Health Professions Education as a Career

Increasing longevity, changes in lifestyles, and extended use of our health care system means a growing demand for health care professionals, health education specialists, and health-oriented educators to teach at the colleges, universities, and professional schools that prepare these new practitioners. During your career as a health care professional, you may have discovered your own affinity for teaching, whether you develop programs that positively influence health-related behaviors of individuals, communities, and organizations, or you mentor colleagues as they gain experience in your specific health care field. By pursuing postgraduate training in education, you can become a more effective educator and communicator in the health professions.

As a health educator, you are trained to encourage healthy lifestyles and wellness through informing individuals, communities, and organizations about behaviors that promote healthy living and prevent diseases and other health problems. You'll learn to assess the needs of your audience, whether an individual or a group, and determine which topics to cover and how best to present the information. Teaching in any situation involves forming a lesson plan, presenting material to students, responding to student learning needs, and evaluating student progress. At a college or university, you may also perform your own research, advise and work with students individually, prepare exercises and laboratory experiments, participate in academic and administrative committees, and keep up with developments in your specialty.

Most schools of education, including ones for health professions, require you to take courses in educational technology, instructional design and methods, teaching and learning styles, and curriculum construction. You may also complete either a research thesis or an education practicum, in which you participate in the educational training of health care professional students under the supervision on a practicing educator. Your practicum may include development of course curriculum, test writing, presentations, and evaluation of program effectiveness.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that the demand for postsecondary teachers will grow 23 percent through 2016, a much faster than average rate for all occupations, primarily due to expected increases in enrollments at colleges and universities. Many professional associations for health care educators, including the Health Care Education Association (HCEA), offer informational and career resources online.

If you are creative; able to communicate ideas well; able to enjoy, relate to, and motivate students; possess an inquiring and analytical mind; have a strong desire to pursue and disseminate knowledge; are self-motivated and able to work in an environment where you are likely to receive little direct supervision, a career in health professions education may be just right for you.

Sources: American Association for Health Education; Healthcare Education Association; US Bureau of Labor Occupational Outlook Quarterly

MWU Health Professions Education Program in Glendale, Arizona