Admissions
Guidelines | Diversity & Admissions| Application Instructions
The application deadline for Fall 2009 was December 1, 2008. We have only one admissions cycle.
GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR A SUCCESSFUL APPLICATION
Applicants are considered within context of their entire application including the goal statement, recommendation letters, transcripts, and test scores. A competitive application to the Global Health MPH Program usually meets the following criteria:
- Shows a good match between the training goals of applicant and the track to which he/she is applying.
- Demonstrates a progression between past and present training and/or experience and attainment of the MPH. The goal statement should clearly address how an MPH degree in Global Health will advance applicant's professional goals
- Is submitted, after an applicant has had substantial (typically two or more years) health-related work experience in a developing country. Significant work experience with economically disadvantaged communities in a developed country may substitute for part of the international work experience. (Exceptions include applicants to the PCMI, MD-MPH concurrent degree, and IHME Fellows.)
- Is supported by strong recommendation letters, transcripts, and GRE scores. (The GRE is not required for those who have earned a doctoral degree in the United States from an accredited institution of higher learning.)
Minimum Scores and GPA
Although most applicants who are admitted to the program have verbal and quantitative GRE scores of at least 50% and a cumulative college grade point average greater than 3.0 (B), all applicants are carefully considered in order to identify promising individuals whose scores or grades might not fully represent their potential.
Since biostatistics and epidemiology are core courses for the MPH, the faculty are concerned about the ability of applicants to perform well in quantitative work. A review course in algebra or statistics may be desirable for applicants who need to bolster their skills in this area.
DIVERSITY AND ADMISSIONS
The School of Public Health and Community Medicine is committed to increasing the enrollment of students from groups traditionally underrepresented in public health professions.
Toward this goal, the Office for Student Services provides the following services:
- Student outreach and recruitment activities
- Assistance with application and financial forms, review of narrative statements, and coordination of campus visits
- Retention services such as counseling and tutoring
- Recruitment of mentors, preceptors and guest lecturers
For further information, please contact:
Office for Student Services
School of Public Health and Community Medicine
Box 357230, University of Washington
Seattle, WA, 98195-7230
Tel: 206.685.3057
Email: sphoss@uw.edu
In the Department of Global Health, we are committed to creating a diverse environment that promotes dialogue and learning. We honor the perspectives of people from different backgrounds and histories. Diversity encompasses differences in race, ethnicity, sex, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, culture, ability, age, and nationality. We welcome all of those who are willing to address global health issues and promote social justice.
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
APPLICATION DEADLINE: DECEMBER 1 (or the next business day if December 1st falls on a weekend).
Concurrent Degree Application Instructions
If you are applying for a concurrent MPH degree program, please follow the application instructions linked here and disregard the application instructions below.
All applicants to the MPH program in the Department of Global Health must use the UW Graduate School online application. You are also welcome to begin your application using SOPHAS, however in order for your application to be considered you must complete the process by submitting a University of Washington application using the UW Graduate School online system and providing the requested materials.
For more information about the SOPHAS system, or to determine whether to use it, click here.
In the UW online application, after you create a user profile and select your program, you will be given specific instructions for how to complete each element of the application. Once you have completed each required element, you will be able to pay the application fee online and submit your application.
Deadlines:
The deadline for all Global Health MPH program applications is December 1st (or the next business day if December 1st falls on a weekend). It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure that all admission materials arrive by the closing date.
Due to the extra time required for processing, international applicants are strongly encouraged to submit all materials as close as possible to November 1.
Note: Test scores can be submitted after December 1st if an otherwise complete application is on file. Please let program staff know if you will be submitting late test scores.
International Applicants should evaluate whether they are eligible for admission before applying to the University of Washington Graduate School. See International Applicants.
See also International Applicants - Frequently Asked Questions
In the UW online application, after you create a user profile and select your program, you will be given specific instructions for how to complete each element of the application. Once you have completed each required element, you will be able to pay the application fee online and submit your application.
For questions regarding the Graduate School Application process see: Graduate School FAQ
Please read the Steps to Complete an Application: section below to get an overview of the materials you will need to assemble. When you are prepared, begin the application here:
University of Washington Online Application
Steps to Complete an Application:
Choose a Program
In the program list, options for the General and PCMI tracks of the MPH program begin with "Global Health."
