Application Process

All our Graduate Programs in Public Health Sciences at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine exclusively accepts applications through the Schools of Public Health Application Service (SOPHAS).

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Applicants must use their full name as it appears on their passport on all application materials. All application and supplementary materials, including transcripts from all institutions attended, test score(s) if applicable, personal statement/statement of purpose, resume/CV, and letters of recommendation, must be submitted online through SOPHAS.

Please see SOPHAS instructions for information on submitting the required materials and contact SOPHAS directly at sophasinfo@sophas.org if you have questions regarding the online application process.

• MPH, MSPH, and MS in Prevention Science and Community Health

  MPH, MSPH, and MS in Prevention Science and Community Health - Applicants must have a bachelor's degree conferred before the intended program start date. While coursework and experience in public health further enhance an application, we do not have a minimum requirement of professional experience.

  In addition, joint degree applicants must check with the other dual degree program regarding prerequisite course requirements.

• MS in Biostatistics

  MS in Biostatistics - Applicants must have a bachelor's degree conferred before the intended program start date. The following courses should be taken as prerequisites:

  • Introductory Calculus
  • Introductory Linear Algebra
  • Introductory Computing

  
  

  The Admissions Committee may elect to conditionally admit otherwise qualified students who do not meet these requirements and allow them to complete prerequisites during their first year.

• MS in Climate and Health

  MS in Climate and Health - Applicants must have a bachelor's degree conferred before the intended program start date. The following courses should be taken as prerequisites:

  • One year of College Calculus and Physics Courses
  • One Biology Course

• Ph.D. in Biostatistics

  Ph.D. in Biostatistics - Applicants must have taken the prerequisites listed for the MS in Biostatistics plus two additional courses in statistics, biostatistics, and related fields. The Admissions Committee may elect to conditionally admit otherwise qualified students who do not meet these requirements and allow them to complete prerequisites during their first year.

• Ph.D. in Epidemiology

  Ph.D. in Epidemiology - This program is primarily designed for those who have completed a MPH degree, as well as for physicians and others who have a master or doctoral degree in a related discipline. At a minimum, students should have successfully completed a graduate-level foundation of epidemiology course, as well as two biostatistics courses. The Admissions Committee may elect to conditionally admit otherwise qualified students who do not meet these requirements and allow them to complete prerequisites during their first year.

• Ph.D. in Prevention Science and Community Health

  Ph.D. in Prevention Science and Community Health - This program is primarily designed for those who have completed a MPH, as well as for physicians and others who have a master or doctoral degree in a related discipline. At a minimum, students should have successfully completed a graduate-level foundation of epidemiology course, as well as two biostatistics courses.

• Joint Degrees

  Joint degree applicants should check with programs regarding their admissions requirements.

• U.S. Transcript
• International Transcripts

Applicants to our master’s programs are no longer required to submit GRE general test scores.

Ph.D. in Biostatistics and Ph.D. in Epidemiology applicants are required to submit GRE general exam scores taken within the last five years - no substitutions or waivers are granted. Contact the Office of Admissions for more information.

International applicants whose native language is not English are required to submit TOEFL or IELTS scores. The minimum score is 80 iBT, 550 PBT or 6.5 IELTS. The Duolingo English Test is not accepted by the University of Miami.

The English proficiency exam requirement may be waived if an applicant holds an undergraduate or graduate degree from an academic institution within the United States or from one of the English-speaking countries. For more details please visit the International Credentials & Applicants.

The Statement of Purpose is a narrative that discusses an applicant’s past education, experiences, and current professional career objectives. The statement of purpose should describe an applicant’s:

• Motivating influences for interest in the application degree (public health, biostatistics, epidemiology)
• Specific area(s) of research/professional experiences related to the application degree. Although an applicant is not required to have previous public health experience, it will further enhance an application
• Career goals and objectives, including how the applicant plans to contribute to public health
• Deficiencies in past academic or professional performance, if applicable
• Reasons for interest in attending the University of Miami

Applicants are encouraged to compose the statement in a text-only word processor, such as Notepad or TextEdit, review the statement for errors, and then cut and paste the final version into the text box of the SOPHAS application. The limit is 1,500 words.

All applicants must submit a complete, up-to-date CV/resume that includes all previous and current employment, activities, leadership positions, community service, research, education and academic or professional awards or honors. Applicants should include any experiences related to the discipline they are applying to (public health, biostatistics, epidemiology), including field experience, training, education or other related qualifications with detailed summaries.

All applicants are required to submit a minimum of three (3) letters of recommendation and a maximum of five (5) letters of recommendation from professionals who are best able to assess their ability to be successful in a graduate degree program. Ideally, recommenders are recent professors, researcher mentors, professionals or employers in a related field. The Admissions Office highly recommends that at least one (1) of an applicant’s letters of recommendation is written by a professor with whom they have worked closely or under whom they have studied. Applicants should request that their recommenders write a letter that is personal and specific to the discipline that they are applying to (public health, biostatistics, and epidemiology). All letters of recommendation should be signed and on letterhead. Applications will not be reviewed until this requirement is met.

Applicants must list the contact information for each recommender on the SOPHAS application. Recommenders will then be sent an online form to complete via email and further instructions from SOPHAS.

Form letters and recommendations written for medical school applications contribute little to an application and are strongly discouraged. Letters from family, friends or acquaintances will not be considered.

After the initial review of applications, select applicants to the Ph.D. in Epidemiology and Prevention Science and Community Health programs will be invited to participate in an interview. Additionally, the Admissions Committee’s for our Master’s programs may elect to interview an applicant by phone or Zoom prior to making a final admission decision. Applicants will be contacted via email if an interview is required.

• Deadlines
• Review