D. Ph.

D.P.H. is an abbreviation for Doctor of Public Health, a degree related to administration in public health, as in During a pandemic, we need all the DPHs we can get to help manage the crisis!

D.P.H. also stands for diploma in public health, a degree you can earn that focuses on managing a society’s health.

D.P.H. may also be spelled without periods as DPH.

Written as D. Ph., the abbreviation stands for Doctor of Philosophy, although the degree is more commonly written as Ph.D. Someone with a D. Ph. may not necessarily be a philosopher, however. Instead, they will have a complete understanding of the whole breadth of an academic field.

Example: After I graduate, I will officially be a D.P.H.

The origin of the abbreviation D.P.H. is unknown. Doctor comes from the Latin docēre, meaning “to teach,” public comes from the Latin pūblicus, meaning “people,” and health comes from the Old English hǣlth, meaning “whole.”

More rarely, D.P.H. may refer to the title of Doctor of Public Hygiene. Nearly all doctors in this field are doctors of public health that specialize in hygiene as their career. In this case, a D.P.H. at a health department, dental organization, or food service company may be a D.P.H both in the sense of health and hygiene.

What are some other forms related to D.P.H.?

• D. Ph. (noun)
• DPH (alternative spelling)

What are some words that often get used in discussing D.P.H.?

• degree
• field
• medical
• Ph.D.
• study
• teach
• work

What are some words D.P.H. may be commonly confused with?

• Ph.D.
• DrPH

D.P.H. is almost always used as a title or the name of an official degree or course.

Congratulations 🥳 to our dph masters students graduating today @DPHSheffield @ShefDentistry #ShefUniGrad pic.twitter.com/EDtLoaijKk

— zmarshman (@zmarshman) January 16, 2020

@cuny_sph #COMMENCEMENT 2018! So incredibly proud of my research team members that graduated with their MPH degrees (top), inspired by the DPH graduates (bottom) – hopefully me next May 2019, and lucky to hear from @CecileRichards who got an honorary #publichealth doctoral degree pic.twitter.com/dAKVF1PBbw

— Katrina F. Mateo, PhD MPH (@KatrinaFMateo) June 1, 2018

Which of the following is NOT a proper extended form of D.P.H.?

A. Doctor of Public Health
B. Doctor of Philosophy
C. Diploma in Public Health
D. Designation of Personal Health