Apply to the Masters of Public Health Program

• Bachelor's degree holders who aspire to one of the many fields for which an MPH is useful or essential
• Current health professionals who want a broader base of knowledge of public health
• Healthcare providers who wish to gain a broader perspective of health and healthcare

Before proceeding with your application, make sure you meet the admission requirements for our master's program.

These requirements typically include:

• Minimum GPAs preferred at or above a 3.0 (4.0 scale)
• Baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution
• Successful completion of both the SOPHAS application and the SUNY Upstate Supplemental Application
• Completion of the two required essays within the SOPHAS Application:
  • A personal statement of career goals and any experience as it applies to public health
  • One public health essay; described in the application
• Three letters of recommendation from individuals who know you in an academic or professional capacity (this does not include personal friends and family)
• Official transcripts from all previous postsecondary courses

Please note: Applicants can apply to either or both of the following MPH program concentrations:

1. Public Health Methods
2. Global Health and Translational Science
3. Population Health for Clinicians*

• *Recommended for students intending to enter clinical training, or current clinicians
• *Current students, residents, fellows, or applicants to the MD program have other application processes

Applicants who have completed all or part of their education outside of the United States or Canada are required to have a course-by-course educational credential evaluation completed through any National Association of Credential Evaluation (NACES) accredited agency.

A TOEFL or IELTS exam may be requested but is not required to apply.

• College-level biology
• College-level statistics

Complete the Central Application Service for Public Health (SOPHAS) application.

Search for Upstate Medical University Public Health Program

Required:

• Three letters of recommendation
• Official College Transcripts
• Personal Statement
• Public Health Essay


Once your application is received from the Central Application Service for Public Health (SOPHAS), we will email you a Login ID and PIN that will allow you to access our Secondary Application.

Please do not create an account on your own from our Admissions Login page, as that will not allow you to access the Secondary Application. The Secondary Application must be submitted to Upstate Medical University. This application is free to complete!  

Please keep in mind:

• The program reserves the right to request interviews.
• Additional information may be requested based on individual situations.
• It is the responsibility of each student to confirm that a completed application is on file in the Office of Student Admissions.

Complete the Central Application Service for Public Health (SOPHAS) application.

Search for Upstate Medical University Public Health Program

Required:

• Two letters of recommendation
• Personal Statement
• Public Health Essay


Once your application is received from the Central Application Service for Public Health (SOPHAS), we will email you a Login ID and PIN that will allow you to access our Secondary Application.

Please do not create an account on your own from our Admissions Login page, as that will not allow you to access the Secondary Application. The Secondary Application must be submitted to Upstate Medical University. This application is free to complete!  

Please keep in mind:

• The program reserves the right to request interviews.
• Additional information may be requested based on individual situations.
• It is the responsibility of each student to confirm that a completed application is on file in the Office of Student Admissions.

• Complete the SUNY Upstate Internal Application
• Once logged in, click on NEW
• Under "For Current Upstate Students Only:" you will find "MD/MPH Internal"

If you have any questions or need assistance at any stage of the application process, please don't hesitate to contact our admissions advisor at [email protected]. We look forward to receiving your application and getting to know you better as a potential member of our vibrant academic community.

• Go to My Upstate
• Once logged in, click on Under "For Current Upstate Students Only:"
• You will find "Master of Public Health Internal"

If you have any questions or need assistance at any stage of the application process, please don't hesitate to contact our admissions advisor at [email protected]. We look forward to receiving your application and getting to know you better as a potential member of our vibrant academic community.

SUNY Upstate Internal Application

• Once logged in, click on NEW - Create a new Application
• Under the "For Current Upstate Students Only" dropdown, you will find "Certificate of Advanced Study in Public Health for Residents-Internal"

• Official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate schools attended. As Residents of Upstate Medical University, your official transcripts can be requested from the Graduate Medical Education (GME) Office free of charge to be sent directly to Student Admissions electronically to [email protected]. Please contact the GME office directly to make this request.
• One letter of Recommendation from your current residency program director to be sent directly to [email protected] or mailed to the admissions office at: SUNY Upstate, 766 Irving Avenue, Syracuse, NY 13210, Attn: Student Admissions.
  The letter should:
  • Acknowledge that the residency director knows you are applying for this certificate program,
  • Describe the commitment of the director to your success in the certificate program, and
  • Endorse your suitability for graduate study in public health.
• A CV (Curriculum Vitae) or Resume

Deadline: Resident Applicants should submit applications no later than June 15th to ensure enough time to process the application.

We want to hear more about your story to this point, and why you are interested in pursuing further education in public health. We would like you to write an essay in two parts.

First: Please describe a pressing issue in public health, citing appropriate peer-reviewed literature. This part of the essay should be written in the language of an academic paper. It can be short (no more than 500 words) but written professionally.

Second: We ask that you explain your career goals and any health-related experience as it applies to public health you may have had (note: you do not have to have public health experience to be considered for this program). You may link back to the issue raised in the first part of the essay, but you do not have to do so. We are primarily interested in learning about your "story," how you see public health, and how you see yourself contributing to public health in the future.

This essay can be sent via email to [email protected]

We will need one Letter of Recommendation sent directly to [email protected] or mailed to the admissions office at SUNY Upstate, 766 Irving Avenue, Syracuse, NY 13210, Attn: Student Admissions.

If you are a matriculated student in a degree-granting graduate program, you must submit one of the following letters. Please indicate which you will be submitting along with the name of the person who will be sending it. Either a:

• Graduate Advisor letter
• Program Chair letter

Current MD Students applying internally to the MPH program must be in good standing in the College of Medicine MD program. Once your application to the MPH program is submitted, please send a request to [email protected] to request a verification of good standing which the admissions office will request from the campus registrar.

We will need a screen shot of your current Upstate transcript/grades from MyUpstate sent to [email protected].

Students have the option of transferring up to six (6) credits of non-public health credits from a CHEA regionally accredited college and/or university and up to twelve (12) graduate-level public health credits from a CEPH-accredited public health program or school. Students who have earned more than twelve (12) credits from an accredited public health program can request to have some of their MPH coursework waived on a course-equivalency basis, allowing the student to take more electives. Additionally, students who have earned twelve (12) credits from a school or program not accredited by CEPH may petition to have twelve (12) credits transferred into the Upstate MPH Program.