Applications for admission to the Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences are processed through the Office of Student Affairs at Pitt Public Health. You must apply for the MPH and PhD programs through SOPHAS, the centralized application service for graduate schools of public health. Please note, SOPHAS submits applications to Pitt Public Health only after all required materials are received. Applicants who have submitted applications may track their status online.
Review the Pitt Public Health requirements for admission before applying.
MPH Prerequisites:
- Applicants should have an undergraduate quality or grade point average of at least 3.0.
- Applicants must have completed and earned a C or better in a three-credit math or statistics class taken in a math or statistics department. They must also have completed six credits of social sciences (anthropology, economics, geography, political science, psychology, social psychology).
- Applicants must address the three prompts below in their statement of purpose when applying through SOPHAS:
- Tell us why you think you are prepared for graduate study. Please provide us with a general overview and specifics addressing your verbal, quantitative and analytic skills.
- Tell us the story of how you "discovered" public health and decided on Behavioral and Community Health Sciences at Pitt. What experiences in life have brought you here?
- Tell us how the MPH fits into your career plans.
- International applicants: spoken and written English language proficiency. See more details.
PhD Prerequisites:
- A post-baccalaureate degree in a discipline relevant to public health, such as social work or anthropology, or an MD or JD. International post-baccalaureate degrees must be equivalent to a U.S. post-baccalaureate, as determined by a WES ICAP evaluation.
- A clear statement of what your research goals are and how the program of study will contribute to achieving your career goals. You may use this statement to tell us your professional story, who would you like to work with, and clarify your skills. In addition, we strongly recommend you tell us your research goals, with which faculty members you would like to work and why. Understanding your potential fit with our department is an important part of our review process.
- Three letters of recommendation from individuals in a position to judge both your professional and/or academic abilities. At least one academic letter is suggested.
- Graduate quality or grade point average of at least 3.3. You must submit transcripts of ALL college-level study.
- Completion of all school-wide prerequisites.
- International applicants: spoken and written English language proficiency. See more details.
*The GRE is no longer a prerequisite for either degree program.
For more information about applying, tuition and financial aid, please visit Pitt Public Health admissions, or contact Paul Markgraf by phone at 412-624-3107 or email.
International Applicants
In addition to the application materials required of all students, international students must adhere to additional requirements.
