Most common destination first. Every card carries the national median annual wage, projected employment change and openings over 2024–2034, and the typical education people already in the job hold.
What Can You Do With a Public Health Degree?
Below are 14 occupations that public health graduates commonly move into, most common first. Health Education Specialist leads at $64,070 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025); across the whole list the middle occupation pays $81,475 and 3 of 14 typically need a graduate degree. A major is a body of study, not a job assignment, so treat every entry as a common destination rather than a promise.
What the degree actually involves: Epidemiology, biostatistics, health policy, and programme design and evaluation.
Public health is about populations rather than patients, and the bachelor is a broad entry into health education, programme coordination, compliance and health data. The specialist titles most people picture when they hear the phrase, epidemiologist above all, are master and doctoral destinations.
- Common destinations
- 14
- Median pay range
- $51,850–$123,860
- Projected to grow
- 14 of 14
- Need a graduate degree
- 3 of 14
6 with a full profile page
BLS OEWS, May 2025
BLS EP, 2024–2034
BLS EP typical entry, 2024–2034
How this list was built
- The destinations are the occupations public health graduates commonly move into. They are ordered by how common the destination is, not by what it pays, so the ordinary outcomes sit at the top where they belong rather than being buried under the flattering ones.
- Every destination is matched to a real occupation in the 923-occupation NueCareer career bank. A destination that does not resolve to a bank occupation is dropped rather than shown without data.
- All pay, growth, openings and education figures come from that bank: BLS OEWS May 2025 for wages, BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 for projected change, annual openings and the typical education needed for entry, and O*NET 30.3 Database for what the work involves. Nothing is estimated and no figure here is generated by an AI model.
- Destinations whose BLS typical entry education is a master’s or a doctoral or professional degree are marked Graduate study on the list. That flag is read from the federal data, not asserted by us.
- What this list is not: a ranking of which destination you should pick, a statement of how many graduates reach each one, or a promise that the degree entitles you to any of them. Read the full methodology.
14 careers a public health degree commonly leads to
1. Health Education Specialist
Community and Social Service
- Median pay
- $64,070
- Growth
- +4.5%
- Openings/yr
- 7,900
- Education
- Bachelor's
Provide and manage health education programs that help individuals, families, and their communities maximize and maintain healthy lifestyles.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
2. Community Health Worker
Community and Social Service
- Median pay
- $51,850
- Growth
- +11.3%
- Openings/yr
- 7,800
- Education
- High school
Promote health within a community by assisting individuals to adopt healthy behaviors.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
3. Health Information Technologist and Medical Registrar
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical
- Median pay
- $68,020
- Growth
- +14.7%
- Openings/yr
- 3,200
- Education
- Associate's
Apply knowledge of healthcare and information systems to assist in the design, development, and continued modification and analysis of computerized healthcare systems.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
4. Occupational Health and Safety Specialist
Life, Physical, and Social Science
- Median pay
- $90,150
- Growth
- +12.5%
- Openings/yr
- 14,900
- Education
- Bachelor's
Review, evaluate, and analyze work environments and design programs and procedures to control, eliminate, and prevent disease or injury caused by chemical, physical, and biological agents or ergonomic factors.
Occupational Health and Safety Specialist salary & outlook →5. Health Informatics Specialist
Computer and Mathematical
- Median pay
- $105,850
- Growth
- +8.7%
- Openings/yr
- 34,200
- Education
- Bachelor's
Apply knowledge of nursing and informatics to assist in the design, development, and ongoing modification of computerized health care systems.
Health Informatics Specialist salary & outlook →6. Social and Community Service Manager
Management
- Median pay
- $80,390
- Growth
- +6.4%
- Openings/yr
- 18,600
- Education
- Bachelor's
Plan, direct, or coordinate the activities of a social service program or community outreach organization.
Social and Community Service Manager salary & outlook →7. Environmental Scientist and Specialist, Including Health
Life, Physical, and Social Science
- Median pay
- $82,220
- Growth
- +4.4%
- Openings/yr
- 8,500
- Education
- Bachelor's
Conduct research or perform investigation for the purpose of identifying, abating, or eliminating sources of pollutants or hazards that affect either the environment or public health.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
8. Regulatory Affairs Specialist
Business and Financial Operations
- Median pay
- $80,730
- Growth
- +3.0%
- Openings/yr
- 33,300
- Education
- Bachelor's
Coordinate and document internal regulatory processes, such as internal audits, inspections, license renewals, or registrations.
