Using an MPH

[bunion123]

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A doctor advised me to pursue an MPH at one of the medical schools i wish to attend and reapply and that can almost guarantee me an interview. (even if i dont actually complete the MPH degree)
Anyone ever got this advice? is it realistic? I had a 30 mcat and 3.5 gpa

 

[phnerd1105]

A doctor advised me to pursue an MPH at one of the medical schools i wish to attend and reapply and that can almost guarantee me an interview. (even if i dont actually complete the MPH degree)
Anyone ever got this advice? is it realistic? I had a 30 mcat and 3.5 gpa

There's no way to know each school's specific policy on this. Doing another degree at the school in no way requires them to give you an interview for the MD program. I'm doing my MPH now, and I feel that I got an interview at the MD school it is attached to only because I worked with them through the program. My MPH experiences added aspect to my application and essays. Simply having an MPH isn't going to do anything for you. Do it if you want to do it, but know that that can't guarantee you an interview. Though, if he's an adcom there and knows that they do this specifically, it might be different.

Also, prior to matriculation, most schools require you to complete the degree you are working on.

 

[235788]

Generally, an MPH that does not fit into the totality of the pattern that your application presents about yourself, will be of little help and could in fact hinder your chances. . Prior to the explosion of postbacc/SMP, MPH was often used by subpar students believing it would somehow enhance their GPA or MCAT. The adcom community quickly caught on and MPH that didnt fit into the students background or pattern was highly suspect. (please note I earned my advanced degree in under a medical sociologist formerly from the Columbia school of public health so I am not trying to disparage MPH). Also, applying to MD prior to completion of the MPH begs the question of motivation and commitment in the eyes of an adcom.

On the flip side, for student with decent GPA and MCAT, like the OP, if the MPH fits into a pattern that you have established, it could be helpful, but certainly a long and inefficient method. For example, many student view only hardcore scientific research as really useful in enhancing an application. Social, psychological, policy, economic, etc research with a medical connection are often overlooked. If you had something in these areas as a undergrad, and then followed with an MPH it would fit the pattern in your application and speak to your motivation and commitment to medicine.

As a side note, for those who have graduated, taking an MPH course while applying (as opposed to being full time program) does help a bit in showing your are still doing something towards medicine. I simply suggest this so if you go to interview you can say something about your what you are doing currently instead of just some job.

As I said however, for most students this isnt true. In the original poster's situation, prepping and taking the MCAT again with a goal of 33 or more would be a more direct enhancement.

In short, only take the MPH if you have an interest in the field and are willing to commit to it. Taking it as a ploy to help you in MD will likely be seen for what it is.

I still don't understand why you would think this?

I can't imagine a MPH ever hurting...

 

[bunion123]

I hear you, but isn't the fact that youll do anything (even an MPH which youre not really interested in) to get into medical school proof enough of how much you want it?

 

[citrusguy2010]

I would suggest that adcoms view it more as a suspect ploy than a signal of true inten,t In the same way that directly applying from a nursing degree, applying directly from an MPH implies lack of commitment to a program or field which raises the question of the applicant's commitment and motivation. If your were to say take MPH and work in the field for a few years, that would be helpful (same idea applies to nursing).

Again, I suggest you ask and research this and you'll find the general consensus is MPH is not helpful nor an efficient stepping stone into medical school. It just really does not work.

Not meaning to be disrespectful to the above poster at all, but I completely agree with these statements here because I went straight from undergrad into a MPH program, applied while in program, and have been accepted into medical school for fall 2012. I can see how some might see that might look like a lack of commitment, but it really just depends on how you explain why you got your MPH. Obviously if you straight up say that you got your MPH to increase your chances of getting in, the adcoms will see right through that. In general though, I didn't get any questions about lack of commitment to public health and most adcoms (from what I perceived) believe that a MPH and the experiences you get during your two years of education provide you with a different perspective and effective tools for medicine.

I think a MPH does help and I firmly believe that the reason why I got my interviews and why I'm going to med school next year has a lot to do with my MPH. Coming out of undergrad, I didn't have the best grades and I was like 80% sure I wanted to go into medicine, and I used the MPH to get more research experience, explore a new facet of healthcare, and really clarify why I wanted to become a doctor.

I think there is a lot of equating of a MPH to a glorified EC on SDN and I used to believe it, but now looking back, I think it has more to offer and influence on the adcom process than we traditionally think of. Overall, I think it does work.

 

[phnerd1105]

Not meaning to be disrespectful to the above poster at all, but I completely agree with these statements here because I went straight from undergrad into a MPH program, applied while in program, and have been accepted into medical school for fall 2012. I can see how some might see that might look like a lack of commitment, but it really just depends on how you explain why you got your MPH. Obviously if you straight up say that you got your MPH to increase your chances of getting in, the adcoms will see right through that. In general though, I didn't get any questions about lack of commitment to public health and most adcoms (from what I perceived) believe that a MPH and the experiences you get during your two years of education provide you with a different perspective and effective tools for medicine.

