Public Health Physician
Healthcare
Apply knowledge of general preventive medicine and public health issues to promote health care to groups or individuals, and aid in the prevention or reduction of risk of disease, injury, disability, or death. May practice population-based medicine or diagnose and treat patients in the context of clinical health promotion and disease prevention.
Picture the job
Where you'd usually workA clinic or consultation room
- Mostly indoors
- Dealing with customers or the public
- Regular working hours
An illustration of a typical workplace, not a photo. The work-style notes come from US O*NET data, so read them as a guide.
In Malaysia
In Malaysia public health specialists mostly work for the Ministry of Health, leading district and state health offices on outbreaks, dengue, vaccination, food safety and health policy, rather than treating individual patients. Public Health is a recognised specialty on the National Specialist Register, which you must be on to practise as a specialist.
- How people get into it here
- After SPM, do a pre-university or foundation programme and a 5-year medical degree, then housemanship and service as a medical officer. Then complete at least 4 years of public health specialist training (e.g. MPH followed by a Doctorate in Public Health at UM, UKM, USM, UPM or other recognised universities) and register with the NSR.
- Government post
- Pegawai Perubatan Gred UD9 (Ministry of Health), later gazetted as Pakar Perubatan Kesihatan Awam after specialist training · starts at RM3,130 a month
Sources:nsr.org.mymmc.gov.mye-mjm.org
Pay in Malaysia
We don't have a sourced Malaysian salary range for this job yet, and we'd rather show nothing than a number we can't stand behind.
Where to check:
- JobStreet and Hiredly job ads for this title
- DOSM Salaries & Wages Survey
- SSPA scheme tables, if you're aiming for a government post
How far is this from you?
Roughly how much preparation this job usually takes. In Malaysia your UPU route and the programme's syarat still decide entry, so treat this as a guide, not a gate.
1
Entry straight after SPM
2
SPM + sijil / short TVET course
3
Diploma / TVET (sijil–diploma)
4
Degree (ijazah sarjana muda)
Typical entry
Postgrad (sarjana / PhD) or professional route
How to get here
Post-SPM pathways with programmes in this career's fields. Tap one to see real programmes and entry requirements.
Asasi / Foundation
One-year runway into a specific university: public via UPU or private direct entry.
Diploma
Skill-first qualification. Work after, or enter degree Year 2. Polytechnics keep it affordable.
Check what you may qualify for
Enter your SPM grades and see which routes and programmes you may qualify for. An estimate to plan with, not an offer.
Quick answers
How do you become a Public Health Physician in Malaysia?
After SPM, do a pre-university or foundation programme and a 5-year medical degree, then housemanship and service as a medical officer. Then complete at least 4 years of public health specialist training (e.g. MPH followed by a Doctorate in Public Health at UM, UKM, USM, UPM or other recognised universities) and register with the NSR. Registration with Malaysian Medical Council (full registration + annual practising certificate) and National Specialist Register (Public Health) is required to practise.
What should I study to become a Public Health Physician?
Related fields of study: Medicine (MBBS/MD). SPM subjects that help most: Biology, Chemistry, Additional Science and English.
How much does a Public Health Physician earn in Malaysia?
We don't yet have a Malaysian source we can cite for Public Health Physician pay, so we show no figure.
What you'd do all day
The tasks that matter most in this job, most important first.
Also known as
What this job is called on JobStreet, LinkedIn and in job ads. Search these too.
Subjects that matter here
The SPM subjects worth your effort for this career, with the reason for each.
What you'd need to know
The subject areas this job leans on most, and the SPM subjects that build them.
- Medicine and Dentistry95%
BiologyChemistry
- Biology88%
BiologyAdditional Science
- English Language86%
English
- Education and Training79%
- Public Safety and Security78%
- Psychology77%
Tools you'd use
Software and equipment that show up in this job, worth learning early.
What the work feels like
Day-to-day working conditions, so you can tell whether the job suits how you like to work.
- Face-to-face discussionsEvery day
- Contact with other peopleConstant contact
- Dealing with customers or the publicVery high
- Leading or coordinating othersHigh
- Indoors, air-conditionedEvery day
- Outdoors, in all weatherAlmost never
- Noisy environmentAlmost never
- Time walking or movingA little
AI and demand for this job
A few real, dated data points, not a single score. AI making some tasks faster usually means a job changes, not that it disappears.
Share of everyday tasks today's AI can already help with (2023)
This estimate is from 2023, already out of date, since AI moves fast. Treat it as a rough, aging starting point, not the current picture.
What beginner adverts asked for
We read 8 internship and fresh-graduate adverts in related fields (August 2026). A small sample from one job site, not every vacancy.
4 of 8 were internships
Allowance or pay, when stated
RM850 – RM1,800
6 of 8 adverts printed an amount: usually between RM850 and RM1,800 a month. Many print none.
Languages named
Mandarin, Bahasa Malaysia
An empty line means the adverts did not say, not that employers have no requirement. Check each employer's own advert before you plan around it.
Related careers
If this interests you, these are worth a look too.
About this information
This describes what the job involves. Pay, demand and entry routes differ in Malaysia, so check the Pathways and Programmes pages for local requirements.
O*NET occupation: Preventive Medicine Physicians
Job responsibilities, knowledge areas and work context from O*NET 30.3, US Department of Labor, used under CC BY 4.0. onetcenter.org