Master of Public Health Admissions

Upload your current curriculum vitae or resume directly to your application in SOPHAS.

If you have updates to your CV or resume after submitting your application in SOPHAS, you may email an updated document to annie.smart@vanderbilt.edu. Both the original document and the new version will be available to admissions reviewers.

SOPHAS and Vanderbilt University require official documentation of applicants’ prior academic degrees and academic course work.

The applicant is responsible for monitoring their application in SOPHAS and following up with prior institutions about missing or delayed transcripts.

U.S. Institutions

• U.S. and English Canadian Transcripts | Official transcripts must be sent directly to SOPHAS from all U.S. and English-speaking Canadian institutions you have reported in the “Colleges Attended” section of your application. SOPHAS will not process your application until all official transcripts have been received.

International Institutions

• International and French-Canadian Transcripts | Applicants who have received academic degrees from international colleges and universities (including Caribbean and French-Canadian) must use World Education Services (WES) (course-by-course evaluation) to submit transcript information to SOPHAS.
• SOPHAS will not accept transcripts from international universities or other agency evaluations (i.e. ECE). International transcripts should not be sent directly to the Vanderbilt MPH Program.

Transcripts for Courses in Progress

• Applicants currently enrolled in a degree program or taking courses at the time they submit their application in SOPHAS should submit official transcripts with courses in progress on or before the application deadline. Once a final degree transcript is available, the applicant should contact their institution to request an updated official transcript showing final course grades. Click here for more information.

GRE and/or MCAT scores are not required.

• Applicants are not required or expected to submit GRE or MCAT scores in SOPHAS. Applications without scores will not be penalized in the review process.
• Applicants may choose to self-report their GRE or MCAT scores in SOPHAS. Self-reported scores should include the percentile score for each section of the test. Self-reporting scores is optional.

TOEFL or IELTS test scores are required for international applicants.

• International students are required to submit an official TOEFL or IELTS score report. Score reports should be sent directly from the testing organization to SOPHAS. TOEFL scores should be sent using institution code 5688. TOEFL and IELTS score reports are valid for up to two years after the test date.

TOEFL / IELTS Waivers:

• U.S. permanent residents and those who have completed a degree at an institution where English was the official language of instruction are not required to submit TOEFL or IELTS scores.
• Applicants who qualify for a waiver may leave the “Standardized Tests” section of the application in SOPHAS blank.
• Please do not contact the Vanderbilt MPH Program to request a waiver. No formal waiver documentation is required. If you are a U.S. permanent resident or if you have completed a degree at an institution where English was the language of instruction, simply leave the “Standardized Tests” section of the application blank.

When to Schedule Standardized Tests

• Application Advice: schedule test dates and request score reports with adequate time before the application deadline
• Official score reports require time to process, deliver, and match to an application in SOPHAS. Test dates should be scheduled and score reports should be requested well before the application deadline. Applicants are responsible for ensuring that official score reports are received by SOPHAS on or before the application deadline. Applications without required score reports by the application deadline will be considered incomplete and will not be reviewed.

How to Request Test Scores

• Requesting official standardized test scores
• To request an official score report, contact the testing organization. The score report should be sent directly from the testing organization to SOPHAS using the standardized test codes provided.
• Note: There are multiple GRE institution codes for Vanderbilt University. If you choose to submit an official GRE score report, be sure to use institution code 0111. Score reports requested using a code other than 0111 will not reach the Vanderbilt MPH Program

As part of the SOPHAS application, you will upload a written narrative describing your past education, experience, professional career objectives, and how the Vanderbilt MPH Program will help you achieve your professional goals.

While prior professional experience is not required, relevant work, service, research, or internship experience is valued in the review process.

The statement of purpose (or personal statement) is limited to 1,000 words.

Epidemiology and Clinical Research Track

For Epidemiology and Clinical Research track applicants, the statement
of purpose should include:

• Reasons for your interest in public health, and specifically the Vanderbilt MPH Program’s Epidemiology and Clinical Research track
• Any areas of interest or proposed research topics you may have at this point (this is optional)
• Your academic and career goals
• How the Vanderbilt MPH Program will help you achieve your goals

Global Health Track

For Global Health track applicants, the statement of purpose should include:

• Reasons for your interest in public health, and specifically the Vanderbilt MPH Program’s Global Health track
• Any previous international experience or work with international or underserved populations
• Any areas of interest or proposed research topics you may have at this point (this is optional)
• Your academic and career goals
• How the Vanderbilt MPH Program will help you achieve your goals

Health Policy Track

For Health Policy track applicants, the statement
of purpose should include:

• Reasons for your interest in public health, and specifically the Vanderbilt MPH Program’s Health Policy track
• Any relevant experience in the areas of health care, health services research, economics, public policy, or government
• Any areas of interest or proposed research topics you may have at this point (this is optional)
• Your educational and career goals
• How the Vanderbilt MPH Program will help you achieve your career goals

A minimum of three letters of recommendation is required for an application to be considered complete. These should be from persons qualified to evaluate your academic and professional abilities.

At least one writer should come from an academic source, such as an undergraduate or graduate adviser or faculty member in your field of study. Letters from a peer or colleague, friend, or relative are not suitable.

Reach out to your letter writers to obtain their preferred e-mail address and make sure they are monitoring their e-mail inbox for your reference request e-mail.

More information on Letters of Recommendation

You may e-submit your application in SOPHAS before your letters of recommendation have been received. As your letters of recommendation are received by SOPHAS, they will be matched with your application. Log in to SOPHAS at any time to see if your letters of recommendation have been received. You may resend recommendation requests or update a letter writer’s email address if needed.

VUMC Support

Applicants to the Vanderbilt MPH Program who would like to pursue the MPH degree as part of a VUMC-affiliated training grant, residency program, or fellowship program should ensure that their letters of recommendation include:

1. Letter from a VUMC faculty mentor committed to the candidate’s career development
2. Letter from a VUMC program director, division director, or department chair assuring approximately 80% protected time for research and that the applicant will be free from clinical duties during MPH classes

The Vanderbilt MPH Program does not require that applicants submit a writing sample.

If there is any additional information you would like the admissions committee to know, please upload it to the “Documents” section of the SOPHAS application under “Other.” This is not an application requirement; it is optional.