Public Health, General Degrees (2026 stats)
TL;DR
Public Health, General maps to BLS occupations averaging about $64,987, with roughly 1,596,050 workers nationwide in those roles. About 10,583 bachelor's completions in IPEDS 2023; median program completion runs near 57%.
Key Statistics
Public Health, General: what the data shows
Common questions about public health, general degrees, answered from IPEDS, College Scorecard, BLS OEWS, and O*NET in this repository—not program marketing copy.
What is a public health, general degree?
A Public Health, General program is classified under NCES CIP 51.2201 in the Public Health field family (51.22).
A program that generally prepares individuals to plan, manage, and evaluate public health care services; to function as public health professionals in public agencies, the private sector, and other settings; and to provide leadership in the field of public health. Includes instruction in epidemiology, biostatistics, public health principles, preventive medicine, health policy and regulations, health care services and related administrative functions, public health law enforcement, health economics and budgeting, public communications, and professional standards and ethics
IPEDS counted 10,583 completions for this CIP in the survey year in our extract.
Types of public health, general degrees and related programs
Other NCES program codes in the 51.22 family with pages on EDsmart Data:
- Behavioral Aspects of Health (CIP 51.2212)
- Community Health and Preventive Medicine (CIP 51.2208)
- Environmental Health (CIP 51.2202)
- Health Services Administration (CIP 51.2211)
- Health/Medical Physics (CIP 51.2205)
- International Public Health/International Health (CIP 51.2210)
- Maternal and Child Health (CIP 51.2209)
- Occupational Health and Industrial Hygiene (CIP 51.2206)
- Patient Safety and Healthcare Quality (CIP 51.2213)
- Public Health Education and Promotion (CIP 51.2207)
- Public Health Genetics (CIP 51.2214)
How long does it take to get a public health, general degree?
Award levels reported to IPEDS for CIP 51.2201 in our file:
- 547 Associate (2.4% of IPEDS total)—about two years of full-time study
- 10,583 Bachelor's (45.7% of IPEDS total)—typically four years
- 11,934 Master's (51.5% of IPEDS total)—one to two years beyond a bachelor's
- 99 Doctorate (0.4% of IPEDS total)—varies by program
Time to completion depends on enrollment intensity and transfer credits; figures above describe credential type, not calendar time for every student.
What do you learn in public health, general?
O*NET skill ratings for occupations mapped to this major emphasize Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, Writing, Critical Thinking, Service Orientation, and related competencies. See the Skills section for the full list in our extract.
What degree do you need?
For Teachers, Postsecondary (top mapped occupation), O*NET incumbent surveys in our career profile report these education credentials most often: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
O*NET education distributions describe incumbent workers, not minimum legal or employer requirements.
What jobs can you get with a public health, general degree?
Our degree→occupation mapping links Public Health, General to the BLS roles below. Employment is U.S. OEWS; median wage is national May 2024 where published in our extract.
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Teachers, Postsecondary | 1,500,000 | — |
| Secondary School Teachers | 1,072,540 | $64,580 |
See Careers & Jobs for mean wages and industry context.
Is a public health, general degree worth it?
College Scorecard national medians for the Public Health bachelor's program family: median debt $25,768, median earnings $58,808 four years after enrollment. Debt-to-earnings proxy: 0.69.
About 5.0% of graduates in this field family were not working and not enrolled one year after completion in Scorecard's national program medians.
Among schools reporting in our Scorecard extract, median published in-state tuition is $11,954 and median net price is $21,335.
We do not score "worth" on opinion—compare debt, earnings, wages for mapped occupations, and completion data above against your cost and career target.
Institutions
Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Public Health, General and the types of students that study this field.
Tuition Costs for Common Institutions
$11,954 Median In-State Public
$51,424 Median Out of State Private
Tuition costs for Public Health, General majors are, on average, $11,954 for in-state public colleges, and $51,424 for out of state private colleges.
Tuition costs comparison for Public Health, General programs.
Degrees Awarded Over Time
10,583 Total Degrees Awarded in 2023
This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Public Health, General from 2015 to 2023.
Historical trend of degrees awarded in Public Health, General.
