[Low GPA/GRE - 2015 application]

@syl.tutu: I have a lower GPA and average GRE quant scores but a decent amount of experience like you, so I say why not try   

 

I decided to apply to two 'safety' schools + two 'reach' schools...but I wanted to ask you about applying to UCLA.

Were you able to meet their app deadline (12/1)? I didn't check out the program until more recently so I missed the deadline; even with my lower scores, I still really want to apply. The UCLA site does mention that they would accept applications after 12/1, but I'm not sure if applying would be futile since some schools tend to make their decisions so quickly!

Here's hoping that their admissions office is open/available today when I call. Cheers!

I did make the deadline to UCLA but only 3 hours before it was due so close call! Good news is that I just got an acceptance letter today from UCLA.  I really thought it was long shot but really happy I applied anyways. I would encourage you to apply

 

@biscuitbitty - I had to do my own research for a minor but I got in contact with professors afterwards asking them if I could be a part of their projects. I came at a good time too because they hired me for a semester. Most of them are happy to get free assistance and you do learn a lot from them!

[MPH LOW GRE + LOW GPA & ACCEPTED. I DID IT - SO CAN YOU: The tale of the underdog applicant]

So, your GPA sucks.

Your GRE score? Taking that baby to the grave..aren't ya?

OR maybe it's worse....perhaps much like myself you have both factors weighing down your application...ya?

I understand..too well, so let's begin with this:

Calm down... breathe....and please, do not take everything on this site to heart. If you're motivated and you're driven to get into an MPH program, you'll get there. You can stop reading now really because YOU WILL GET THERE.

My advice to you is simple: Stay Positive, Stay Confident, and compensate for your low points in your application strategically....it's fine...you will get in.

If you listen to nothing more I say in this blog --- take just this advice with you: All of those previous post you read from people worrying about their "low" gre scores between 1150-1300....screw them. They are the worst - ignore them...all of them. Do not compare yourself to them - value that you have far better sense of self-perception than they do, which will make you a much better graduate student.

So here it goes:

Here was what I was working with when I applied:

Undergrad GPA: 2.9 (average liberal arts school)

GRE first time 870

GRE second time 930

Awful.. I know. School was the LAST thing on my mind, that is until after I graduated.

So here is what I did that got me in to a top 20 program.

Work Experience:

I got a job that paid me to do research (entry level) at a research institute in Boston (city where I did my undergrad)

The job was awesome, challenging, and I was totally unqualified, unprepared, and not holding any academic cred for it (but I tricked them into hiring me somehow, with a bad joke and a super "I really REALLY want this job endearing speech in my interview...)

How did I get my foot in the door for the interview? I searched the HR contact girls name in facebook and found a mutual friend (someone i talked to say once?) in common and capitalized on this Kevin Bacon degree of separation by not being afraid to ASK someone for a favor.

I learned more in that year and half than most people will in their MPH program. Just get in the field somehow and stick with it for a year and half at the least.- I don't care how, just do it.

Working now in my second year in the MPH field at a great health care center/research gig - I CONSTANTLY pay this act of kindness forward as my acquaintance once did for me. It's a fun little helping cycle... get into it.. and stop worrying about ASKING... just do it - worse they can say is no.

Should you work for free?

If you have bills to pay then NO. Honestly, don't...you'll end up resentful if you're broke and you'll be tempted to make a rash choice to switch career paths.

YES - if your rents can flip the bill -

YES - if you know your boundaries and work/volunteer once a week for a few hours or a couple during the week at a lab in a university doing research.

Your BEST strategic move is to work AT the university you want to go to in anything (administration, billing, research, what-the-hell-ever) then not only are you allowed to take courses in the masters program but youll most likely go for free.

Graduate Classes?

I took two graduate level courses in a similar area to what I was interested in studying, got A's, and I believed this helped.

Note - i'd prob. do this at the university/program you'd like to attend...

Published papers?

