A Master’s and Beyond: Upskilling With MPH Grad Maria Santini

Maria Santini '25MPH is a registered dietician who has more than 25 years of experience in the field. She said she gradually took on increasing responsibilities throughout her career, including supervising staff, but she never felt finished learning and growing.

"I had always wanted to return to school to further my education and found out my employer offered reasonable tuition reimbursement, so I started to research different programs," she said. "A few of my colleagues were pursuing their master's in public health as well, and that piqued my interest in the degree."

So, Santini decided to earn her own Master of Public Health (MPH) at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU).

Why SNHU?

The flexibility of SNHU's online programs first appealed to Santini.

"SNHU offered a very flexible format — asynchronous classes were non-negotiable given my full-time work schedule and family responsibilities," she said.

Her admission counselor, Shelby McCabe, played an important role in Santini's college choice, too.

"She was a big part of my decision to attend SNHU because I felt that if an enrollment counselor was that invested in my success, this must be the expectation/norm for SNHU — supportive student interactions to foster personal and academic success," Santini said.

She ultimately found that to be true. "I loved this school so much because of the flexibility, support and encouragement offered to students," she said.

Santini noted that her academic advisor, Bryan Favreau, and Hanna Royce, her practicum counselor, were also especially supportive throughout her program.

Advancing With an MPH

Santini said her instructors were nurturing and encouraging from the start of her MPH program. Her first course set the tone, she said, introducing her to important concepts in public health and different impacts on the field.

"I also really enjoyed research methods, which helped me better understand the various research methodologies and their applications," she said.

But the practicum at the end of Santini's MPH was the most impactful part of her degree, she noted, putting everything she learned throughout the program to use.

"The practicum was challenging, but I cannot say enough about the support and encouragement from the faculty, especially Dr. (Sharon) Stokes-Williamson — she was a true cheerleader who guided and supported our class throughout the practicum and beyond," Santini said.

While doctorates in public health are not currently available at SNHU, Santini credits Stokes-Williamson with inspiring her to earn the terminal degree next.

"She is the reason why I am going to go on to pursue my Doctor of Public Health in the fall of 2026," she said. "Dr. Stokes-Williamson helped me to believe in myself and was excited to support my success in the program. I cannot thank her enough."

Though career advancement isn't a guarantee for all SNHU graduates, Santini said her master's also helped her progress at her place of employment — a children's hospital in Providence, Rhode Island. "My MPH is the reason why I have my current position," she said.

She's now in a clinical research role at the hospital, working in pediatric hematology and oncology.

"During my practicum, I worked with several physicians and presented findings at a hospital-wide meeting," she said. "It was these interactions that supported my transition into this role."

Going Further With a Professional Skills Course

After starting in her new clinical research position, Santini realized she had room to grow her skills working with data. Galvanized to learn more, she decided to take a 6-week professional certification course at SNHU, Data Literacy: Exploration to Storytelling, earning a Data Literacy Practitioner badge.

"I took this class because I felt I needed a better understanding of data literacy principles to apply to my new job," she said. "In my previous roles, I used spreadsheets for basic functions — in my new role, there is a significant amount of data management, and the skills class has helped to support this new workflow for me."

Santini said the data literacy skills course taught her concepts in data management, data analysis, data communication and more. She noted that learning about data cleaning was especially impactful.

"I had little understanding of how critical data cleaning is to overall data management and its impact on communicating results of the collected data," said Santini. "Data cleaning helps the practitioner better identify patterns and, in turn, communicate those patterns to stakeholders in a more constructive way."

The course also gave her the opportunity to interact with AI features, which she found beneficial. "This was a new skill for me that helped me to think more critically about various projects within the course," she said.

Ultimately, she said she found the workload to be manageable, the skills and the terminology she learned were immediately applicable to her work, and it was affordable, too. "The Professional Skills badges are reasonably priced for working professionals and help elevate our skill sets in clearly defined chunks of time," Santini said.

Discover more about SNHU's Professional Skills courses.

So, Was It Worth It?

Santini said her education was absolutely worth it, offering support and immediate value in her career.

"SNHU never wanted to see me struggle or fail; they only wanted to partner with me to support my continued success," she said. "I recently convinced one of my coworkers to choose SNHU for her MPH, and I'm so glad she did."

She said she recommends earning a Professional Skills badge from SNHU, too, whether you choose data literacy or a different certification course.

"Having these skills will help set you apart from other staff because you are demonstrating critical thinking, more efficient project management (and) unique communication attributes for continued growth," Santini said.

Mars Girolimon '21 '23G is a staff writer at Southern New Hampshire University where they earned their bachelor's and master's, both in English and creative writing. In addition to their work in higher education, Girolimon's short fiction is published in the North American Review, So It Goes by The Kurt Vonnegut Museum & Library, X-R-A-Y and more. Connect with them on LinkedIn.