By Dr. Fiona B. Lewis, DrPH
Director, DrPH program |Concentration lead, advanced practice leadership in public
health | Associate professor
More Than an Online Doctorate
There are many places where you can earn a DrPH. The better question is: What kind of environment do you want around you while you earn it?
That is where I think the USF story becomes interesting.
The USF College of Public Health is ranked No. 26 nationally and No. 1 in Florida by U.S. News & World Report. But rankings only tell part of the story. When students choose the USF DrPH, they are entering a much larger public health ecosystem of faculty, centers, institutes, practice partnerships, research and applied opportunities.
For a professional doctorate, that matters.
Access to a Broader Public Health Ecosystem
Our students come to us with different backgrounds and interests. Some are focused on leadership and systems change. Others are drawn to maternal and child health, workforce development, laboratory leadership, occupational health, infection prevention, health policy, community engagement, digital health, women’s health or other areas of public health practice.
At USF, there are places for those interests to connect.
The Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Education, Science and Practice is one of 13 federally funded MCH Centers of Excellence nationwide. Its MCH Scholars Program is open to graduate students, including DrPH students, and provides leadership development, individualized mentoring, conference support, applied research and translation experiences, and financial support for selected scholars.
The Sunshine Education and Research Center, one of only 18 NIOSH-funded education and research centers nationally, includes the DrPH in advanced practice leadership in public health among its academic training programs. Eligible trainees may receive tuition and research-related travel support while participating in interdisciplinary education, professional development and occupational health and safety initiatives.
Students interested in advocacy, policy, leadership and community engagement can also connect with the Activist Lab, which provides opportunities to build practical advocacy skills and connect public health knowledge with action.
The Lawton and Rhea Chiles Center offers another example of how the college brings research, education, policy, practice and service together around the health of women, children, families and communities.
These are not simply names on a website. They represent opportunities for students to connect with mentors, interdisciplinary teams, funded training, applied scholarship, professional networks and areas of practice beyond the required curriculum.
A Distinctive Laboratory Leadership Pathway
The public health and clinical laboratory science and practice concentration is another example of what makes the USF DrPH distinctive.
The concentration was developed in response to workforce shortages and limited career pathways for public health laboratory professionals. Dr. Jill Roberts, who serves as concentration lead, has helped advance this specialized pathway in close connection with the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL). Drs. Leah Gillis and Andy Cannons have also played important roles in guiding the concentration and strengthening its connection to the public health laboratory workforce. APHL has described its involvement in the program’s development as pivotal.
The result is a specialized doctoral pathway combining leadership, laboratory management, scientific expertise and applied practice. Students can remain employed while connecting doctoral learning directly to public health and clinical laboratory settings.
To me, that connection between academia and practice represents what the DrPH should be.
Online Does Not Have to Mean Disconnected
Flexibility matters because most DrPH students are established professionals. They are working, leading, supporting families and managing responsibilities that do not disappear when they begin a doctorate.
Our program is primarily online, but I do not believe online doctoral education should feel anonymous or transactional.
We are intentional about connection through faculty mentoring, professional academic advising, cohort relationships, virtual engagement beyond individual courses and opportunities to connect professional interests with faculty expertise and the broader college.
Then there are the three required in-person DrPH institutes. Since the program’s early design, the institutes have created dedicated space for advising, mentoring, networking, applied learning and community building (DeBate et al., 2015).
The goal is not to choose between flexibility and connection.
We want students to have both.
Use the DrPH While You Are Here
I believe students should not wait until graduation to begin using the DrPH.
Can an assignment help address a problem at work? Can an applied practice experience address a real organizational or community need? Can a faculty mentor, center, lab, institute, advisory board or professional connection open a door you had not considered?
In the advanced practice leadership concentration, students complete an applied practice experience outside their existing job functions with both faculty and practice-based mentorship.
That is how I think a professional doctorate should work. The degree should become part of your professional life while you are earning it.
Why USF?
So, why the DrPH at USF?
For me, it is the combination.
A nationally ranked college of public health. A practice-focused doctorate. Specialized centers, institutes, labs and student-facing initiatives. Opportunities such as the MCH Scholars Program, Sunshine ERC and Activist Lab. A distinctive laboratory leadership pathway developed in close connection with APHL. Faculty mentoring. Applied learning. In-person institutes. Flexibility for working professionals. And competitive value in a doctoral education.
You are not simply enrolling in a sequence of courses.
You are entering a public health ecosystem.
The question is what you will do with it.
Reference
DeBate, R. D., Petersen, D. J., Wathington, D., & Wolfe-Quintero, K. (2015). Our practice is our passion: Development and delivery of a 21st-century Doctor of Public Health program. American Journal of Public Health, 105(S1), S27–S33. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2014.302304