Master of Public Health: Community Health Education (MPH) - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Credit-bearing programs conform to Carnegie hours (i.e., one credit equals one hour of class time, plus two hours of homework). Our programs usually have six to nine credits per term. Nine credits equals 27 hours a week dedicated to classes.

Admission decisions are typically made four to eight weeks after the complete admission packet is submitted, including transcripts and all required supplemental documents.

Students are professionals, who typically have been working two to five years. Usually they are in their mid-20’s to mid-30’s. Many students have families and work/life commitments.

Some alumni work at public health agencies, do promotions at their current organizations, or work for the USDA WIC program or other food agencies.

We collect data one year after graduation to give our students time to secure employment post-graduation. For Cohort 1 we have a 75 percent employment rate post-graduation. This includes new employment and those currently employed but who may have received a promotion due to their MPH. Six percent are continuing education in either a second master’s or doctorate program. Six percent are not seeking employment or additional education. Six percent are actively seeking employment, and six percent is unknown.

Our MPH graduates are hired at local, county and state health departments; health-based nonprofits like the American Heart Association or American Cancer Society; the health education or community health division of hospitals such as Kaiser Permanente, Cedars Sinai, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles; government positions such as at the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), NIH (National Institutes of Health), etc.; or as grant administrators with universities. Some work as evaluation experts, needs assessment consultants, or in program implementation related to an agency like RAND Corp. or WestEd. Some work in the K-12 schools as nutrition or health educators at a district level. Some go on to achieve a second master’ or, doctoral degree, their DI Dietetic Internship or RD Registered Dietician, or a subject matter teaching credential in health or a multi-subject credential.

ACA has required preventive health, increasing the need for this field. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the job outlook for health educators and community health workers to grow 11 percent from 2018-2028, much faster than average.

There may be flexibility if the GPA falls between 2.5-2.75 (while not preferred) if the applicant has substantial professional experience and/or passes one of the three sections on the GRE by receiving a score in the fiftieth percentile on the verbal or quantitative portions, or a 4.5 or above in the analytical writing portion of the GRE. For students accepted into the MPH Program, the GRE scores must be submitted before the application deadline. However, the minimum GPA for eligibility as a student in any CSUN graduate program is 2.5. If the applicant’s cumulative GPA falls below that, then the student would not be eligible.

CSUN and the MPH program have several accreditations:

• Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), a regional institutional accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Council of Higher Education and Accreditation
• The Community Health Education program is accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH)
• CSUN has over 40 years of degree accreditation by the National Council on Education for Public Health (NCEPH) and university accreditation with the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

The MPH program has earned top rankings from several organizations:

• MPHOnline.org placed CSUN 10th nationally in its ranking of the “Top 25 Online MPH Community Health Degree Programs 2019”.
• Intelligent.com ranked the MPH program fifth in its 2020 list of “Best Online Master’s in Public Health Degree Programs”.
• CSUN’s MPH program ranked 11th nationally in the “Top 15 Master’s in Health Education and Promotion” (2020) list by Top Master’s in Healthcare Administration.

Additionally, the MPH program offers these unique features:

• The virtual format enables participants to continue with their professional and personal obligations while completing an MPH degree in just two years.
• CSUN's program offers opportunities to work with faculty who are experienced practitioners and scholars in their field, as well as a network of peers dedicated to improving the health of individuals and communities.
• Fieldwork is included in the program. Participants develop practical experience as they work in the public health sector as part of their MPH field training.
• Live sessions are scheduled each week on the same day to allow students to connect with one another and faculty.
• Faculty members are the same as in the on-campus program. Bios are available here. Faculty members create and teach their own courses with the support of an educational technology specialist to implement tools for online learning.
• Curriculum content is updated every semester.
• Participants have access to "Student Hubs." These serve as virtual student unions.

Students can take two exams to build their credential. Overview of the two exams can be found here.

• Certified Health Education Specialist, CHES Examination (taken 90 days before graduation). The National Commission for Health Education Credentialing Inc. (NCHEC) included CSUN in its “2016 Top Ten Schools with the Most Students Qualifying to Take the CHES Examination”. MPH graduates in the CSUN program who took the 2019 CHES Examination had a 100 percent pass rate.
• Master Certified Health Education Specialist MCHES