GWU MPA vs MPH

[gradstudentmom]

I'm relocating from Seattle to DC to study health policy and have been accepted to both the MPA and MPH (public health) programs at GWU. The MPH program is appealing because it has a specific health policy concentration, however a friend of mine who works in DC says she knows of no MPHers working in health policy. Can anyone offer an opinion about an MPA vs an MPH for health policy work? I will be staying in DC after I graduate. Thank you!

[Nimesis]

I had a similar decision although mine was kind of expanded over a 2 year process. Back in 2008 I applied to public health programs at UCLA, UW, Berkeley, Harvard, Emory, and BU and got into most of them. I was set to go to UCLA and when I actually went for the visit day I realized that the program was a lot more community oriented than I really wanted. I wanted a program that was more policy and research oriented, so I did not end up attending UCLA and now I have applied for MPP/MPA programs this year and am probably going to attend Berkeley. I think you really need to visit both programs and get an idea of whether they are a good fit for you before you make your decision. I did not do my homework in my earlier admissions process, and so I ended up going on the wrong path. You won't really know until you talk to the people at the program, get an idea of the curriculum, and see if that path matches your career goals.