Which school would give me a better shot at getting a MPH?

Graduate School
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<p>Hello everyone. I am currently trying decide between SDSU and and UC Santa Barbara. I am a transfer student, and was accepted by their Accounting and Econ/Accounting majors respectively, but my goal is to attend grad school to obtain a Masters in Public Health. I would like to go out to the Midwest, so target schools include the likes of U of Wisconsin - Madison and U of Michigan.</p>

<p>I know that UCSB is ranked higher in general, but I feel like I may have a better chance of getting a higher GPA at SDSU. Additionally, SDSU has a Public Health program while UCSB doesn't (at least not as far as I know). I may be able to get involved at SDSU but who knows.</p>

<p>My biggest fear is that the CSU label would "limit" me -- for a lack of a better way of putting it -- when it comes to admissions in higher ranking grad schools. I don't know what to do. What school do you all recommend I complete my undergrad if those schools are my goal?</p>

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<p>here’s your problem. As a transfer, you will be expected to take classes in that department. An Accounting major does not translate well into PH. Econ could work if you wanted to make a claim that you were interested in health economics.</p>

<p>For PH, grades are not as important as experience – ECs in the health field.</p>

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<p>Thanks @bluebayou for the reply!</p>

<p>From what I’ve read, many Masters in PH don’t require a specific major for undergrad. Perhaps there may be some unspoken preferences, but idk. Also, the particular masters that I want is a masters in public health management or administration, that’s why a business related undergrad degree made sense for me. Still, I don’t really understand how the whole process works.</p>

<p>Also, do schools usually allow students from outside a particular department conduct research for that department. I ask because I was hoping apply to SDSU’s public health department to conduct research. Again, I don’t know how often schools allow this. Do you think adding a public health minor would help?</p>

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<p>That’s true in general; in other words, any traditional liberal arts major will do. But vocational majors like Accounting (and Engineering) will raise a question with Adcoms: why PH? </p>

<p>btw: you don’t need undergrad research, unless you are aiming for PhD. Instead, for an MPH, you need to participate in ECs which demonstrate interest in the PH field.</p>

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<p>MPH programs do not require a specific major but there are unspoken preferences. If you are interested in health education and health promotion, a social science major is ideal (I’m in a department like that and most people majored in a social science in undergrad). If you are interested in epidemiology or biostatistics, some sort of science major - or math - is more preferable.</p>

<p>There are always exceptions, though. I have a friend who majored in chemistry who got an MPH in a health promotion-type department, and another friend who majored in history who got her MPH in epidemiology.</p>

<p>Technically, you don’t need undergrad research to get into an MPH program. However, doing public health research will 1) make you more attractive to public health programs, many of which have a strong research component in their classes and 2) make you more attractive for research assistantships at MPH programs, which are one of the primary ways that MPH students get the very limited financial support available in MPH programs. Virtually all of my friends who had part or all of their MPH program paid for got tuition waivers or discounts through research assistantships. BTW, doing research with a professor in public health does indeed count as an EC that demonstrates interest in PH.</p>

<p>In fact, at programs that require some work experience - like the MPH program in my department - many of the students spend the 2-3 years after their undergrad years working as research coordinators and associates for professors. Much of the practical work in the field is based upon research, and learning these skills ahead of time (especially a statistical package and any program evaluation skills) is a good idea. So if you have the opportunity and you want to do research, then you should do it. If possible, you should do both - 10-15 hours a week as an RA and then another couple hours a week volunteering, working, or interning to get public health work experience. Personally, I spent 15 hours a week doing public health research and probably around 5-10 hours a week volunteering at a hospital and an elementary school during college. (I’m finishing my PhD in public health next month).</p>

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<p>MPH programs do not require a specific major but there are unspoken preferences. If you are interested in health education and health promotion, a social science major is ideal (I’m in a department like that and most people majored in a social science in undergrad). That’s because most of the science and techniques in the area are based upon basic social science tenets. If you are interested in epidemiology or biostatistics, some sort of science major - or math - is more preferable. That’s because those fields are based heavily in math and they work closely with biomedical scientists and use biomedical tenets in their research.</p>

<p>There are always exceptions, though. I have a friend who majored in chemistry who got an MPH in a health promotion-type department; someone in my department majored in English literature in undergrad; and another friend majored in history and got her MPH in epidemiology.</p>

<p>To speak more to your particular predicament, it doesn’t matter whether you go to UCSB or SDSU.</p>

<p>-MPH programs don’t require super-high GPAs anyway (the higher the better, of course, but anything above a 3.3 is pretty good if the rest of your application is outstanding).
-You definitely don’t have to major in public health; you could major in another traditional liberal arts discipline (especially the social and natural sciences) and be just as competitive.
-Yes, you can do research outside of your major, but professors don’t have to be in a public health department to do public health related research - I did my research with a professor of psychology who studies very public health-related areas. (However, if you went to SDSU and majored in, let’s say, sociology or anthropology, chances are good that you could do your RAship with a PH professor if you wanted to and were assertive enough).
-Ranking doesn’t matter when it comes to getting into MPH programs. What matters is how and what you did in undergrad - and in the years since undergrad, if you decide to take some time “off” to work. I go to Columbia’s SPH and there are people from a range of schools here - from other Ivies down to tiny colleges in the middle of nowhere that I have never heard of before. SO no, going to a CSU will not limit you at all.</p>

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<p>I know an Econ major who did a study on infant mortality rates, for example (he wasn’t going for MPH but this is was a summer funded research he has the skills, as an Econ major, to perform, it seems.) Look at the sort of studies Steven Levitt does in Freakonomics, so the Econ/Accouning at UCSB might open the door for that sort of thing.</p>

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<p>I appreciate all the answers! So basically what I’m understanding is that my major and my extracurricular are the most important factors. That’s tough because I really wanted to complete my bachelors in accounting. </p>

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<p>I don’t want you to get the impression that you absolutely can’t major in accounting, because that’s not at all what I was trying to convey. In fact, if you really want to major in accounting you should. There are many accountants involved in the health care world without MPHs, and the demand for accountants is much higher than the demand for MPHs so that’s a better career bet in my opinion.</p>

<p>Preferred means exactly that - preferred - but as I said, there are plenty of exceptions made for outstanding students. If you major in accounting but minor in a social science field (or just take significant coursework in one or more) and make it clear that you understand the basic social science underpinning public health, you can be a competitive candidate. If you work as an accountant for 5 years and write a compelling statement of purpose explaining why you now want an MPH and want to work in public health, you can be a competitive candidate. And remember, different fields have different preferences. If your goal is to get into a health policy and management MPH program so that you can go work in the business/accounting/finance side of public health, an accounting undergrad degree can make you very competitive. Like I said, even hospitals, clinics, and health nonprofits need accountants. The math/accounting background may also be more desirable for epidemiology and biostatistics.</p>

<p>The point is really just that you need to find a way to demonstrate your interest in, and passion for, public health. You can’t just major in accounting, do only accounting things and then turn around and say you’ve always wanted an MPH - you have to prove it through deed. But an accounting major who took sociology and economics courses, volunteered each April to prepare taxes for indigent community members, was the president of the peer health exchange org on campus and then worked as the accountant at a health care non-profit or hospital for 2-3 years after college? Yeah, they could be an outstanding candidate. (If you are interested in EPI or biostats, replace the “sociology and economics” with higher-level math classes and some biology.)</p>

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<p>Thank you so much @julliet ! I feel like I have a better idea of how to get to where I want to get thanks to you! I’m glad I made this thread.</p>