I need a lot of help/advice

[ninja23]

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Hi all,

I'm a current undergraduate student settled on pharmacy, hated it. Always loved medicine but never had plans to practice in a hospital. I wanted to run a hospital OR set up prevention programs/ clinics in places where there is a need. That's when I realized I can do it with out an MD- public health.

So I want to go into Health Care Administration/management or global health/ policy. I'm not sure if those are the right areas with in public health for my eventual career goals.

Problems:
*I have a low gpa ~2.6 cumulative from a science school... partially because my first two years of college close relatives passed away and it hit me hard.
*I also dont know what schools to apply to/ what I will get into.
*I dont have public health related experience but I do undergraduate research in cancer, I'm a licensed real estate agent, have hospital volunteer experience and a hotel adminstration externship. I've also got a few event planning experiences under my belt. (I'm all over the place basically)... how can I make this work for me?

Any and all advice/school suggestions are greatly appreciated 🙂

 

[aphios5]

So I want to go into Health Care Administration/management or global health/ policy. I'm not sure if those are the right areas with in public health for my eventual career goals.

According to my humble estimations, you sound like a great candidate for someone's MPH or MHA program. Heck, you could even do a dual degree MPH/MHA program. You sound motivated enough.

My undergraduate gpa was lower than yours, however, I presented an excellent application and recommendations which conveyed my interests and desire to further my education in public health despite my previous undergraduate record. Like you, I assisted in cancer prevention research as an undergrad. I used this experience to highlight the growing trend of cancer in the US and how I hoped to contribute to/make a tangible impact in this area of prevention through education, programming, etc. = PUBLIC HEALTH.

Not sure where you live, but Ohio State has a great program....Hope this helps.

 

[M123]

Look over some program sites and see if what they have to offer suits your needs. There's a full list here: http://sophas.org/schoolMaps.cfm I highly recommend contacting professors at your prospective universities over the next few months (even if you don't have a definite list put together). Let them know you're concerned about your GPA (mention why it's below 3.0) and ask what other specific qualities they would like to see in their next round of applicants. It really helps to get yourself out there, especially for people who may not be in the "clear admit" category. Most schools make exceptions to the 3.0 minimum for candidates who are outstanding in other areas. If you package yourself correctly, I don't think you'll seem all over the place at all. There are qualities from each of your activities that can contribute to your success in public health. Good luck 🙂

 

[crabtastic]

I totally agree it's how you package yourself. In your letters of intent/personal statements, mention why your GPA is low--especially if it's a reason why you became interested in this course of study. Also some schools more heavily weight the last 60 units/two years of study.

Don't not apply somewhere just because you don't think you have a chance (but still apply to safe schools). If you don't apply, you may wind up closing a door on yourself.

Play up how your varied experiences make you and asset.

 

[bigpharmD]

Hi all,

I'm a current undergraduate student settled on pharmacy, hated it. Always loved medicine but never had plans to practice in a hospital. I wanted to run a hospital OR set up prevention programs/ clinics in places where there is a need. That's when I realized I can do it with out an MD- public health.

So I want to go into Health Care Administration/management or global health/ policy. I'm not sure if those are the right areas with in public health for my eventual career goals.

Problems:
*I have a low gpa ~2.6 cumulative from a science school... partially because my first two years of college close relatives passed away and it hit me hard.
*I also dont know what schools to apply to/ what I will get into.
*I dont have public health related experience but I do undergraduate research in cancer, I'm a licensed real estate agent, have hospital volunteer experience and a hotel adminstration externship. I've also got a few event planning experiences under my belt. (I'm all over the place basically)... how can I make this work for me?

Any and all advice/school suggestions are greatly appreciated 🙂

are you a current pharmer, even accepted? GPA seems low for pharm. Keep in mind you can combine public health with pharm as well. Good luck.

 

[ninja23]

Thank you all for your advice and help. I really appreciate it especially since I'm new to the admissions process for MPH or MHA programs and dont really know much about their stats except for what schools post.

I started a sophas application about a month ago and that's when I started looking at which schools offer what I think I want to go into.

My next question is: are MPH programs that concentrate in health policy and management better or MHA programs for hospital administration/prevention/epidemiology?

Are MHA programs more difficult to get into?

Will taking grad courses during the time that I'd be waiting around for responses, make a difference? My school's MPH program is not accredited though.

BigPharmD- yeah I was a current pharmacy student up until the beginning of this semester.. I switched majors because I dont want to be a pharmacist. (0-6 program and I was in it for 2.5 years)

Aphios5- I wanted to write my personal statement along the same lines but I wasn't sure how to relate that to policy and management or hospital administration...

It also didn't occur to me to put myself out there by contacting professors, thats genius! Do professors decide which applicants get accepted? I always thought that was a separate admissions committee...

Thanks again guys!

 

[Stories]

I'll answer where I have applicable input.

I started a sophas application about a month ago and that's when I started looking at which schools offer what I think I want to go into.

Don't bother. SOPHAS resets their applications every cycle, so if you're not planning on submitting your applications for immediate review and acceptance to the fall, you'll lose all the work you put into it. The cycle resets in August.

My next question is: are MPH programs that concentrate in health policy and management better or MHA programs for hospital administration/prevention/epidemiology?

The MHA is a bit more focused on the administration part than the equivalent MPH which also includes policy aspects.

Will taking grad courses during the time that I'd be waiting around for responses, make a difference? My school's MPH program is not accredited though.

Yes. Do well, and it'll only help bolster your application.

 

[DrJosephKim]

I suggest you consider:

MMM (master's in medical management)
MHA (health admin)

Also, consider looking into the ACHE. http://www.ache.org/

After that, you can pursue a doctorate degree if you feel you need those qualifications.

 

[dragonfly99]

drkim,
do you think the degree is the most important thing, or is it the training itself? It seems to me that one could achieve the OP's goals in either a MPH or MHA program, but that she/he needs to choose the program carefully. The OP says that his/her school has an MPH but it's not accredited. Personally, I would hesitate to enroll in a nonaccredited program. Try to get into the best program that you can. Since you've only got 2.5 years of undergrad under your belt, you have plenty of time. See if your school's career office can set you up with an internship or something for this summer or maybe next fall...that is what I would do. See if you can find something in hospital administration, or health policy, etc. Something where you can learn more about your fields of interest, and that will look good on your application.

I don't know what region of the country you are in, but I had a friend who got a MHA from Dartmouth U. and she had no problems getting a job in Boston, so I'd think that means her degree has good recognition in the northeast.

 

[ninja23]

Thanks again for all of the responses they're really helpful. I will look in to MMM, MHA and MPH in health policy and management and figure out what careers that would direct me towards.

Dragonfly99- I was in Pharmacy school (0-6 program) for 2.5 years, so I did 2 years of pre-pharmacy and a semester of actual pharmacy school before I changed my major. I have 3 years of total undergrad under my belt and will graduate in one more semester to make it 3.5 years (December 2009).

The problem is that I'll be sitting on my butt for a whole semester so I'm deciding to take a few grad school courses to increase my chances... I dont plan on enrolling in my current schools program but I want to just take a few courses and hope they at least transfer. Would they transfer even if the program is not accredited?

Also I've been contacting my schools career service to set me up in different areas since February but they're really slow and nothings been done so I'm thinking I will just do it on my own. Summer already started though...

Sorry, I should have been more clear.