The CWDC, in partnership with Colorado Community College Systems and Colorado Department of Higher Education, announce it has refreshed the Public Health career pathways and are publicly available on My Colorado Journey.
My Colorado Journey is an innovative state effort to expand access to education and career data to help students and job seekers accomplish their goals. It provides user-friendly, personalized information to find pathways to good jobs and upgrade skills and credentials. My Colorado Journey:
- Centralizes the most powerful career, education, and human services programs and tools, making it easier for the job seeker or student to access information.
- Aligns and streamlines services to be more cost-efficient.
- Provides a wide range of clear, in-demand options and pathways for students and job seekers.
- Supports continuous learning and skill development.
- Serves business and industry by better matching job seekers with the skills and knowledge employers need.
Public Health career pathways and occupations were initially published in 2021, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Post-pandemic, industry partners requested that we update the qualitative information to reflect the industry's current state.
The published career pathways present information collected for students and job seekers to encourage a deeper exploration of occupations in the industry.
The following information is presented on My Colorado Journey based on discussions with industry employers and public partners from July 2023 -June 2024.
- Healthy Communities: Public Health provides a foundation for healthier communities for everyone, everywhere. This is achieved by promoting healthy lifestyles, reducing disease and injury risk through community-based prevention, and responding to disasters and outbreaks.
- Generalists and Specialists: Colorado has a wide variety of specialist and generalist positions. Some professionals are devoted to a single area or program, such as infectious disease or maternal-child health. Others may work across multiple program areas. Generalist positions are more common in smaller agencies and at leadership levels.
- Diverse Solutions: Healthy communities require solutions that fit the diversity of the people and environments in those communities. People from diverse backgrounds who speak multiple languages are highly valued in public health. Additionally, public health agencies often seek to hire people rooted in the communities those agencies serve. Sometimes, lived experience in priority communities can be as valuable as educational achievement.
More information about the industry is available at the American Public Health Association website or in a Guide to Public Health Careers. Find public health jobs in Colorado through the Colorado Association of Local Public Health Officials (CALPHO).