National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE)

Website: http://NBPHE.org

The NBPHE was established in September 2005 as an independent organization, the purpose of which is to ensure that students and graduates from schools and programs of public health accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) have mastered the knowledge and skills relevant to contemporary public health. This purpose will be accomplished by developing, preparing, administering and evaluating a voluntary certification exam.

Member organizations include the American Public Health Association, Association of Prevention Teaching and Research, Association of Schools of Public Health, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, and the National Association of County and City Health Officials.

The benefits of becoming a Certified Public Health Professional include:

  • Demonstrate commitment to public health beyond your academic training
  • Show public health expertise by evidencing mastery of the core sciences of public health
  • Protect the public by staying current in public health
  • Distinguish yourself from others
  • Advance cohesiveness and collaboration with your professional peers by starting from a common foundation
  • Elevate the profession of public health
  • Ensure high standards that better serve the health of the public
  • Assure the community that you serve/protect that you maintain a national, professional standard
  • Students at some institutions may substitute for a local comprehensive exam and earn CPH at the same time
  • Increase recognition of the public health professions
  • Raise the visibility of public health
  • Measure and improve the competency and consistency of public health workers nationwide

The exam is rooted in the five basic core competencies of public health to reflect the nature of the field and the way one area of knowledge blends into another. The certification exam is administered to graduates of and students at CEPH-accredited schools and programs of public health. Keep your MPH textbooks and notes to help you prepare to take the exam once you graduate!

You can find more information on upcoming exams at NBPHE Exam FAQ Page.