The 'Fauci effect' is driving up applications for public health graduate programs
Public health schools saw a 23 percent year-over-year jump in applications for graduate programs in the fall of 2020, and they're reporting an even bigger increase in the spring application cycle, Stat News reports, citing the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health.
It appears to be partly the result of the so-called "Fauci effect," said the association's CEO Laura Magaña, referring to the United States' top infectious disease expert, who has become a national presence throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The coronavirus crisis "has really thrust public health into the spotlight like we've never seen before," Darleen Peterson, the associate dean for academic affairs at Claremont Graduate University's School of Community and Global Health, which Stat notes saw a 66 percent increase in applications from March 2020 to March 2021, said.
Programs are reporting even more significant jumps among Black and Latino candidates, likely because of the disparate toll the pandemic has taken on communities of color, Stat reports. Brown University, for example, said applications for its MPH program rose 116 percent from this point last year, with an 187 percent increase among Black candidates and a 137 percent increase among Latino candidates.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
It's probably too early to tell for sure, but it appears the public health students should also benefit from an increase in employment opportunities in their field. A study published last month found that the number of open jobs in the field increased in the first eight months of the pandemic, buoyed, perhaps, by completely new positions, such as health and safety consultants for television and movie productions. Read more at Stat News.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Why are meteorologists worried Trump could ruin their forecasts?
Today's Big Question How a conservative push to dismantle a little-known government agency could lead to big headaches for anyone hoping to get a handle on their local weather
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
'Such wrongdoing encourages foreign corrupt practices'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Can Japan's new prime minister govern effectively?
In The Spotlight A 'popular gadfly' gets the top job
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Texas dairy worker gets bird flu from infected cow
Speed Read The virus has been spreading among cattle in Texas, Kansas, Michigan and New Mexico
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Dengue hits the Americas hard and early
Speed Read Puerto Rico has declared an epidemic as dengue cases surge
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US bans final type of asbestos
Speed Read Exposure to asbestos causes about 40,000 deaths in the U.S. each year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Seattle Children's Hospital sues Texas over 'sham' demand for transgender medical records
Speed Read Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton subpoenaed records of any Texan who received gender-affirming care at the Washington hospital
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Afghanistan has a growing female suicide problem
Speed Read The Taliban has steadily whittled away women's and girls' rights in Afghanistan over the past 2 years, prompting a surge in depression and suicide
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US life expectancy rose in 2022 but not to pre-pandemic levels
Speed Read Life expectancy is slowly crawling back up
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Vallance diaries: Boris Johnson 'bamboozled' by Covid science
Speed Read Then PM struggled to get his head around key terms and stats, chief scientific advisor claims
By The Week UK Published
-
An increasing number of dog owners are 'vaccine hesitant' about rabies
Speed Read A new survey points to canine vaccine hesitancy
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published