The Letters After Your Name Won’t Save You
Do You Feel Like You're Doing Enough?
What’s missing from your life?
Is it the C.H.E.S. letters after your name?
Maybe CPH? MPH? MSPH? MS? MHA?
What if I told you: none of that will fix what you’re feeling right now?
We chase degrees. We chase certifications. We chase experience.
And guess what? The job market wants all three.
You finally get the degree, but don’t have the experience, so you’re stuck.
You’ve got the experience—but not the “right” degree—so again, stuck.
You’ve seen the meme:
“Can’t get a job because you don’t have experience. Can’t get experience because you don’t have a job.”
Yeah, that one.
🔁 It’s a cycle. A trap. A tail-chase.
But here’s the real question:
What’s your actual SKILL? What do you do well that doesn’t feel like work?
Maybe it’s time to shift.
Do something that pays the bills—even if it doesn’t scream “storybook public health.”
Then build your passion on the side. Teach. Create. Write. Design programs. Advocate.
You can be aligned, without being boxed in.
Take me.
This week, I found out I didn’t get into the DrPH program I applied to.
I was devastated.
I thought:
“Why not me? Haven’t I done enough?”
Years of school. An exhausting round in a Doctor of Health Science (DHSc) program last year.
And still, it wasn’t “enough.”
So I asked myself something real:
When is the degree enough?
What are we chasing that we think a few extra letters can give us?
Let me be clear:
You don’t need CHES, CPH, or even an MPH to start doing meaningful work.
And yes—I say that as someone who has an MPH and sells a CHES Prep Course.
I did it all—school, work, side hustles—to make sure I had experience and credentials.
My CHES opened doors when I didn’t have an MPH, but guess what?
I don’t even use my CHES now.
Still—I don’t regret the path. But I’m also tired.
So here’s what I want for you:
✨ Look at your purpose.
Think 10 years ahead.
Ask: Will this degree or certification get me closer to the life I want?
And if the answer is no—or maybe, or "I'm not sure"—
Know that you still have options.
Degrees don’t define your worth.
Certifications don’t determine your purpose.
You can build a life, a career, a legacy—without waiting on acceptance letters.
Start where you are.
Be okay with enough.
Be okay with being you.