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Career Exploration

Health Education Specialists

Also called: Clinical Instructor, Health Education Specialist, Health Educator, Public Health Educator

What they do:

Provide and manage health education programs that help individuals, families, and their communities maximize and maintain healthy lifestyles. Use data to identify community needs prior to planning, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating programs designed to encourage healthy lifestyles, policies, and environments. May link health systems, health providers, insurers, and patients to address individual and population health needs. May serve as resource to assist individuals, other health professionals, or the community, and may administer fiscal resources for health education programs.

On the job, you would:
  • Prepare and distribute health education materials, such as reports, bulletins, and visual aids, to address smoking, vaccines, and other public health concerns.
  • Develop and maintain cooperative working relationships with agencies and organizations interested in public health care.
  • Maintain databases, mailing lists, telephone networks, and other information to facilitate the functioning of health education programs.
On the job, you'll need:

Business

  • customer service
  • administrative services

Education and Training

  • teaching and course design

Arts and Humanities

  • English language

Math and Science

  • psychology

Basic Skills

  • listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
  • talking to others

Social

  • understanding people's reactions
  • changing what is done based on other people's actions

People and Technology Systems

  • thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
  • figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it

Verbal

  • communicate by speaking
  • communicate by writing

Ideas and Logic

  • make general rules or come up with answers from lots of detailed information
  • notice when problems happen

Social

People interested in this work like activities that include helping people, teaching, and talking.

  • Integrity
  • Cooperation
  • Dependability
  • Attention to Detail
  • Concern for Others
  • Independence

Data base user interface and query software

  • Blackboard software
  • Microsoft Access

Web page creation and editing software

  • Blogging software
  • Facebook

Graphics or photo imaging software

  • Adobe Photoshop
  • JamBoard

Video courtesy of CareerOneStop.

Job Outlook

The job outlook for this position is Bright.

New job opportunities are very likely in the future. This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Median Annual Salary: $59,990

Education

Associate's degree or bachelor's degree is usually needed.