I think a MPH does help and I firmly believe that the reason why I got my interviews and why I'm going to med school next year has a lot to do with my MPH. Coming out of undergrad, I didn't have the best grades and I was like 80% sure I wanted to go into medicine, and I used the MPH to get more research experience, explore a new facet of healthcare, and really clarify why I wanted to become a doctor.

I think there is a lot of equating of a MPH to a glorified EC on SDN and I used to believe it, but now looking back, I think it has more to offer and influence on the adcom process than we traditionally think of. Overall, I think it does work.

+1. I told my interviewers straight up that I did an MPH because I didnt know if I wanted to do medicine. Because of that experience, I realized that I wanted my career to be a combination of both public health and medicine, and that public health gave me a unique insight into the medical field. I definitely got asked why I didn't just stay with it, so I explained my why medicine answer and why I thought both fields should be joined.

 

[LizzyM]

Not meaning to be disrespectful to the above poster at all, but I completely agree with these statements here because I went straight from undergrad into a MPH program, applied while in program, and have been accepted into medical school for fall 2012. I can see how some might see that might look like a lack of commitment, but it really just depends on how you explain why you got your MPH. Obviously if you straight up say that you got your MPH to increase your chances of getting in, the adcoms will see right through that. In general though, I didn't get any questions about lack of commitment to public health and most adcoms (from what I perceived) believe that a MPH and the experiences you get during your two years of education provide you with a different perspective and effective tools for medicine.

I think a MPH does help and I firmly believe that the reason why I got my interviews and why I'm going to med school next year has a lot to do with my MPH. Coming out of undergrad, I didn't have the best grades and I was like 80% sure I wanted to go into medicine, and I used the MPH to get more research experience, explore a new facet of healthcare, and really clarify why I wanted to become a doctor.

I think there is a lot of equating of a MPH to a glorified EC on SDN and I used to believe it, but now looking back, I think it has more to offer and influence on the adcom process than we traditionally think of. Overall, I think it does work.

Did you concentrate in any specific area of public health? Did you do any experiential learning that combined medicine and public health or was it just public health related?

 

[doctorshateher]

I hear you, but isn't the fact that youll do anything (even an MPH which youre not really interested in) to get into medical school proof enough of how much you want it?

Yeah, but is the focus of med school admissions finding the people who want it most? Just because someone wants to go to medical school so much that they would pursue a graduate degree just to get accepted might show that they really, really want to get in. But does it do much to show that they are qualified?

 

[citrusguy2010]

Did you concentrate in any specific area of public health? Did you do any experiential learning that combined medicine and public health or was it just public health related?

My MPH focus was on Epidemiology. So I had a lot of exposure to medicine in undergrad through volunteering and research. So I felt I got a really good picture of medicine and the individualized focuses on the patients. During my MPH years, I worked (and currently work) at the health department doing disease surveillance so it was more of a population focus and still working with patients and providers. My thesis was on quality of care of urological procedures so that was more of an academic setting.

I feel that both my experiences at the health department and my research are both combining medicine and public health, working mostly on a population level however. Though at the health department, I do work on the patient levels as well.

Not too sure if that answers your question.

 

[LizzyM]

My MPH focus was on Epidemiology. So I had a lot of exposure to medicine in undergrad through volunteering and research. So I felt I got a really good picture of medicine and the individualized focuses on the patients. During my MPH years, I worked (and currently work) at the health department doing disease surveillance so it was more of a population focus and still working with patients and providers. My thesis was on quality of care of urological procedures so that was more of an academic setting.

I feel that both my experiences at the health department and my research are both combining medicine and public health, working mostly on a population level however. Though at the health department, I do work on the patient levels as well.

Not too sure if that answers your question.

Thanks for that information. The urological study does seem like a blend of medicine and public health (even if you didn't come in contact with patients); it is more medicine than determining the proportion of ticks that test positive for xyz.

 

[bunion123]

Yeah, but is the focus of med school admissions finding the people who want it most? Just because someone wants to go to medical school so much that they would pursue a graduate degree just to get accepted might show that they really, really want to get in. But does it do much to show that they are qualified?

i think a 30 mcat and 3.5 gpa is enough to show I'm qualified. plus all the extra curriculars and research and volunteering I have. My guess is, because I failed organic chemistry the first time and my secondaries were complete in november I didnt even get 1 interview to the 16 MD school i applied to.
Kind of sad, I would make a good doctor.

 

[LizzyM]

i think a 30 mcat and 3.5 gpa is enough to show I'm qualified. plus all the extra curriculars and research and volunteering I have. My guess is, because I failed organic chemistry the first time and my secondaries were complete in november I didnt even get 1 interview to the 16 MD school i applied to.
Kind of sad, I would make a good doctor.

