Earning a master’s degree in public health (MPH) is a popular option for those who wish to enter the healthcare world after graduation and find a satisfying profession that allows them to help individuals and communities while earning a competitive salary. An MPH opens the door to a broad range of jobs, from epidemiologist to public health administrator, and most of these jobs will see an increased need over the coming decade.
Many students are attracted to the option of earning an MPH degree without having to take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). The GRE can take months of preparation, and for students who don’t test well, it can be an impediment to their success. Fortunately, there are some institutions that either waive the need to take the GRE in certain circumstances or offer you the ability to apply without GRE scores.
In this article, we will look at the range of options for online MPH programs with no GRE and help you find the right choice for your own needs.
How To Find a Reputable Online MPH Program
As hiring managers today agree, online programs can be just as rigorous and beneficial as in-person education. However, it is imperative to find a reputable program that offers the correct credentialing for students who wish to go into public health.
There are, unfortunately, “degree mills” that offer programs that, they claim, will have you earning your degree in a matter of weeks. These claims aren’t true, and these unscrupulous organizations are only in the business of education to make money. To be sure your college or university will give you a solid and credible education, you must confirm that it has the proper accreditation to award legitimate degrees. There are two types of accreditation to consider.
Institutions of higher education earn regional accreditation by following a rigorous process that includes site visits, self-assessments, and periodic reports indicating where the school excels and how it might improve the educational experiences for students. Meanwhile, program-specific accreditation is undertaken by organizations that work to ensure an institution is offering the best possible academic experience for a particular profession.
Regional accreditation
Regional accreditation is the gold standard for American institutions of higher education. Regional accreditation is done by a handful of agencies approved by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). These include the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, which accredits schools in the northeastern U.S., and the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, which accredits institutions in Oregon, Washington, and other institutions in the Northwest. These organizations work within a particular region in the U.S., but their credentialing is accepted throughout the country.
These and their fellow commissions have all been vetted and approved by CHEA and are legitimate organizations. A team from the accrediting agency visits each school in its region regularly (usually every five to ten years) to ensure that the programs it offers adhere to the highest educational standards.
They look at everything from a school’s core curriculum to the credentials of its professors and issue periodic reports that highlight any area where a school needs to improve, as well as any areas where it excels and meets or exceeds standards.
These accreditations are highly valued by institutions, and it is a good idea to ask an admissions counselor about your chosen school’s accreditation status. If they have not been accredited by either a regional accrediting agency or a subject-specific accreditor, choose another college or university for your education.
CEPH accreditation
Regional accreditation applies to an entire school or university. There are also organizations that accredit specific programs within an institution. In the field of public health, the subject-specific accrediting organization is the Council on Education for Public Health. Ideally, the institution the student attends will be approved by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH).
According to its mission statement, CEPH ensures quality in public health education and training to achieve excellence in practice, research, and service through collaboration with organizations and community partners. It does this by periodically evaluating public health programs through on-site visits as well as through each institution’s self-assessment documents, helping them establish policies and procedures and ensure the highest academic standards for the program.
Attending a school with CEPH accreditation is something to note on your resume or CV, as it is an important indicator of the quality of your degree. It attests to the fact that your education was earned at an institution that values the latest research and teaching in the field and strives to ensure that students graduate equipped for entry-level positions in public health.
How To Get Into a No-GRE MPH Program
Although there are numerous valid and accredited programs that don’t require GRE scores to apply, there will still be other requirements for the application that you will need to submit to be considered for the program. Here are some of the standard requirements that institutions ask for before you are admitted to their programs:
- Resume or CV
- Official or unofficial transcripts from your undergraduate institution
- Letters of recommendation, which are generally from those who can attest to your ability to excel in a graduate-level program, such as former teachers, employers, or mentors
- A personal statement or essay that speaks to why you are hoping to enter this field and what you hope to accomplish as a public health professional
- A certain number of years of full-time professional experience (may be required of students in accelerated programs)
- WES ICAP evaluation for international applicants, as well as English language proficiency as indicated by satisfactory TOEFL scores
- Any previous coursework that may apply to your programs, such as nutrition courses, chemistry labs, human anatomy, or microbiology
- Information on your work history, especially any positions that are related to public health
Our Research
This list features some of the country’s best online MPH programs (no GRE). Each school featured is a nonprofit, accredited institution, either public or private, with a high standard of academic quality for post-secondary institutions.
We evaluated each school’s program on tuition costs, admission, retention and graduation rates, faculty, and reputation. Then, we calculated the Intelligent Score on a scale of 0 to 100. Read more about our ranking methodology.
Next, we compared this comprehensive list of the best online MPH programs (no GRE) to a list of aggregated college rankings from reputable publications, such as U.S. News & World Report, to simplify a student’s college search. We pored through these rankings so students don’t have to.
The 50 Best Online MPH Programs (No GRE)
