Public Health Officer Training Program

The School of Public Health and Community Medicine (SPHCM) and the NSW Department of Health have launched an academic partnership to support and enhance the prestigious NSW Public Health Officer Training Program (PHOTP).

The PHOTP is a highly competitive 3-year field-based public health training program. It commenced in 1990 and was modelled on the Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) Program from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The program’s mission is to produce highly competent multidisciplinary professionals capable of ‘public health action’.

The SPHCM provides a pathway for PHO Trainees to enrol in a unique Professional Doctorate in Applied Public Health (DrPH). The program is based on a competency framework, which candidates fulfil through field-based training, formal education seminars and workshops, and a thesis which will be examined by three university-nominated external examiners. PHO Trainees will be supervised by SPHCM and NSW Health academic and field-based supervisors for the duration of their Traineeship.

All PHO Trainees are employees of the NSW Department of Health. There is usually one round of recruitment each year, with 4-6 positions available. For information about the recruitment process, please refer to the NSW Department of Health website.


NOTE: Applications for the next round of recruitment close at 5.00 pm Friday 26 June 2009.
Please refer to the NSW Department of Health website for the application kit.