Public health courses

A public health degree qualifies you to protect and intervene in the health of communities within the public system. Since public health is such a diverse field, you can choose to focus on many different specialisations during your studies, including research, policy development, epidemiology, global health, adolescent health, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ health.

A public health degree can lead to a range of careers across health agencies, government departments, hospitals, primary care health organisations, community health centres and universities. 

Roles you could explore include:

• Health promotion officer
• Public health consultant
• Community health and wellbeing officer
• Women’s health officer
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health worker
• Epidemiologist
• Data analyst
• Clinical trials coordinator
• Public health nutritionist
• Primary health manager
• Program manager
• Project manager

Not only are career opportunities quite varied within public health, leaving you lots of room for movement—but jobs are also on the rise. 

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic increased the need for more health workers, the Australian Government projected that the wider industry will need another 250,000 workers by 2023. This makes public health a stable industry where you can enjoy considerable job security. It’s also a career where you can make an impact on those in need, which can be very fulfilling.   

There are benefits to studying a course in public health online, particularly if you already work in the healthcare industry. You can build your expertise in your spare time, without being locked into in-person lectures and tutorials. When you study your course through Open Universities Australia, you can also control how many subjects you take per term, and scale your study load up and down as you need to. This makes it easier to fit your readings and assessments around your lifestyle.  

If your public health course includes a supervised industry placement, you will be able to organise this through your university the same as you would if you studied on campus. 

It depends on where are in your career—and where you want to be. 

If you’re new to university study, then it may be best to start with an undergraduate qualification in public health, where you will develop your foundational knowledge. You can choose a Bachelor of Public Health to learn about the Australian healthcare system, or a Bachelor of International Public Health to focus on both local and global issues. 

If you’re making a career change, you might like to consider a Graduate Certificate or Graduate Diploma in Public Health, which will introduce you to public health at a more advanced level. 

And if you already work in public health, then you should consider a Master of Public Health, or a graduate course that allows you to upskill in a specialisation such as health promotion, epidemiology and public health policy. Courses at this level will be more research and project based, and require existing public health knowledge.

Unlike when you study through a traditional university, you can enrol you in most of the undergraduate subjects available through our website instantly. Enrol in the subjects you’re interested in, and as soon as your study materials arrive, you can start learning online.

As you start completing your subjects, you’ll eventually need to apply to your uni to formally enter your degree. Enrolling in subjects is a great way of becoming eligible and applying successfully. Check out the Registering in this degree section on the degree page you're interested in for more information.

Postgraduate subjects are different. Most of them are restricted, meaning you’ll have to apply for entry and be accepted before you can start studying online. You’ll find information about the application process on the postgraduate degree page that you’re interested in.

Enrolling is easy. You can enrol online or over the phone with a student advisor.

Before starting an enrolment, it’s important to read the entry requirements for your chosen course to ensure that you’re eligible to apply. If you don’t quite meet the requirements, we may be able to help you find a pathway into your course through open-entry subjects, which anyone can study.

Chat with us to find out more.

There are a lot of reasons to study your course online through us.

• You can enrol without entry requirements 
  We have a unique open-door policy that makes it possible for everyone to enrol in university study, no matter their academic history. If you don’t meet the entry requirements for a degree, we’ll help you get in through single undergraduate subjects and transition into a qualification from there.
• You have total control over how you study
  Upskill without committing to a whole degree upfront. Or enrol in a full degree, but take it a subject at a time. We’ll introduce you to flexible study options you didn’t even know about, so you can fit uni around what matters to you.
• You’ll graduate with the same qualification as an on-campus student
  Once you enrol through us, you’ll study online with the university that provides your degree. This means that when you complete your qualification, you’ll graduate with the same degree as on-campus students.
• We’ll help you navigate the university world
  Our friendly student advisors will be your guide every step of the enrolment journey. They'll help you compare universities, choose a course, provide documentation and understand your finance options.