Choosing Schools/ graduating early

[renee1]

Right now I am a junior Biology major and I recently decided to pursue public health programs (I was pre optometry). But I realized that I am able to graduate a semester early by Dec 2015. I also discovered that GWU admits students to their MPH programs in the Spring semester. So my options are to graduate early and apply to GWU's program and get a head start or wait until I finish out my senior year and apply to a variety of other schools. I'm not sure what is in my best interest in order to finish out my schooling, and be competitive for jobs... the main schools I'm interested in even if I stay my last semester in undergrad are Johns Hopkins and George Washington.... any advice would be greatly appreciated

[ssynny]

Hello,

 

Though schools do sometimes admit in the spring, their spots are really limited and can often be reserved for candidates that PIs personally select. I would recommend completing the full year and applying to several programs. Use the time to boost your final GPA and make connections in case grad school doesn't work out the first time around (especially since you're newish to public health). Don't put all your eggs in one basket!!