Tips for a Successful Application
In the Department of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, we want you to be successful when applying to our graduate programs. Think of your application as a way to help us get to know you. Who are you? What do you want to do with this degree? What would you contribute to our school culture? How can we help you be successful? Your application will be reviewed by two faculty members on the Nutritional Sciences Admissions Committee. Our approach is both holistic and thorough and we truly enjoy learning about you as a future graduate student. If you have general questions regarding our applications, please review our FAQ for prospective students!
Writing Your Essays
Writing a great essay takes time. We highly encourage you to seek feedback on your drafts from mentors and peers. A strong essay:
- Articulates a clear focus related to pursuing a nutrition degree and intention in applying to the Department of Nutritional Sciences at Michigan Public Health.
- Demonstrates critical reasoning and sophistication in making linkages between career goals and the expected learning and benefits of graduate education in nutritional sciences.
- Connects past academic, professional, and personal experiences and training to skills and knowledge that will be acquired through a graduate degree in nutritional sciences.
- Expresses specific interest in the curricula of the department and/or the research of specific faculty (particularly for MS and PhD students).
- Has few to no grammatical errors, demonstrates English fluency, and indicates that the applicant has a high capacity to clearly communicate ideas in writing.
Showcasing Your Experiences
The amount and quality of your professional and volunteer experiences will be evaluated as we review your application. Strong candidates generally have worked in a position using nutrition and/or public health skills, whether it be after their undergraduate degree or during summers. Experiences vary but may include AmeriCorps or PeaceCorps service, policy work, food banks, health departments, school or community gardens, clinical nutrition shadowing, fitness and other non-profit organizations. A clear dedication to nutrition and public health through volunteer experiences during college or after are highly valued. Brief periods of professional/volunteer experience will be given less consideration as compared to longer experiences.
Highlighting Your Academic Record
All previous grades are an important component of your application. An undergraduate GPA higher than 3.4 is generally considered acceptable for admission. However, GPAs of 3.0-3.4 may also be admissible as long as your grades in math and science courses are above 3.0.
We understand that some students have had challenges during their academic career. If you’ve experienced challenges, let us know in your essay or statement. We want to be able to consider your academic record in the context of those life experiences and we appreciate hearing how students have persevered through tough times.
Finally, although our required prerequisite courses are all in the natural sciences, we embrace students with a variety of backgrounds. In the past we’ve had anthropologists, dancers, English majors, and philosophers enroll. Just make sure your application demonstrates that you can succeed in rigorous natural science courses and use your essay or statement to share with us why nutritional sciences is your calling.
We encourage international applicants to carefully review the additional information provided on our International Applicants page.
Securing Strong Recommendation Letters
You are required to have three recommendation letters submitted with your application. We highly encourage you to ask previous professors and/or supervisors to write these letters. Letters from friends or relatives are discouraged as they are often not able to speak to your academic and professional accomplishments.
When asking people to write your recommendation letters, it’s helpful to give them your resume and personal statement to review so they know what your passions are and why you are applying to our program. We also recommend that you give people at least a month to write and submit your letters, and think about a back-up letter writer in case someone becomes unavailable.
Addressing Missing Prerequisite Courses
We prefer that your prerequisites are completed before reviewing your application, however, many students are still in the process of completing them. If you are missing one to two prerequisite courses, please state in your application when you plan to take these courses. You can be conditionally admitted to the program and will be notified in your acceptance letter that your courses must be complete prior to beginning your first academic term with a B grade or better.
If you are missing three prerequisite courses, please state in your application when you plan to take these courses. The Admissions Committee is unable to make a final decision on your application until at least one out of the three prerequisites is complete. You will be contacted by the program coordinator to confirm that a concrete plan is in place to complete the required courses. Once you have no more than two missing prerequisite courses, the Admissions Committee will need to review your final grades to move your application through the admissions process.
If you are missing four or more prerequisite courses, please contact the program coordinator, to discuss if it is feasible for you to complete these courses before the admissions deadline.
Contact Us
For questions, please contact NS Student Services at ns.admissions@umich.edu.
Ready to Apply?
Learn more about our application requirements and deadlines and start your application today. If you’re not ready to apply yet, but would like to receive more information about Michigan Public Health and the program(s) you’re interested in, join our prospective student interest list.
Contact Us
For more information about the admissions process, email our Recruitment and Admissions team at sph-inquiries@umich.edu or schedule an appointment to talk with a member of our Graduate Admissions team.