eCourse on Career Development in Public Health

Background

The multidisciplinary nature of public health provides a platform for varied career options for public health graduates and professionals, which combined with their public health degree/ diploma and work experience opens many avenues. The COVID 19 pandemic created greater awareness about the importance of public health globally. A broad range of skills and knowledge are required to work in public health and these are constantly evolving over time with changing health needs. In contrast to many other professions, public heath aspirants and professionals are frequently unaware about the career opportunities available to them, particularly in the initial phases of their careers. The situation is challenging for fresh public health graduates who have very limited knowledge about the available career options and how to explore new and upcoming career avenues.

Over the years, PHFI placement cell has received multiple requests from IIPHs alumni, external candidates, mid-level public health professionals as well as academic institutes to provide services related to career development, to guide them further. With this background, PHFI placement cell has developed an e-Course which will cater to the career development and job search needs of public health professionals. This course is the first of its kind in India, to guide public health aspirants and professionals to explore new career opportunities in this field and acquire necessary skills to succeed in it.

Aim

The course will help participants reflect on their experiences and critically evaluate their current knowledge and skill sets versus the required skill sets and competencies to be acquired for achieving their desired career path. Towards the end of the course, students will be able to prepare their career development plan. The focus of this course would be more related to skill development to build a career in public health.

Eligibility criteria

The course is open to the following candidates:

• Public health aspirants
• MD Community Medicine, Medical graduates
• Bachelor of Public Health(BPH), Master of Public Health (MPH), Post Graduate Diploma in Public Health Management(PGDPHM)
• Master of Hospital Administration (MHA), Diploma in Public Health(DPH)
• Students and graduates of: Public health, Development studies, Life sciences, Social sciences,Social work, Nutrition
• Faculty members and placement cell members of public health academic institutes
• Junior and mid-level public health professionals
• Hiring managers in public health organisations and institutions
• Career counsellors and career development practitioners

Course Contents

Video lectures through experts will help students understand the intricacies of working in public health and developing necessary skill sets.

Teaching methodology

The course will be delivered in online mode i.e. through a combination of recorded lectures, online resources including YouTube videos and digital content which needs viewing, recommended readings from journal articles/ links available online and an interactive discussion board. Live sessions on select topics will be conducted. After a set of three modules, there will be panel discussions by select experts.In addition to online learning, comprehensive printed reading material specifically designed for the course shall also be provided. Mock interviews of students will be conducted after a session on interview skills. There will be interviews of experts and talks by eminent experts and public health professionals.

The purpose of the online lectures is to complement the reading material provided in the program. The assessment shall be based on the lectures and reading material and has to be successfully completed by the student. A virtual classroom shall be created on the Learning Management System (LMS) where students would be able to log on through a secure gateway with a unique username and password.

Program Fee:

Indian students

• INR 9000/- for individual applicants.
• INR 6000/- for current students of public health programs (should produce a bona-fide certificate).
• INR 5000/- for bulk nominations by organizations/ academic institutions (minimum 10 nominations).

International students

South Asian Candidates: 150 USD , Other International Candidates: 330 USD.