in public and private colleges in the United States each year, public health becomes a logical choice,” he said. “Due to COVID-19, interest in careers in public health is skyrocketing, as evidenced by the 20% increase nationwide in the number of applicants for master’s degrees in public health.”
The editorial also drew on national data from the Association of Schools and Public Health Programs of Schools and Public Health Programs on the first job destinations of public health graduates.
“The focus on aligning public health practices and policies with the Public Health 3.0 framework, in which leaders come together across diverse sectors to address the social, environmental and economic factors that affect health population and health inequalities, has drawn attention to generalist and behavioral education and degrees in health policy,” Shah noted. “The Public Health 3.0 framework also underscored the opportunity to embrace the health-in-all-policies approach and to encourage public health leaders to act as chief health strategists to influence policies. policies in other sectors affecting the health of the population. The growing health-in-all-policy focus and higher-paying positions in health care may further explain the popularity of health policy and management and health law programs.
Shah’s research studies were based on two waves of the National Survey of Interests and Needs of the Public Health Workforce.
AJPH is the principal monthly journal of the American Public Health Association, dedicated to the publication of original work on research, research methods, and program evaluation in the field of public health.
All published articles have undergone rigorous peer review. Every month, the world’s most influential public health professionals turn to AJPH for the latest, most reliable and in-depth information in the field.
Georgia Southern University, a public Carnegie Doctoral/R2 institution founded in 1906, offers approximately 140 different degree programs serving nearly 27,000 students at 10 colleges on three campuses in Statesboro, Savannah, Hinesville, and online courses. A leader in higher education in Southeast Georgia, the University provides a diverse student body with expert faculty, world-class scholarship, and hands-on learning opportunities. Georgia Southern creates lifelong learners who serve as responsible scholars, leaders, and stewards in their communities. Visit GeorgiaSouthern.edu.
Source: GSU
