SOPHAS Application

The application opens annually on September 1.

  • Applicants must submit both a SOPHAS and UW Graduate School Application to be considered for the MPH in Environmental Health Sciences degree. See below for instructions on how to submit your SOPHAS application. For instructions on how to submit your UW Graduate Application, please refer to the UW Graduate School application page. 
  • Start your SOPHAS application and create a login ID and password.
    • If you need help with your SOPHAS application, please review the FAQ page.
  • Complete the sections for:
    • Personal Information
    • Academic History
    • Supporting Information
  • To apply for the MPH in Environmental Health Sciences, on the “Add Program” page in the “University of Washington School of Public Health” section, click the “+” icon in the “Add” column affiliated with the MPH (Degree) and Environmental Health Sciences (Program Name).
  • Complete the sections for:
    • Organization Questions (see below) 
    • Program Questions (see below) 
  • Part of the SOPHAS application is providing the 9 digit UW Graduate School application ID. The application ID can be found on the UW Graduate School application system’s main landing page.
  • When all sections are complete, pay the fee and submit the application.
    • The application fee is $145 for the first program and an additional $55 for each additional program. To request a fee waiver, click your name in the upper right corner of the application, then select Fee Waiver Form.
    • Additional information is available here: SOPHAS Fees and Fee Waivers – Liaison (liaisonedu.com)

Organization Questions

1) Personal History Statement (max word limit: 500)

The Personal History Statement is meant to give you the opportunity to provide a narrative about your lived experiences, obstacles you may have overcome, and how these have guided you towards public health. This statement should not be the same as your Statement of Purpose.

Your Personal History Statement can include information about who you are as a person; your family or cultural background; socioeconomic conditions; and experiences growing up, including successes, challenges, and moments of learning and growth. This question is not intended to ask you to share personal information you are not comfortable providing.

3) Equity, Justice, and Anti-Racism Statement (max word limit: 350)

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) are core values of the UW School of Public Health. We are committed to a future that is free of health inequities and promotes the highest level of wellness for the communities we serve. We strive to cultivate a public health workforce that embodies humility, respect, and leadership.

We further seek to create a community that is inclusive of underrepresented populations and in service to underserved communities. The School is committed to becoming anti-racist and adopting anti-racism principles in the classroom and in our work. Completion of this MPH application attests that you, as an applicant, are informed of these commitments and expectations of students who attend the UW School of Public Health.

(You can review additional details provided on the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion web page.)

Describe how you might contribute to these efforts, and/or learn and grow in the areas of EDI and anti-racism, during your time at the UW SPH, and in your public health work post-graduation.

Program Questions

1) Academic Statement of Purpose (max word limit: 500)

To help us better understand your academic goals and fit with our graduate program, please answer the following questions: Why are you interested in pursuing graduate studies in environmental and occupational health sciences? What specific topics and questions interest you? What are your career goals and how will pursuing a graduate degree in our department help you attain those?

Review our Student Research page to learn about recent projects DEOHS students have completed as well the faculty who mentored those projects.

2) MPH Capstone or Thesis

All MPH students will complete 2 culminating experiences: a practicum, and a capstone project or a research thesis. A Capstone is a scholarly project usually conducted for or on behalf of an organization, constituency, or community. A thesis is an independent scholarly analysis of a research based project.

Reflecting on the interests and goals you identified in your academic statement or purpose, please select whether the capstone or thesis option is the best fit for you. Please note that if admitted, you have until the end of your first quarter to formally select the capstone or thesis option. Your answer here in no way impacts your likelihood of admission, nor will you be held to the selections you make now.

3) Faculty Interest List 

You will be asked to provide the names of three to five DEOHS faculty whose research interests you, and who you think might be a good fit for mentoring your thesis research, capstone or applied project. The ranking you provide is intended to give us a better idea of how your interests align with our faculty. You may end up working with a faculty member who isn’t in your initial ranking, and we cannot guarantee that you will work with any of the faculty that you have listed. Before you add faculty to your ranked list, please look at the "mentorship" section on their faculty profile to ensure they are taking on new students for your degree category. On their faculty page, you will find a short list of student research projects recently mentored by that faculty member. To see a complete list of all projects mentored by all faculty, please see the student research page.

4) Prerequisites

  • Degree: Applicants to the PhD, MS, MS Applied and MPH degree programs should have a bachelor’s degree or higher. Applicants to the MPH in Occupational and Environmental Medicine must have an MD, DO or PhD degree.

  • Grade point average (GPA): Applicants must have at least a 3.0 cumulative grade-point-average on a 4 point scale (or equivalent measures of performance if a graduate of an institution with no grading system; or equivalent grade-point-average from an accredited foreign institution) for those credits earned at the regionally accredited institution awarding the bachelor’s degree OR at least a 3.0 grade-point-average (on a 4 point scale) for the last 90 graded quarter credits or 60 graded semester credits.  Applicants with exceptional strengths in other areas with a GPA below 3.0 may still be considered if their overall application is extremely strong. 

  • Prerequisites: All MS, MPH and PhD degrees require foundational understanding in the areas below, typically through having taken one or more courses. Applicants who have not taken coursework in these areas may be able to demonstrate competency through professional or other experience. Alternatively, coursework may be completed after admission, before starting the program. 

    • General biology (biodiversity of life forms, ecology, structure and function of biomolecules, cell structure, animal development and physiology)
    • General chemistry (chemical nomenclature, chemical reactions, stoichiometry, chemical bonding)
    • Organic chemistry (organic compounds, functional groups, aromaticity and stereochemistry)
    • Advanced algebra, precalculus or calculus (students who have not taken calculus should be ready to work with calculus-level concepts)

Applicants who are unsure of whether they meet the prerequisites are invited to contact an adviser.