Top 5 Schools by Enrollment
| # | School | State | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion | AZ | 64,398 |
| 2 | Texas A&M University-College Station | TX | 59,099 |
| 3 | Liberty University | VA | 50,059 |
| 4 | Ohio State University-Main Campus | OH | 44,617 |
| 5 | The University of Texas at Austin | TX | 42,100 |
Schools with the largest enrollment offering Public Health, General programs.
Top 5 Most Affordable Tuition
| # | School | State | Tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | East Los Angeles College | CA | $1,238 |
| 2 | Kaskaskia College | IL | $4,800 |
| 3 | University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras | PR | $5,324 |
| 4 | Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Aguadilla | PR | $5,542 |
| 5 | Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Arecibo | PR | $5,580 |
Schools with the lowest tuition costs for Public Health, General programs.
Top 5 Lowest Net Price
| # | School | State | Net Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Florida | FL | $6,351 |
| 2 | University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras | PR | $6,507 |
| 3 | Kaskaskia College | IL | $6,839 |
| 4 | Northern Kentucky University | KY | $7,168 |
| 5 | Inter American University of Puerto Rico-Aguadilla | PR | $7,607 |
Schools with the lowest average net price for Public Health, General programs.
Graduation Rates
57.33% Median Graduation Rate (150% of normal time)
56.94% Average Graduation Rate
692 Institutions Reporting
45.45% - 69.39% Interquartile Range
Graduation/completion rates for Public Health, General programs across institutions.
Where students complete this major (IPEDS)
Bachelor's-level completions (IPEDS Completions, award level 5) summed by institution state. State is taken from IPEDS Directory (HD2023) for each reporting institution.
Geographic concentration
The largest number of reported bachelor's completions for Public Health, General is in CA (2,210 completions). That state represents about 20.9% of U.S. bachelor's completions reported for this CIP in the IPEDS file we use.
Among states, the highest concentration relative to all bachelor's degrees awarded in-state is AK (1.37% of that state's bachelor's completions).
Top states by count of bachelor's completions for this CIP (IPEDS).
| State | Bachelor's completions (this CIP) | % of U.S. total (this CIP) | % of state's all bachelor's |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA | 2,210 | 20.9% | 0.49% |
| TX | 1,128 | 10.7% | 0.39% |
| FL | 655 | 6.2% | 0.29% |
| AZ | 460 | 4.3% | 0.33% |
| NY | 451 | 4.3% | 0.16% |
| SC | 436 | 4.1% | 0.79% |
| MA | 368 | 3.5% | 0.29% |
| NJ | 352 | 3.3% | 0.41% |
| WA | 345 | 3.3% | 0.50% |
| OH | 330 | 3.1% | 0.24% |
| NV | 266 | 2.5% | 1.27% |
| GA | 260 | 2.5% | 0.23% |
| AL | 250 | 2.4% | 0.37% |
| MI | 248 | 2.3% | 0.22% |
| MD | 229 | 2.2% | 0.31% |
| NC | 222 | 2.1% | 0.18% |
| NH | 220 | 2.1% | 0.35% |
| PA | 219 | 2.1% | 0.13% |
Related specializations
Other NCES program codes in the 51.22 CIP family with dedicated pages on EDsmart Data.
- Behavioral Aspects of Health CIP 51.2212
- Community Health and Preventive Medicine CIP 51.2208
- Environmental Health CIP 51.2202
- Health Services Administration CIP 51.2211
- Health/Medical Physics CIP 51.2205
- International Public Health/International Health CIP 51.2210
- Maternal and Child Health CIP 51.2209
- Occupational Health and Industrial Hygiene CIP 51.2206
- Patient Safety and Healthcare Quality CIP 51.2213
- Public Health Education and Promotion CIP 51.2207
- Public Health Genetics CIP 51.2214
Degree Levels (IPEDS)
Completions reported to IPEDS for CIP 51.2201 in the survey year used in our extract (23,163 total across levels below).
- 547 Associate (2.4% of IPEDS total)
- 10,583 Bachelor's (45.7% of IPEDS total)
- 11,934 Master's (51.5% of IPEDS total)
- 99 Doctorate (0.4% of IPEDS total)
Source: IPEDS Completions (c2024_a), summed by award level for this CIP.
