Exploring Health Professions

Healthy Policy

General Description and Careers

Health policy is a broad designation that encompasses the design of health programs, the formulation of recommended legislation, and the conduct of health research. Rather than being limited to medical services, health policy expertise applies to environmental and health education efforts, among other areas.

Health policy careers span both the public and private sectors. The governmental health policy positions are found at the local, state, national and international levels. Private foundations and lobbying or advocacy groups, particularly those that devote significant attention to health issues, are also sources of employment for health policy analysts.

Graduate Degrees

The study of health policy can be undertaken in a variety of ways. First, one may pursue an academic degree in a traditional discipline such as economics, political science, sociology, law or philosophy. Obviously, these various routes will produce different perspectives on formulation of policy and research design. The critical component for acquiring a health policy concentration in graduate school is the presence of faculty members who have established expertise in the field. In that way, the student is assured of learning how to integrate health-related material into the disciplinary structure.

There are also specific programs in health policy on both the master's and doctoral levels. Some departments, for instance, are designated "health management and policy," yet their focus may be geared more toward health administration than to policy formulation. The best ways to determine the main purpose of the programs are (1) to research the course requirements for completion of the degree, and (2) to obtain information on the placement of the graduates of the program.

College Preparation

Because the educational avenues into health policy are varied, recommending a single, uniform undergraduate curriculum is impractical. The best preparatory method, then, is to explore the availability of health-related courses on campus or at other schools. As you identify your specific interests in the health field as well as in traditional disciplines, you will be able to decide on the most appropriate course of study for health policy.

The Community Health Program (http://ase.tufts.edu/commhealth/) offers an array of courses and an internship component well suited to a student with an interest in health policy.