Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists Publishes Methodology for Competency Set

A recent article in the Journal of Public Health Management and Practice highlights the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) methodology for updating the Applied Epidemiology Competencies (AECs) which define the role of applied epidemiologists and outlines the range of skills necessary for graduates entering the field.

CSTE created a comprehensive toolkit to support implementation of the AECs, including worksheets for competency-based job descriptions, career portfolios, training plans and interview questions. Employees (and students) can also use online evaluation tools to rate themselves against the AECs, as can supervisors for their supervisees.

Schools of Public Health can utilize the AECs in several ways to support student success, including: (1) employ the crosswalk with the CEPH accreditation standards to ensure their epidemiology curricula prepares their students for careers in governmental public health, (2) have students take the online assessments to identify strengths and areas for improvement, and (3) make use of the mock interview questions to prepare students for scenario-based interviews in governmental health roles. The AECs serve as a tool for professional training and growth of the epidemiology workforce.

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The Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists was a proud sponsor of the 2025 ASPPH Annual Meeting for Academic Public Health.