It is sad that you applied late. Insanely late. The earliest date to submit an application is in June and more than 50% of all applicants don't get admitted anywhere. Ever hear, "The early bird gets the worm"? Applying as late as you did you would have needed a 37/3.9 to get an interview.

 

[LizzyM]

LizzyM do you have any general advice concerning MPH for students.

At conference, meetings, etc where where admissions officers and advisors are presenting or sitting on panels, this question usually comes up from students. In the past the response in not particularly encouraging. Has there been a positive shift in how MPH are being generally viewed?

Thanks in advance

In every class there seems to be at least one or two with an MPH but I don't know the denominator (number of applicants with MPH) so I don't know if the degree is over-represented or under-represented among matriculants.

That said, I've seen some applicants who appear to have started pre-reqs late (junior yr), take the MCAT after college graduation and use the MPH as a gap year(s) that also provides the opportunity for research experience and community engagement (often f/t during the summer between the 1st & 2nd yr of MPH). Peace Corps and similar intense, long-term volunteer programs serve a similar purpose of buffing an atypical application. I don't see it as a way of proving you have the scientific accumen for med school because too much of the curriculum is AO (all other) rather than BCPM but as a time to gather some skills in study design and data analysis and health policy, etc and use those skills in practice settings, it is very good.

 

[Robot Unicorn]

In every class there seems to be at least one or two with an MPH but I don't know the denominator (number of applicants with MPH) so I don't know if the degree is over-represented or under-represented among matriculants.

That said, I've seen some applicants who appear to have started pre-reqs late (junior yr), take the MCAT after college graduation and use the MPH as a gap year(s) that also provides the opportunity for research experience and community engagement (often f/t during the summer between the 1st & 2nd yr of MPH). Peace Corps and similar intense, long-term volunteer programs serve a similar purpose of buffing an atypical application. I don't see it as a way of proving you have the scientific accumen for med school because too much of the curriculum is AO (all other) rather than BCPM but as a time to gather some skills in study design and data analysis and health policy, etc and use those skills in practice settings, it is very good.

LizzyM, I'm currently a senior and planning on graduating after 5 years (double major), and am planning on applying for an MPH degree before I apply to medical school. My years of research in undergrad has been in MPH and I really want to continue for a year or two before I apply to medical school. It's not because my commitment to medical school is lacking, but because I really want to gain more exposure to the "public health side" of things before I delve into the first two years of academic coursework in medical school.

Would this make me look uncommitted in your opinion? Or how would ADCOMS see this? Is taking another year off after doing 5 years in undergrad a red flag or something?

 

[LizzyM]

I think that an MPH is more valuable to the student if acquired during or after medical school than before but that's my bias. I feel that having a fund of knowledge and personal experiences to apply to public health problems enhances one's learning.

Have you considered applying to schools that offer the MD combined with MPH? AAMC has a web site with a list of the schools that do. (There are many of them.)

 

[Robot Unicorn]

I think that an MPH is more valuable to the student if acquired during or after medical school than before but that's my bias. I feel that having a fund of knowledge and personal experiences to apply to public health problems enhances one's learning.

Have you considered applying to schools that offer the MD combined with MPH? AAMC has a web site with a list of the schools that do. (There are many of them.)

Unfortunately I realized this too late! I kind of planned out my college years (ECs, MCAT) based on taking a year to do an MPH, so I wouldn't be ready to apply this cycle anyway. I guess my choice is really just taking a year off to work or taking a year off to do an MPH.

 

[padhatam]

I've thought extensively about this subject too as I'm planning on applying to Medical School after getting my MPH. Personally, I think that public health and medicine are two ends of a spectrum, and that I want to have career which incorporates both. I think that if you truly have a passion for public health and medicine, then you should invite questions regarding why you pursued an MPH prior to Medicine. It gives you a chance to talk about your unique perspective on healthcare. Also, as mentioned before, your undergraduate GPA and MCATs are what count so if you've got those ducks in a line then an MPH couldn't hurt.

I'd like to hear your take on my situation though LizzyM. I'm graduating this spring with a BS in Public Health and a 3.7 GPA including all my prereqs. I was president of the undergraduate public health society and volunteered both domestically and abroad with healthcare and public health organizations. I've been offered a graduate fellowship at Berkeley School of Public Health to study epidemiology starting this fall. I've always been passionate about Public Health and plan to pursue a career which combines medicine and public health (CDC, NIH, etc.). However, some of the stuff I'm reading on the boards makes it seem like I'll be looked down upon for doing an MPH. Can you give me your perspective please?
Thanks in advance for contributing!

 

[LizzyM]

It isn't likely that you'd be looked down on for doing an MPH but you may have to justify why to took years off to do a graduate fellowship in epi rather than heading right to medical school and doing the MPH during or afterward.