Screw anyone with a BA and publications - they prob had zero fun in college ...and take pride in that.

I had two posters with my name on it from working in a psych lab that summer before i applied - I'm thinking that helped, but it's such an overrated experience... focus on getting a job that pays with your free time. Ask yourself this: What's more annoying than applying to grad school? Attending conferences with graduate students....

Recs?

They matter - be nice to people, this shouldn't be a problem if you're not a dick in life.

Essay's

Be yourself, research faculty research, and edit the crap out it.

You'll be fine. You'll get in. Just find a way that works for you to work around your weak points and you'll get in. I promise.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT! People can be such downers telling the rest of us that we don't have a high chance.  The top-ranked schools are overated and I have no interests in competing with people whose lives revolve around the value of prestige rather than meaningful goals in life.

[Low GPA/GRE - 2015 application]

I'm a student ambassador at Berkeley's SPH so I work closely with the admissions committee. I know their criteria is that if the GPA is low, then they want to see a high GRE. But if the GPA is high, then GRE isn't as much of a factor. They look at this before even getting into the nitty gritty about work experience. Since you can't control your GPA, definitely retake the GRE. There's no harm in working a little longer and applying next year with a higher GRE score. Experiences are essential of course, but they won't admit you if they don't think you can keep up with the academic rigor of their curriculums. Though most of the schools you listed aren't top schools, so I'm sure they will be more lax/have a lower academic criteria. Regardless, I think you'd have a better shot if you waited a year to apply with a better GRE score.

Thanks for your advice! I wouldn't say my GPA is horrible as it's above minimum for the schools applying (and above the average in some) but it's not as competitive as I like it to be. I pretty much gave up my GRE score.  I'm well too far into the application process to wait another year but as you said, my profile would defintely be improved if I did.  I'm applying to these programs for their curriculum, structures and how appropriate they are for where I want to go with my career.  They all have great training and research background so I wouldn't mind ending up with any one of them. I can't deny that the top schools have their perks but the rest aren't too shabby either.  If this isn't my year then you'll see me again in 2016

[Low GPA/GRE - 2015 application]

It's that time again! Just want to start a thread where we can share the nervewrecking experience.  I'm currently applying for an MPH to UCLA, University of Minnesota, University of Colorado Denver, UMass Amherst, Oregon State, UI Chicago, University of South Florida.  A little discouraged due to my low GPA and VERY low GRE but I have extensive experience here and there locally and globally.  Also, I'm coming straight from undergrad with public health background.  The statement of purpose is still in the work with the 1st deadline coming up very soon so I don't know how strong it's going to be in the admission panel's perspective. I've just been bombarded with school, research, and a job of which I hope will pay off because they are all public health related. Anyone going through similar experience?? I'd like to hear

[SOPHAS 2014/2015]

Holy smokes!! My first apps are due December 1st but I haven't submitted mine yet because I need a little more time to tweak over things as well as finzalizing my personal statements. If it takes up to 4 weeks to verified then I am officially screwed...I saw some words of reassurance up there that late November is alright but doesn't that mean I'll be submitting my apps later than Dec 1st aka priority deadline?

[Low GPA Advice]

Dude. Relax. You'll be fine. I graduated with a 2.84 GPA. Your GPA is leaps and bounds better than mine. You also have significantly more volunteering experience than I did. I had maybe 10 months with a research group and 6 months with the American Cancer Society. My GREs were in the 80% percentile ranges, so not super stellar. On paper, I would be considered "noncompetitive" but I've gotten acceptances from Boston and Emory. 

 

Admissions is more than your stats. A lot of it falls under your SOP and your letters of recc. With a good essay and writers to vouch for you, I feel like anything is possible with public health schools. 

 

Good luck

Thank you The research/field experience really get to me as I'm approaching my senior year and have yet to have any. I tend to suck at SOP too so we'll see how that goes.  Good luck on your endeavors!