Regulatory Affairs Specialist salary & outlook →9. Emergency Management Director
Management
- Median pay
- $93,330
- Growth
- +3.0%
- Openings/yr
- 1,000
- Education
- Bachelor's
Plan and direct disaster response or crisis management activities, provide disaster preparedness training, and prepare emergency plans and procedures for natural (e.g., hurricanes, floods, earthquakes), wartime, or te…
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
- Graduate study
10. Healthcare Social Worker
Community and Social Service
- Median pay
- $67,880
- Growth
- +7.7%
- Openings/yr
- 18,400
- Education
- Master's
Provide individuals, families, and groups with the psychosocial support needed to cope with chronic, acute, or terminal illnesses.
Healthcare Social Worker salary & outlook → 11. Medical and Health Services Manager
Management
- Median pay
- $123,860
- Growth
- +23.2%
- Openings/yr
- 62,100
- Education
- Bachelor's
Plan, direct, or coordinate medical and health services in hospitals, clinics, managed care organizations, public health agencies, or similar organizations.
Medical and Health Services Manager salary & outlook →12. Dietitian
Healthcare Practitioners and Technical
- Median pay
- $76,400
- Growth
- +5.5%
- Openings/yr
- 6,200
- Education
- Bachelor's
Plan and conduct food service or nutritional programs to assist in the promotion of health and control of disease.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
- Graduate study
13. Biostatistician
Computer and Mathematical
- Median pay
- $105,650
- Growth
- +8.5%
- Openings/yr
- 2,000
- Education
- Master's
Develop and apply biostatistical theory and methods to the study of life sciences.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
- Graduate study
14. Epidemiologist
Life, Physical, and Social Science
- Median pay
- $87,220
- Growth
- +16.2%
- Openings/yr
- 800
- Education
- Master's
Investigate and describe the determinants and distribution of disease, disability, or health outcomes.
Full page coming in the next tranche. Data shown here is from the same bank.
Does a public health degree decide your career?
For most people, no. Federal survey data has consistently found that only a minority of US graduates work in a job closely related to their degree field, and that share falls further with each year after graduation. The exceptions are the fields where a licence sits at the end of the degree, and they are exceptions precisely because the route is fixed.
The practical reading of the list above is this: 11 of the 14 destinations are typically entered with a bachelor's degree or less, and 3 typically need a master's or a doctoral or professional degree (BLS Employment Projections, 2024–2034). If the destination you want is in the second group, the extra years are part of the decision from day one, not a detail to sort out later.
Not sure this is the right major in the first place? Take the free college major quiz — fifteen questions that score what you like doing against what each major actually asks of you, and show the same real occupations underneath every match.
Public Health degrees: FAQ
Do you need a master's degree after a public health degree?
For 11 of the 14 destinations on this page, no: BLS Employment Projections (2024–2034) list a bachelor's degree or less as the typical entry requirement. The other 3 typically need a master's or a doctoral or professional degree, and each is marked on the list below. "Typical" describes what people already in the job hold, not an admissions rule.
What is the highest-paying career a public health degree leads to?
Of the 14 destinations on this page, Medical and Health Services Manager has the highest national median wage at $123,860 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), against $50,980 for all US occupations. Typical entry education for it is bachelor's. A median is the midpoint of everyone in the job today, so a first salary normally sits well below it.
Which of these careers hires the most people each year?
Medical and Health Services Manager, with about 62,100 projected openings a year (BLS Employment Projections, 2024–2034). Across all 14 destinations on this page the combined figure is roughly 218,900 openings a year. Openings include replacing people who leave, not just new jobs, which is why a slow-growing occupation can still hire heavily.
Is a public health degree worth it?
That depends on the price you pay for it, which this page cannot know. What it can tell you is where the destinations sit: the middle occupation on this list pays $81,475 a year against $50,980 for all US occupations, the range runs $51,850–$123,860, and 14 of the 14 are projected to grow over 2024–2034 (BLS OEWS May 2025, BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034).
How was this list of careers put together?
The destinations were curated as the occupations public health graduates commonly move into, ordered by how common rather than by pay, then matched against the 923-occupation NueCareer career bank. Every figure shown comes from that bank: wages from BLS OEWS May 2025, projected change and annual openings and typical entry education from BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, and occupation descriptions from O*NET 30.3 Database. Nothing is estimated, and no figure on this page is generated by an AI model.
What can you do with other degrees?
- Computer Science
- Nursing
- Mechanical Engineering
- Civil Engineering
- Electrical and Computer Engineering
- Business Administration
- Finance and Accounting
- Marketing
- Psychology
- Biology
- Chemistry
- Education
- Communications and Journalism
- Graphic Design
- Political Science and Pre-Law
- Environmental Science
- Kinesiology and Exercise Science
- Social Work
- Mathematics and Statistics
- Hospitality and Event Management
- Criminal Justice
- Sociology
- Philosophy
- Health Science
- History
- Anthropology
- English
- Nutrition and Dietetics
- Art History
- Information Technology
- Human Resources
- Economics