I am starting to FREAK OUT

Graduate School
1

<p>Long story short, I graduated college this past May with a cumulative GPA of 2.5. Basically I was dealing with depression on and off throughout so my grades are scattered all over the place. I was also initially pre-med but then switched to public health.</p>

<p>So now I am applying to MPH programs because I am in love with the field, I love epidemiology and research. I am just so scared because my GPA is literally crap.</p>

<p>Experience wise I think I am in good shape---I am currently a clinical research assistant and work in the dept of epidemiology (I have been for about 4 months now) and my boss who is also the PI of the project is writing me a recommendation. She has her PhD in epidemiology as well. I have other research work that I did in college---most notably I worked in a biochemistry lab at Harvard and was a co-author on a paper for our project. Will this help much? I also have lots of volunteer experience including an internship for 6 months at a medical center working in clinical research. I guess another big thing I have is a service trip to India where I worked in a clinic volunteering for a summer.</p>

<p>Oh, and I got a 158 on the quant part of my GRE and 153 on verbal. So I guess that's like alright?</p>

<p>So I am applying to BU, Drexel, UMass, GW, and Brown (for the hell of it). Not sure if I should apply to more schools---any suggestions? Am I totally out of luck because of my GPA? Now that application time is coming up, it's all hitting me pretty hard and I'm freaking out.</p>

2

<p>Public health isn’t my area of expertise for graduate admission, but I’ve heard that in general, the field strongly leans towards applicants with solid experience. I know a few people who have been accepted straight from undergrad, but they were all superstar-types. Research is, by far, the most important part of your application, and it sounds like you have a variety of interesting experiences. If you don’t get in anywhere this cycle (no one can chance you for these things), don’t let it get you down - many top public health schools have an average age of admission that indicates they want people who have already been working in the field for 2-5 years.</p>

3

<p>I can’t relate to your field specifically but I definitely have the same feelings of generally freaking out :frowning: I have put in 1/3 of my applications and the rest are due in the next couple weeks. I know I should accept that it is out of my hands now but I’m just really nervous and have a (probably irrational) fear I’m not getting in anywhere. Just thought I would share - you aren’t alone!</p>

4

<p>First of all, hooray for public health! This is my field, too, so I’m glad you’re in love with it.</p>

<p>MPH programs have ranging acceptance rates. The ASPPH 2010 data report shows those rates:</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.asph.org/UserFiles/DataReport2010.pdf[/url]”>http://www.asph.org/UserFiles/DataReport2010.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Boston: 48%
Drexel: 53%
GWU: 46%
UMass: 44%</p>

<p>Brown is not listed because at the time, it was not a member of the ASPH (which is now the ASPPH).</p>

<p>I think the only thing that can help you here is time. A 2.5 GPA is still pretty low even for a ~50% acceptance rate, and you have average GRE scores and only 7 months of experience. There’s a possibility you can be accepted, but what will make the probability go up is working. Even students with good GPAs in my class averaged 2-5 years of work experience before starting the MPH.</p>