[Low GPA Advice]

I think these boards can give the impression that getting into MPH programs is very competitive, but honestly it isn't. Acceptance rates are well above 50% at most schools. More schools are gaining accreditation all the time, and accredited ones are growing. It's still nervewracking to choose where to apply, do all that work, and then wait, and wait, and wait... But I honestly don't think people with truly low (sub-3.0) GPAs need to worry. Also, I got into all MS programs with a 3.3 in a totally irrelevant major, and wouldn't consider it low.

 

Work experience is very important in public health admissions, as is some type of experience or perspective that can show you're interested in public health specifically and understand how it is different from, say, medicine. The posters here have really good work and volunteer experience, and I don't think you guys need to worry-- just emphasize that in your SOP and how it relates to your interest in public health and the school.

 

Also, since this is a professional degree consider strongly where you want to work. If you get some good help editing your SOP, you have a solid chance of going somewhere you'll be very happy with. So devote a good chunk of your school research time to finding out whether you like the schools in the city and region where you want to end up living. The MPH often involves an internship, so also look into where students at each school tend to intern. If you want to work in a public health department but a school sends most of its students to its own medical center, that might not be a great fit. If you're applying somewhere far from where you want to work, the school should be helping you out in some special way like a great research fit or an opportunity to intern at an organization you're very interested in. Not only will this help you once you're job searching, you'll make a stronger case for your acceptance in your SOPs, and improve your chances of admission.

 

Best of luck to everyone!

Thank you! This sounds very comforting.  I'm just worried that my lack of research and work experience make it difficult if my stats aren't high rocket

[Low GPA Advice]

Any advice on these stats? I just realize I have a quite low major/cumulative GPA to be competitive but I'm not applying until next year so I'm spending another year raising them, right now this is a realistic number by the time I'm done

 

Cumulative GPA: 3.5

Major GPA (Public Health): 3.3-3.4

Minor (International studies) GPA: 3.892

 

Going to take the GRE but I'm not the greatest test-taker so most of my test scores will probably average or a little lower than average.  I have a lot of international experience which is nice for my emphasis of global health in MPH but they're all quite short since they're over breaks (sustainability studying abroad in ecuador 2 wks, summer youth coordinator for HIV/AIDS non-profit in vietnam 2 months, volunteer for clean water installation/education in honduras 1 week, teacher assistant of cambodian orphanage where I taught english and healthy living 1 month).  I have also volunteered with the American Cancer Society Relay For Life for 4 years, currently a volunteer for Social Advocates for Youth to do community outreach for the Affordable Care Act and hopefully gain an internship next semester.  I hold president/vice president positions for 2 of the organizations I'm involved on campus which are affiliated with public health.  I have a lot of volunteer work under my belt aside from those listed but not much of other professioral work/experience so I'm a little concerned if the admission people would decide to accept me as an applicant.  I do have a research porfolio from my minor but that was just a mock research done in 2 countries so I'm afraid it has little significance.  Planning to apply to Tulane, UI Chicago, UCLA for now but will look into more programs.  Mainly going for community health sciences and programs planning/implementation.  PLEASE HELP!!!

[Global Health/International Health]

Tulane's acceptance rate is 74%.

 

But honestly don't just rely on acceptance rates because a lot of times they mean nothing. Just apply to school that you are interested in regardless of acceptance rate. I got rejected from tulane which has a high acceptance rate but then I got accepted from GWU which has a 46% acceptance rate. It really just depends on the school and if you match well with the program. 

Thank you! Well Tulane has the perfect program for my interests but I might be switching to UIC as my priority school since it doesn't seem like I can afford Tulane tuition.  Coming from California so I can't afford the out of state tuition of a public school, let alone private. 

[Global Health/International Health]

Not applying until next semester but can someone give me an idea of how Tulane is with their acceptance rate? Really want to go to their global health development program but at the same time don't want to get my hopes up too high...