If you are applying to the Global Health Track of the MPH in Epidemiology, please refer to the Epidemiology Department's application instructions.
Goal Statement (1-2 pages, single spaced ok)
Please respond to the following three questions:
1. What are your long-term career objectives? The admissions committee places particular importance on well-specified and realistic objectives.
2. Describe your academic and professional background. Please include a description of your work experience in public health or related fields, particularly any experience gained in a developing country.
3. Please provide a statement concerning your personal history, family background, and influences on your intellectual development. This statement may include social and economic disadvantages that you may have had to overcome and the ways in which these experiences affected you.
Transcripts
(SOPHAS Note: Domestic applicants who are sending official transcripts through SOPHAS may skip this item in the UW Grad School Online application.)
Have a set of sealed official transcripts from each institution of higher learning attended mailed directly to the MPH Program Office:
Department of Global Health
Graduate Admissions - MPH
1705 NE Pacific Street
Box 355065
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195
Foreign Degree (not study abroad): Major transcripts in languages other than English must be accompanied by a certified English translation, and a copy of these transcripts must ALSO be send directly to the Graduate School at the below address. This would apply to all international applicants and any domestic applicants (US citizens, immigrants, permanent residents) whose bachelor's or higher degree was earned outside the US.
University of Washington
Office of Graduate Admissions
Box 84808
Room 301, Loew Hall
Seattle, Washington 98124-6108
Test Scores
GRE SCORES
(Not required if the applicant has a PhD, JD, DDS, MD, or related degree from an accredited U.S. school.)
Note that GRE scores must be sent directly to the university by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) using Institution code is 4854. The department will accept "old" scores as long as they are still available from ETS. No subject test is required.
(You will also have the option to self-report your GRE scores if you anticipate delays.)
ENGLISH TEST SCORES (TOEFL/IELTS)
Official TOEFL or IELTS scores are required of all international applicants and permanent residents who do not hold a U.S. bachelor's or higher. (Citizens of Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom or holders of a bachelor's degree or higher from the above countries or the U.S. are not required to provide an English test score.)
The minimum score requirements for exemption from the English as a Second Language requirement are:
- 70 (total of listening, writing, and reading sections only) for TOEFLiBT.
- 237 for the computer-based TOEFLC
- 580 for the paper TOEFL
- 7.0 for the IELTS
Students admitted with scores as indicated below will be required to take English as a Second Language classes upon matriculation:
- 45-69 (TOEFLiBT)
- 173-236 (TOEFLC)
- 500-579 (TOEFL)
- 6.0-6.9 (IELTS)
Note that TOEFL scores must be sent directly to the university by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) using Institution code is 4854. Score reports over two years old (from the test date) are no longer valid. Visit www.toefl.org or www.ielts.org for more information and registration. (IELTS offers testing at UW with a different registration procedure.)
Letters of Recommendation
(SOPHAS Note: Applicants with recommendation letters arriving through SOPHAS may skip this item in the UW Grad School Online application.)
All applications will require three recent letters of recommendation, preferably from former supervisors and teachers. One should be from a current supervisor. The recommendation letters should address the general topic of an applicant's suitability for the training provided by the program, and should mention how long recommenders have known the applicant and in what context.
Applicants will be asked to designate recommenders in the online application. The online application will then send specific instructions to each recommender. Applicants will be able to return to the online application to check whether the application system has received the recommendations.
Applicants are expected to be in contact with each recommender to make sure that the recommendations are sent to the online application system by the due dates.
Current Resume or CV
A current resume or CV should be submitted with the application. No longer than 3 pages.
Faculty Contact
An in-person or telephone interview with a faculty member in the program is recommended. Interviews will be granted after December 1st to those who have requested them and who have completed applications on file.
We will respond to your request for an interview in the first two weeks of December.
To request an interview, please send an email to ghfacint@u.washington.edu with "GHMPH Faculty Interview—your track (General or PCMI)—your name" in the subject line. In the body of the email indicate the names of 2 or 3 faculty members (See: GH-MPH Faculty) with whom you would like to speak and whether you would prefer an in-person or telephone interview. We will do our best to accommodate your choices, but, depending on faculty schedules, you may be paired with a faculty member not on your list.
Example:
Subject: GHMPH Faculty Interview - General - Joe the Plumber
Body: I would like an in person interview, if possible with one of the following faculty members:
Jane Doe
John Doe
Suzy Q
