3 Tech Jobs for Public Health Professionals That Pay Big—No Coding Needed

05/15/25 • 14 min

In this episode of The Dr. Des Show, we explore how public health professionals can pivot into high-paying roles in the tech industry—without needing a coding bootcamp. Dr. Des breaks down three career paths you might not have considered, shares how your existing skills already align, and offers practical strategies to start applying today. If you've done community assessments, program planning, or compliance work, there's a place for you in tech—and this episode is your roadmap.

What You’ll Learn:

Why tech is one of the fastest-growing opportunities for public health professionals
The 3 tech roles you can get with a public health background:
1. UX Researcher – Learn how your qualitative evaluation skills translate into product usability work
2. Data Product Manager – Discover how your program and KPI experience aligns with product and platform strategy
3. Digital Health Ethics & Privacy Consultant – Explore how HIPAA, compliance, and policy knowledge are in demand at startups and tech companies
How to reframe your resume language to speak the language of tech recruiters
Salary ranges for each role (ranging from $95K to $140K+)
Why networking and visibility (not just job boards) are essential to finding hidden tech opportunities

Mentioned in This Episode:

The Public Health Ideal Career Quiz
Public Health and Tech Workshop inside The Public Health Club
The Business of Public Health Summit

Action Steps:

Take the Public Health Ideal Career Quiz
Join the Public Health Club to access workshops and virtual rooms to build your tech readiness
Rework your resume using the job description as your cheat code
Start telling people about your skills—especially on LinkedIn

Quotable Moment:

“When you think about tech, I want you to think: I can do that. Because your skills are needed—and they’re wanted.”

Subscribe & Share:
If this episode sparked ideas for your next career move, don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with a public health friend who needs to hear it!

https://www.drdesshow.com/
https://www.publichealthclub.com/

What You’ll Learn:

Why tech is one of the fastest-growing opportunities for public health professionals
The 3 tech roles you can get with a public health background:
1. UX Researcher – Learn how your qualitative evaluation skills translate into product usability work
2. Data Product Manager – Discover how your program and KPI experience aligns with product and platform strategy
3. Digital Health Ethics & Privacy Consultant – Explore how HIPAA, compliance, and policy knowledge are in demand at startups and tech companies
How to reframe your resume language to speak the language of tech recruiters
Salary ranges for each role (ranging from $95K to $140K+)
Why networking and visibility (not just job boards) are essential to finding hidden tech opportunities

Mentioned in This Episode:

The Public Health Ideal Career Quiz
Public Health and Tech Workshop inside The Public Health Club
The Business of Public Health Summit

Action Steps:

Take the Public Health Ideal Career Quiz
Join the Public Health Club to access workshops and virtual rooms to build your tech readiness
Rework your resume using the job description as your cheat code
Start telling people about your skills—especially on LinkedIn

Quotable Moment:

“When you think about tech, I want you to think: I can do that. Because your skills are needed—and they’re wanted.”

Subscribe & Share:
If this episode sparked ideas for your next career move, don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with a public health friend who needs to hear it!

https://www.drdesshow.com/
https://www.publichealthclub.com/

Previous Episode

How to Make Six Figures in Public Health (Without Burning Out)

In this powerful and transparent episode, Dr. Des tackles one of the most-asked questions in public health: "How do I get to six figures?" Whether you’re an early-career professional, a seasoned expert stuck at a salary ceiling, or someone curious about side hustles and consulting, this episode is your no-fluff blueprint. Dr. Des shares her personal journey—from making $36K in public health to bringing in six figures from consulting—and breaks down the mindset shifts, overlooked opportunities, and real strategies that helped her and her students reach new income levels.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

🔑 Why mindset is the first step to breaking income ceilings in social impact careers
📍 Where six-figure public health jobs are really hiding (hint: it’s not always the CDC)
💼 How to leverage your skills for consulting and freelance opportunities
🧠 Why it’s time to drop the scarcity mindset and shift into strategic career planning
🛠️ The practical blueprint you’ll need to scale your income—with or without a promotion

Mentioned in this Episode:

Join the Public Health Club and start making the right moves to elevate your income!
🎯 Free Training: The Six-Figure Public Health Career Blueprint – May 14th
💬 The Public Health Club: Join for mentorship, consulting opportunities, and workshops
💼 Dr. Des’s personal story of going from underpaid to thriving through a health equity consulting contract
🔁 The power of using public health skills in nontraditional sectors like tech, insurance, and social impact

Join the Movement:
Get inspired. Take action. And surround yourself with other public health professionals who are building lives filled with purpose and prosperity. Whether you need help navigating job transitions, want to launch your consulting side hustle, or just need someone to remind you that six figures is possible—you’re in the right place.

https://www.drdesshow.com/
https://www.publichealthclub.com/

Next Episode

5 Steps to Launch Your Public Health Business

In this action-packed episode of The Dr. Des Show, Dr. Des walks you through the 5 essential steps to starting your public health business—whether you're still dreaming, currently building, or already launched and looking to refine. From figuring out your business model to identifying your audience, building a brand, and creating an irresistible offer, this episode gives you a full blueprint to get started. Bonus: Dr. Des shares a free downloadable guide you can use to follow along and take action right now.

If you're serious about turning your public health passion into a profitable business, this is the episode you don’t want to miss.

🔑 What You’ll Learn in This Episode

Why niching down is critical for attracting the right clients
How to determine the best business model for your lifestyle and skills
The importance of branding and where to start (even without a website!)
How to validate your offer before building it (don’t skip this!)
The mindset and consistency required to truly succeed as an entrepreneur

📌 5 Key Steps Discussed

Pick Your Path: Decide what kind of business fits you—consulting, digital products, speaking, brick-and-mortar, etc.
Know Your People: Define your audience and where they hang out so you can reach them with intention.
Build Your Brand: Choose one or two social platforms to start building visibility—Dr. Des breaks down Instagram vs. LinkedIn.
Create an Irresistible Offer: Learn why you must give people what they want—and sneak in what they need.
Launch + Stay Consistent: Why consistent action beats perfection, and how to keep going even when your first launch flops.

💥 Bonus Resources Mentioned