Certification Portal About NBPHE
The National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE) works to advance the public health profession through certification. In a diverse, multidisciplinary field, certification provides a shared foundation of knowledge, competence, and accountability that supports professionals and builds public trust. Certification affirms a commitment to excellence, ethical practice, and lifelong learning, creating a shared language for practice and strengthening collaboration across roles, sectors, and settings under a common standard.
NBPHE member organizations:
- American Public Health Association
- Association of Prevention Teaching and Research
- Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health
- Association of State and Territorial Health Officials
- Council on Education for Public Health
- National Association of County and City Health Officials
- Public Health Accreditation Board
Strategic Plan
Our Strategic Plan, Assuring Excellence in Public Health, provides a clear roadmap for the growth and development of our organization over the next five years.
This plan focuses our efforts to assure excellence by professionalizing the field and increasing the number of CPH certified public health professionals, enhancing partnerships and outreach efforts, and ensuring a robust, sustainable, and adaptable organizational structure. Directly aligned with our mission and vision, these goals reflect our commitment to public health.
An NBPHE Historical Timeline
Both ASPPH and APHA established task forces on the credentialing of public health workers in the late 1980โs, stimulated in part by the call from the U. S. Surgeon General for such an effort.
ASPPH commissioned a formal study of public health worker credentialing in 1989, which recommended that if ASPPH did decide to undertake credentialing that it should pursue it independently and in a โpro-active, reformist role.โ
Another study was conducted in 1995 by Dr. Bill Livingood and colleagues. Of those who participated in the survey, 45% supported a national certification effort with an additional 30% undecided on the issue. Livingood, W.C., Jr. et al: The feasibility and desirability of public health credentialing: A survey of public…Read More
Dr. Mohammad Ahkter, then Executive Director of APHA, and Dr. Al Sommer, Dean of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Chair of the Board of ASPPH, decided to jointly form the APHA/ASPPH Task Force on Public Health Workforce Credentialing. After receiving encouragement from both the APHA and…Read More
In January of 2002, ASPPHโs Executive Committee approved developing an independent Board of Public Health to issue examinations and provide those that pass the exam with a public health credential.
Eligibility requirements set at graduate-level degree in public health from a school or program accredited by CEPH, after extensive discussions among ASPPH, APHA, ASTHO, and NACCHO.
ASPPH releases first competency set for MPH graduates. The first meeting of the NBPHE was held in December 2005.
The inaugural Certified in Public Health exam was administered both in the U.S. and in international locations during August 11-30, 2008.The National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE) announced the award of its inaugural Certification in Public Health (CPH) to over 500 qualifying professionals.
NBPHE successfully pilots student eligibility for Certified in Public Health Exam. 37 CEPH-accredited schools and program offered the CPH exam as a pre-graduation test for their students. Certified in Public Health Continuing Education (CPHE) offered for the first time by ASPPH, APTR, ASTHO, APHA, NACCHO
79 Academic Institutions accredited by CEPH Extend Certified in Public Health Eligibility to their Students.
Students from all schools and programs accredited by CEPH eligible for the February 2012 and future CPH exams. The NBPHE begins offering the CPH exam twice a year.
Eligibility is expanded to include public health professionals who have taken the core courses at CEPH-accredited institutions and also have either five years’ work experience or a relevant graduate degree.
NBPHE conducts Job Task Analysis. NBPHE begins to identify the larger work responsibilities for each specific job and then digs down into each one to the more granular level of the job.
New Work Experience Eligibility piloted by NBPHE. Digital badging added to recertification process.
New Work Experience Eligibility approved by board as permanent eligibility criteria. New Work Experience Eligibility approved by board as permanent eligibility criteria. New Work Experience Eligibility approved by board as permanent eligibility criteria. New Work Experience Eligibility approved by board as permanent eligibility criteria.
Year-round testing begins. Digital certificates available to all active CPH. Board of directors approves new content outline for 2019.
A new Job Task Analysis was performed, and the CPH exam was then updated to reflect the new content outline. The new exam goes into place August 1, 2024.
In 2024 the National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE) introduced an Ambassadors program for the Certification in Public Health (CPH). An Ambassador program is a great way to have credible peers who best enjoy and utilize the CPH effectively share their knowledge and perspective on the benefits of the…Read More
In 2022, the National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE) received funding through The Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) to work with the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH) to conduct a Job Task Analysis for the governmental public health workforce. The survey was administered from May…Read More
Founded in 2005, NBPHE is excited to celebrate 20 years working in public health. With the mission to help professionalize the field of public health, we look forward to another 20 years serving this community.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation provided funding to the National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE) to perform a Job Task Analysis (JTA) for the public health nursing workforce. The purpose of the study, which was conducted between March and May 2025, was to determine the most frequent and important…Read More
The Certified in Disease Intervention (CDI) certification launched by opening the CDI application portal on February 18, 2026 with the first exam window opening April 1 and and the exam being administered through May 15, 2026. The CDI pilot project is supported by the CDC through funding opportunity CDC-RFA-CK20-2003 subawarded…Read More
