Public Health Employment Outcomes

Mailman School graduates pursue their passions across a broad range of employment sectors. While most choose to apply their skills and experience in and around the New York metropolitan area, our alumni can be found working throughout the United States and abroad.

View a partial list of employers and recruiters.

2021-22 Postgraduate Outcomes, Six Months Post-Graduation

Industries/Sectors for 2021-22 Graduates

(2020-21 Data Below)
Overall Salaries, 2020-21

325 graduates reported salaries. Part-time salaries and international currency salaries were excluded.

  • The Overall Average salary was: $89,252 (for those with no prior graduate degree, $73,758).
  • The Overall Median salary was: $72,250 (for those with no prior graduate degree, $70,000).
  • The range was $34,000 to $600,000.
  • 79 graduates reported receiving bonuses, and the average bonus was $13,053 and median bonus was $10,000. Specific benefits/bonuses mentioned included tuition remission, stock options/equity, licensure reimbursement, visa sponsorship, housing and transportation pay (especially for graduates working internationally), and relocation costs.

Median and Average Salaries by Sector

Salaries differ by industry, years of experience of the candidate, geographic location, size of the employer, etc. The following salaries are school-wide salaries by industry. The first table is for all salaries reported; the second table is the average or median salary for those MPH, MHA or MS students who entered the Mailman School without a prior graduate-level degree (i.e. excluding Executive MPH, MHA, or MS students, PhD/DrPH students, and students who entered Mailman with a pre-existing MD, PhD etc.).


Salaries

Salary by Industry: School Wide (All Graduates, Including Executives, PhDs, and Those With Prior Graduate Degrees)

School-Wide Salaries (All Graduates Who Reported)

Average

Median

Low

High

Number

Reported

Consulting

$99,937

$90,000

$55,000

$260,000

58

Government

$69,721

$68,640

$42,000

$132,000

39

Insurance

$94,301

$90,000

$52,000

$130,000

13

Healthcare

$103,232

$72,000

$34,000

$600,000

89

Marketing

$74,963

$66,500

$50,000

$152,500

12

Nonprofit (Domestic)

$71,112

$65,000

$39,500

$175,500

35

Nonprofit (International)

$65,664

$64,500

$45,000

$120,000

11

Other

$140,714

$70,000

$40,000

$400,000

7

Pharmaceuticals

$102,388

$85,000

$50,000

$215,000

19

Research

$68,286

$65,000

$60,000

$86,500

7

Technology

$85,938

$71,250

$62,000

$165,000

8

Universities

$69,704

$65,000

$51,000

$150,000

27

Overall

$89,252

$72,250

$34,000

$600,000

325


Salaries by Industry: MPH, MHA, or MS only ​(Excluding Executive MPH, MHA, MS; Part-Time MHAs; and Students With Pre-Existing MD, PhD, PharmD, JD, etc.)

580 students graduated with an MS, MHA or MPH and did not have a prior graduate degree. Of these, 252 reported salaries (salaries paid in international currency or part-time excluded).

Industry

Average

Median

Low

High

Number Reported

Consulting

$88,840

$85,000

$55,000

$150,000

47

Government

$67,920

$66,302

$42,000

$132,000

36

Insurance

$93,374

$85,009

$52,000

$130,000

11

Hospital/health system

$68,346

$65,000

$34,000

$110,000

50

Marketing/Comm

$67,914

$65,000

$50,000

$79,000

11

Non-Profit or Philanthropy (Domestic)

$68,203

$66,250

$39,400

$102,000

34

Non-Profit/International NGO (Global)

$60,230

$61,500

$45,000

$71,000

10

Other For-Profit

$67,000

$50,000

$40,000

$130,000

5

Pharmaceuticals

$87,337

$72,800

$50,000

$165,000

13

Research Organization or Institute

$70,600

$70,000

$62,000

$86,500

5

Technology

$74,643

$70,000

$62,000

$95,000

7

University

$65,565

$65,000

$51,000

$85,000

23

Schoolwide

$73,758

$70,000

$34,000

$165,000

252


Salary by Degree*

Columbia degree

Mean

Median

Accelerated MPH

$270,000

$285,000

Doctor of Public Health

$236,843

$164,900

Executive MHA

$154,333

$150,000

Executive MPH

$201,136

$190,000

Regular MHA

$87,250

$85,000

Part-time MHA

$94,519

$93,150

MPH

$72,969

$70,000

MS**

$94,342

$80,000

MS (Excluding Patient Oriented Research)

$90,019

$76,400

PhD

$85,625

$78,500

* Note: Many differences in salary by degree reflect the prior years of relevant work experience of students in each degree program.

**MS salaries include salaries of those in programs such as Patient-Oriented Research, which are comprised of Columbia faculty and researchers.

For graduates who worked prior to attending Mailman School, and also provided salaries after graduation, the average salary increase after graduation was $41,318 and median increase was $40,687 in 2019-2020 (2021 data currently being calculated).


Job Search Process

While the Mailman School has excellent career outcomes, and students and alumni have lifetime access to top-quality career services resources, students are ultimately responsible for taking ownership of their own job search.

To find employment, students applied, on average, to 33 jobs in 2019-20, (excluding those who were recruited from internships or prior jobs).

Students went through an average of 4.7 first-round interviews and 2.9 second-round interviews, to receive an average number of 1.5 job offers (There was 3 students receiving 5 or more offers, 11 students receiving 4 offers; 37 students receiving 3 offers; 85 students receiving 2 offers).

Students used a variety of search methods to hear about the jobs they ended up accepting. 24% of students identified the job they accepted through Career Services (i.e. Mailman career fair, recruiting event, CareerLink job board); 5% used Mailman School Alumni networking; 13% Department/faculty; 8% Classmate referrals, 10% practicum; 13% personal network; and 25% used a non-Mailman Job Board; 6% were promoted from an existing job; and 13% used other methods (such as reciprocity career services with other public health schools, professional associations, or staffing firms). (Note: Percentages do not add to 100% because students could indicate more than one job search method; percentages indicate the percent of unique survey respondents mentioning that method.)

In all, approximately 57% of students found their jobs via networking; and 62% found their jobs with the assistance of Columbia’s Mailman School of Public Health.

For further details, view the complete report: Post Graduate Outcomes.