What Are The Best Online Doctoral Public Health Degree Programs?

Doctoral Public Health Degree Programs

Find your degree

Online College Plan is an advertising-supported site. Featured or trusted partner programs and all school search, finder, or match results are for schools that compensate us. This compensation does not influence our school rankings, resource guides, or other editorially-independent information published on this site.

Are you wondering where to find the top online doctoral programs in public health? This article can help.

There are a variety of great options for prospective students to choose from when it comes to finding an online doctoral public health degree. Online doctoral degrees in public health are meant for professionals currently working in the field of public health, who have completed their Master’s in Public Health degree (MPH) and would like to obtain a doctoral degree for career advancement.


If you would like to check out great online options for an MPH degree, have a look at our list of The Top 20 Online Master’s of Public Health Programs. The schedule flexibility offered by online academic formats allows students to maintain a full-time job while taking classes when it’s convenient for them.

If you are unsure of whether an online degree is right for you, check out our article that goes into detail about the Pros and Cons of Online College. If you have decided that an online program is the best choice, the next step is to find the program that best meets your academic and professional expectations.

The best program for each individual student will depend on their priorities. So to check out a variety of great offerings, have a look at our list of the Top 5 Online Colleges With The Best PHD in Public Health. Let’s take a closer look at a couple of the top programs.

Johns Hopkins University

Johns Hopkins University is an American private research university that was founded in 1876 and is located in Baltimore, Maryland. The university’s Bloomberg School of Public Health offers an online doctoral degree in public health that allows students to specialize in Environmental Health, Health Equity and Social Justice, Health Policy and Management, or Implementation Science. The degree requires the completion of 56 term credits, as well as a hands-on practicum experience and a dissertation, for a total of 64 credits. Students can complete their degree in as little as four years up to a maximum of nine years.

The online doctoral program in public health at Johns Hopkins is very prestigious, as it ranks first on our list of Online Colleges with the Best Ph.D. in Public Health. However, it is also one of the more expensive program options Fortunately, online students can get a break on tuition by applying for one of the 50 Best Scholarships for Online College Students.

The University of South Florida

The University of South Florida is a public research university that was founded in 1956 and has its main campus located in Tampa, Florida. Their College of Public Health offers a doctoral program in public health. Students can choose a concentration in Advanced Practice Leadership that will prepare them for leadership roles in practice-based settings like health departments, non-profits, and community-based organizations. They can also opt for a concentration in Public Health and Clinical Laboratory Science and Practice.

Students who live in the state of Florida are welcome to take some amount of classes online and additionally enjoy low tuition rates. Out-of-state tuition rates are also quite reasonable, which is what makes it one of the top doctoral Public Health degree programs.