Pa/mph

[ailuj9]

Hi,

I hope you don't mind that I am posting in the MPH section, but I would like to get some feedback from those who have experience with having an MPH or a dual degree. Thanks.

I was wondering if any of you could give me some advice.

I am would like to get a Masters in Physician's Assistant Studies and am trying to differentiate between two schools. One, Samuell Merritt in Oakland, CA, offers only a PA degree and the other, Touro University in Vallejo, CA, offers a PA/MPH degree. Both programs are fairly new, although Samuell Merritt has been around for three more years than Touro University. Statistically, Samuell Merritt has a 100% pass rate of the PA boards. There are currently no statistics for Touro, as their first graduating class will graduate this June.

So what is better...to go to Samuell Merritt (with statistics to back up its quality) that offers only one degree or to go to Touro, with no statistics, that offers both a PA and a MPH?

Is it advantageous to have both degrees? What are my career options with a PA/MPH?

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[hwong14]

Hi,

I hope you don't mind that I am posting in the MPH section, but I would like to get some feedback from those who have experience with having an MPH or a dual degree. Thanks.

I was wondering if any of you could give me some advice.

I am would like to get a Masters in Physician's Assistant Studies and am trying to differentiate between two schools. One, Samuell Merritt in Oakland, CA, offers only a PA degree and the other, Touro University in Vallejo, CA, offers a PA/MPH degree. Both programs are fairly new, although Samuell Merritt has been around for three more years than Touro University. Statistically, Samuell Merritt has a 100% pass rate of the PA boards. There are currently no statistics for Touro, as their first graduating class will graduate this June.

So what is better...to go to Samuell Merritt (with statistics to back up its quality) that offers only one degree or to go to Touro, with no statistics, that offers both a PA and a MPH?

Is it advantageous to have both degrees? What are my career options with a PA/MPH?

hi, i can't comment on the the utility of a PA/MPH, but i'm graduating with my mph this month (Drexel University, Philadelphia), and i think it's an EXTREMELY useful degree. if you're interested in practicing as a clinical PA in primary care fields, you can apply a lot of your MPH skills in that area if you do community health. or, if you're interested in health management, you can become a house-expert for your practice/partners and help patients navigate the tricky waters of medicaid/medicare. if you want to do occupational health as a PA, you can concentrate in that for your mph as well. and there's always epidemiology, which is applicable to all fields.

as for which school you should choose, i think you should first decide if you want the mph (i say, go for it!), and then, find out if Touro is accredited in either/both degrees. Drexel is a fairly new school, and we all got a scare because they were still trying to get accredited during my first year (it's a long, multi-year process, and they were in the final stages) -- but if they hadn't been accredited, then my degree might be useless (i say "might" because you can practice public health with an mph, and you don't need board certification, unlike other health fields), but if Touro's PA program isn't accredited, either, i would stay far away.

hope this helps.

 

[LizzyM]

Check www.ceph.org to see if Touro is accredited in public health. If not, you can contact the Council and ask if Touro is in the process of applying for accrediation.