Careers & Jobs
Occupations linked to this major in our degree→career mapping, with wages and employment from processed BLS career profiles in this repo.
Across these BLS occupations, employment-weighted mean pay is about $64,987. Figures are national OEWS estimates for the occupation—not earnings of Public Health, General graduates alone.
Related occupations (BLS OEWS)
| Occupation | Mean annual wage | U.S. employment |
|---|---|---|
| Teachers, Postsecondary | $36,511 | 1,500,000 |
| Secondary School Teachers | $104,813 | 1,072,540 |
Open each occupation for full career profile charts and industry breakdowns on EDsmart Data.
Program outcomes (College Scorecard)
National medians across bachelor's programs in the Public Health CIP family (89 programs reporting debt). Not specific to every Public Health, General graduate.
- $25,768 median federal loan debt among completers
- $58,808 median earnings four years after enrollment (national program median)
- 0.69 debt-to-earnings ratio (Scorecard proxy)
- 5.0% of graduates not working and not enrolled one year out (program cohort)
Source: College Scorecard program-level outcomes aggregated by 4-digit CIP family.
Employment
Wages and industry mix below use BLS OEWS data for occupations linked to this major in our mapping—not a graduate earnings survey.
Yearly Income for Common Jobs
$40,621 Average Wage in Workforce
The average salary for Public Health, General majors is $40,621.
Average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Public Health, General majors.
Occupations by Share
1,596,050 2023 Workforce
The number of Public Health, General graduates in the workforce has been growing.
Various jobs filled by those with a major in Public Health, General by share of the total number of graduates.
Diversity
Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Public Health, General in the United States.
Workforce Age
N/A Average Age in 2023
This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Public Health, General.
Age distribution for Public Health, General degree holders in the workforce.
Gender Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
10,583 Total Degrees Awarded
1,946 Male (18.39%)
8,637 Female (81.61%)
Gender distribution of Public Health, General degree recipients.
Race and Ethnicity Distribution
Counts below are bachelor's-level completions only (IPEDS Completions, award level 5).
3,873 White (36.60%)
2,384 Hispanic or Latino (22.53%)
1,640 Black or African American (15.50%)
1,560 Asian (14.74%)
480 Two or More Races (4.54%)
Racial and ethnic distribution of Public Health, General degree recipients.
Degrees Awarded
The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Public Health, General are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.
Distribution of degree types awarded in Public Health, General.
Skills
Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Public Health, General field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Required Skills
Public Health, General majors need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.
Rating of how necessary various skills are for Public Health, General majors.
Skills Bar Chart
This bar chart shows the same information as the radar chart, displaying the importance of each skill.
Skill importance ratings for Public Health, General majors.
About
A program that generally prepares individuals to plan, manage, and evaluate public health care services; to function as public health professionals in public agencies, the private sector, and other settings; and to provide leadership in the field of public health. Includes instruction in epidemiology, biostatistics, public health principles, preventive medicine, health policy and regulations, health care services and related administrative functions, public health law enforcement, health economics and budgeting, public communications, and professional standards and ethics
In 2023, 10,583 degrees were awarded across all undergraduate and graduate programs in Public Health, General.
CIP Code
51.2201 - Public Health, General
What the data shows
At the program-family level, College Scorecard reports median debt of $25,768 for bachelor's completers and median earnings near $58,808, a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.69. Those figures describe national program cohorts in this CIP family—not every individual Public Health, General graduate.
Women earned 79.3% of 25,004 Public Health, General completions in the IPEDS file used here.
Mapped BLS occupations show employment-weighted mean pay of about $64,987. The largest mapped role by headcount is Teachers, Postsecondary (1,500,000 U.S. jobs in OEWS).
Published tuition medians in College Scorecard land at $11,954 in-state at public colleges and $51,424 at private institutions for programs in this field.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard dataset, IPEDS completion data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data.
All financial figures are adjusted for inflation and represent the most recent available data. Employment and wage data are from the most recent Census Bureau ACS PUMS estimates.