ABSTRACT:
The Certified in Public Health (CPH) credential is designed to strengthen and professionalize the public health workforce by assessing foundational knowledge and skills across practice settings. Currently, eligibility for the CPH exam prioritizes graduates of U.S.-based programs accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH), with limited pathways for graduates of non-U.S. public health programs. This structure creates a barrier for internationally trained public health professionals, despite the existence of more than 200 graduate-level public health programs outside the United States. This project describes a structured, time-limited pilot conducted by the National Board of Public Health Credentialing to evaluate whether recent graduates of non-U.S., non-CEPH-accredited graduate public health programs can successfully demonstrate competence on the CPH exam without additional work-experience requirements. The pilot is designed to empirically test long-standing assumptions regarding candidate performance rather than relying on accreditation status as a proxy for readiness. Pilot participants apply through the standard CPH application process and are flagged for subgroup analysis. Exam performance, overall pass rates, and outcomes by relevant candidate characteristics will be evaluated at the conclusion of the pilot. This approach builds on prior NBPHE experience using pilot studies to inform eligibility changes, including a successful 2015 pilot that expanded eligibility to public health professionals without CEPH-accredited degrees. Findings from this pilot will inform evidence-based decisions regarding permanent eligibility policy changes and contribute to broader discussions about equity, access, and global alignment in public health credentialing. By rigorously evaluating outcomes, this initiative seeks to balance certification rigor with inclusivity, supporting a more globally representative public health workforce.