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Health promotion specialist

Alternative titles for this job include Health improvement specialist

Health promotion specialists educate and inform people about health issues.

Average salary (a year)

£21,892 Starter

to

£37,890 Experienced

Typical hours (a week)

38 to 40 a week

You could work

evenings / weekends occasionally

How to become a health promotion specialist

You can get into this job through:

  • a university course
  • an apprenticeship
  • applying directly

University

You could do a degree in a subject like:

  • health promotion
  • public health policy
  • behavioural science
  • health studies

Other subjects like psychology, social sciences and education may also be accepted by employers.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, for a degree

More Information

Apprenticeship

You may be able to do a public health practitioner degree apprenticeship.

You may find opportunities in office based, community, or healthcare roles. You could be working for different types of organisations like the NHS, local authorities or charities.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) and A levels, or equivalent, for a higher or degree apprenticeship

More Information

Volunteering

You'll find it helpful to get some paid or voluntary experience in the health or care sector before you apply for a course.

You could contact the health promotion unit or voluntary services co-ordinator at your local NHS trust for further advice.

Direct Application

You can apply directly to employers if you have some of the relevant skills and knowledge needed for this role.

You'll usually need a qualification and experience in an area like medicine, nursing, teaching or social work. Experience of working with communities would also be useful.

More Information

Career tips

There are lots of voluntary and charitable organisations who work on health issues, and there are often job opportunities in the area of health promotion.

You can also find details of current health campaigns and initiatives through the Royal Society for Public Health.

Further information

You can find more on careers in health promotion through Health Careers.

What it takes

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

  • knowledge of teaching and the ability to design courses
  • knowledge of English language
  • customer service skills
  • the ability to work well with others
  • excellent verbal communication skills
  • the ability to use your initiative
  • sensitivity and understanding
  • administration skills
  • to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

Restrictions and Requirements

You'll need to:

You may need a driving licence for some jobs.

What you'll do

Day-to-day tasks

As part of your day-to-day duties, you could:

  • promote healthy eating and regular exercise
  • advise of the dangers of smoking or excessive drinking
  • give information about the risk of coronary heart disease and cancers
  • raise awareness of mental health, sexual health, and drug misuse

You may also:

  • do research
  • produce publicity materials
  • organise exhibitions and events
  • run training courses and workshops
  • provide information and advice to managers in health authorities and local councils

Working environment

You could work in an office.

Career path and progression

With experience, you could move into a more senior role and have more responsibility for planning projects and strategies.

If you have a postgraduate qualification, you could move into a role where you’ll have responsibility for managing projects and other health promotion specialists.

You could also work as a freelance consultant.

Current opportunities

Apprenticeships In England

We can't find any apprenticeship vacancies in England for a health promotion specialist right now.

The Find an apprenticeship service can help you with your search, send alerts when new apprenticeships become available and has advice on how to apply.

Courses In England

Access to HE Diploma (Health Science Professions)

  • Provider: RNN GROUP
  • Start date: 06 June 2021
  • Location: Rotherham

Access to HE Diploma (Social Science and Health)

  • Provider: UNIVERSITY COLLEGE BIRMINGHAM
  • Start date: 06 September 2021
  • Location: Birmingham
Find courses near you

Jobs In the United Kingdom

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