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Application Instructions

To advance the public's health and well-being through education, research & service
with a focus on issues affecting Louisiana

Please refer to the Admissions page of this website for GRE and GPA admission requirements. Note that specific programs may establish requirements that surpass the minimum standards of the School of Public Health.

Checklist of Application Materials

• Application Form*
• Application Fee
• Official Report of Graduate Record Examination Scores
• Transcripts from All Colleges and Universities Previously Attended
• Personal statement
• Resume or CV
• Recommendation Form Three (3) recommendations required for MPH applicants; they may be letters or forms.  The form does not require applicant signature and may be sent to the school electronically.
• International Applicants must order an official copy of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Use the DI Code of 1316 Dept. 50 for TOEFL reporting. Official reports from the Educational Testing Service are required. Upon admission, foreign nationals must provide a copy of their passport and a signed letter (on bank letterhead) of adequate funding or a letter of sponsorship from a recognized sponsoring agency (on letterhead) in order to obtain a visa. Please note that the process of obtaining a visa may take 90 or more days.

Please download the Application and Recommendation forms you will find on this page. You may begin the application process immediately by completing the Word-document application on line and emailing it to SPH@lsuhsc.edu. Please follow this submission with a signed original of your application, goal statement, and application fee mailed to the address listed below.

NOTE: A fee of $30 must be submitted for each graduate program for which you have applied. Checks and money orders must be made payable to LSU Health Sciences Center.

You should request that the Educational Testing Service send this office an official report of your Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores. The codes are: 1316 for LSUHSC institution code and 0616/GRE for Public Health School department code. It takes six weeks — and sometimes longer — for the official GRE reports to reach us. You may submit a photocopy of your "Student Copy" of the scores; however, official reports are needed for admission.

Request one copy of your official transcript from each college or university you have attended. Transcripts from all universities attended are required. We require that transcripts be sent from the Registrar's Office of your University directly to this office. Transcripts issued to students are not considered official.

Personal statement - Explains your motivation and interest in graduate study in Public Health and for the specific degree and program chosen and evaluates your qualifications, including your academic record as well as work and other relevant expriences. The statement should be brief – not more than one page – but written in your own words. If using a phrase or longer text from other sources (such as the internet or books) you must credit the original source. Failure to do so constitutes plagiarism, which is immediate cause for rejection of an application.

International applicants must order an official report from World Education Services (WES) or the Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE) report of all courses listed on transcripts, providing equivalency on a four point grading scale is also required. Both the WES and the ECE reports convert educational credentials from any country in the world into their U.S. equivalents. Either report describes each course, certificate, diploma or degree that you have earned and states its academic equivalency in the United States.

Please note that individual programs may require higher GPAs and examination scores. Check individual program web pages for this additional information, when applicable.

Each of the above items should be sent to:

After submitting your application, check with the Office of Admissions and Student Affairs 504/568-5700 to track whether all materials have been received. Please do not assume that letters of recommendation or transcripts have arrived.

NOTE: Public Health students who apply for admission to the LSUHSC School of Medicine, or any other LSUHSC professional school or training program, shall not be enrolled in the professional school or training program until they have completed the public health degree toward which they are working.

MPH Application Deadlines

PhD Applications Deadlines


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