Undergraduate Admissions Requirements and Instructions

Major Maps

Interested in Public Health as a major? Check out the Public Health Major Map! You can explore more major maps by going to the UC Berkeley My Major Map Website.

With a public health major, undergraduates will develop and apply knowledge from multiple disciplines for the promotion and protection of the health of the human population, giving due consideration to principles of human rights and cultural perspectives that abound in our multicultural country and world.

Public health is a capped major and unfortunately every semester we have to turn away great candidates due to our limited capacity. While we do our best to accept all qualified students, there is no guarantee that any one particular student will be admitted into the major. Therefore, when you take the prerequisites needed for a public health major, you should also take the necessary steps to declare an alternative major in order to ensure you have a timely graduation.

Interested students may apply to the public health major once. We do not accept reapplicants. Thus, it is important to make your application as strong as possible.

Important Prerequisite Information

For prerequisites taken during Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, and Summer 2021

The review committee will take into account that Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, and Summer 2021 are impacted by COVID-19. You may choose to take a PNP or a letter grade for prerequisites being taken at UC Berkeley or another institution this Spring 2020. For prerequisite courses taken for PNP, you must receive a “P”. You may request grades from your professor for prereq calculation purposes if you choose PNP (screenshot of email required with application). Requesting letter grades should you choose PNP is not required. You can see the full policy statement at section #8: SPHUG here. For more clarification please reach out to the academic advisors via drop in hours or sphug@berkerley.edu (drop in hours are easier for explanation purposes).

For Prerequisites taken during Fall 2022

A letter grade of a C- or higher is still required for the prerequisites. For Fall 2022 only, a P grading for Data C8 will be accepted to fulfill Public Health major requirements.

Declaration Policy of Public Health Major

Should you receive admission to the Public Health major you must be declared in the major on CalCentral no later than 3 months (12 weeks) after your admission email receipt. If you fail to declare the PH major by this deadline, you will automatically be dropped from the major. No exceptions. There is no appeal process.

  • Students applying in the Fall cycle (December 17–31) should expect to be declared by mid April.
  • Students applying in the Spring cycle (May 17–31) should expect to be declared by mid October.

L&S Students

Students that apply who are already in the College of Letters and Science (L&S) and have marked on the application they are planning to solely major in PH will be declared immediately by the PH academic advisors in CalCentral.

If you are planning to double major and are already declared in a major besides PH within the College of L&S, you will be required to fill out the appropriate forms sent to you by the academic advisors in order to declare PH.

Non-L&S Students

Students who apply while not in the College of L&S will need to fill out the appropriate forms sent to you by the academic advisors in order to declare PH. You will be in one of two situations and the appropriate forms shall be sent to you based on what you have marked on your application.

  • Change of College – you are planning to leave your current College and enter the College of L&S.
  • Simultaneous degree – you are planning to keep your current major/degree and also complete a second degree in the College of L&S majoring in PH.

Any questions can be directed to sphug@berkeley.edu.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • For PH majors: Enrollment in public health core classes

    Phase 1 is prioritized for PH majors in their senior year (Term 7 and 8+). In Phase 2 all remaining seats will be released to all PH majors Additional seats may be released to students in their 7 or 8 term in the Adjustment period, and then to students in their 5 or 6 term pending availability of seats.

    Senior and Junior status are determined by how many terms you have completed on CalCentral, so even if you are in senior standing in units you may be in junior standing in terms. If you are graduating early and have any concerns about enrolling in the required courses, please reach out to a Public Health advisor.

  • For students who applied to the PH major and are waiting an admissions decision: Enrollment in public health core classes

    If you have just applied to the major and are awaiting the admissions decision, follow the advice below. Keep in mind that units for waitlist courses are counted as part of your unit total (enrollment unit caps), so you need to pay attention to your maximum units for your current college. If your current major is outside the College of L&S, you may have other unit caps to follow. For L&S students, Phase 1 has a 13.5 unit cap and Phase 2 has a 17.5 unit cap. You may be admitted into the major during Phase 1 however seats for public health core classes may still be reserved for PH seniors. If seats are released to all PH majors before Phase 2, but you are enrolled in 13.5 units in Phase 1, you still won’t come off the waitlist until Phase 2 when your unit cap rises to 17.5. You will need to wait until Phase 2 if admitted from the waitlist into the PH core courses.

    Phase 1 Enrollment

    You should enroll in PH elective and breadth classes first. If you have not taken DATA C8 yet, we also recommend you try to enroll in this course if possible. Then you may either join a waitlist or leave room for the public health core classes you wish to take if you are admitted to the PH major. Or you can enroll in classes for your back up major and have a plan for what to drop and add upon hearing whether or not you are admitted.

    It would be okay to Phase 1 or Phase 2 the core classes you are hoping to enroll in. You may want to Phase 1 the courses you need to prioritize for your backup major, other requirements, or popular courses you are interested in that fill up quickly since PH core classes will have reserved seats for PH majors.

    Phase 2 Enrollment

    We reserve seats in the public health core classes for newly admitted PH majors, this can sometimes happen during Phase 2. If you are admitted to the PH major in Phase 2, you will bypass everyone on the waitlist who is not a PH major to be enrolled in the class as long as the discussion you chose still has open seats. You will remain waitlisted if the discussion is full. If that is the case, then you will have to change the discussion section to be able to enroll in the lecture and discussion. This can mean having to drop the course to be able to re-enroll and choose a different discussion option as you can only swap discussion sections when you are already fully enrolled in the course. See more in “For PH majors: Swapping discussion sections.”

    If you have paperwork to be completed in order to declare the PH major, please make sure to do so and be in communication with the PH advisors. If you are unable to complete the paperwork and declare the major before Phase 2, please let the PH advisors know ahead of time what core class and open discussion section you are trying to enroll in as seats in core classes will be released to non-PH majors during the Adjustment period.

    If you need to prioritize other classes in Phase 1, you can enroll in some of the Public Health core classes (142, 150A, 150B, 150D, and 150E) in Phase 2. PH 150E is a class that fills up quickly with current PH majors so we recommend that you Phase I it (if during enrollment for spring courses). You should also Phase 1 your chosen capstone course once you enter your final 2 semesters at Berkeley).

  • PH 150B Enrollment (Fall only)

    In the fall, PH 150B reserves seats for PH seniors in Phase 1. So if you’re still waiting to see if you were admitted to the major, you will not be enrolled in this course. Seats in PH 150B for PH juniors/recently admitted majors will open up during Phase 2 and you will see yourself progress through the waitlist. If you are still waiting to hear about your admission to the major, you will not progress through the waitlist. However, if you are admitted by Phase 2 and you have not advanced through the waitlist, please email us so we can loop in our course scheduler.

  • PH 142 Enrollment (Fall or Spring or Summer)

    In the fall, the majority of PH graduate students will enroll in PH 142 because of the requirements for MPH programs. Anyone can waitlist for this course, however, enrollment in the course is not guaranteed. Students are enrolled sequentially off the waitlist provided there are seats available for your enrollment group and whether you are enrolled in a class that has a time conflict with another class for which you are waitlisted. Because there are reserved seats in PH 142 for PH graduate students, PH seniors and general PH majors, you will see your enrollment status update more quickly than in PH 150B if you become admitted to the major in Phase 2.

    Please note PH 142 is offered in the Spring, Summer, and Fall. There are no enrollment restrictions during Summer Sessions. Also note, we do not allow undergraduate students to take the online PH W142 class through OOMPH.

    You will need to take PH 142 either before or concurrently with PH 150A. If you are interested in the Honors Thesis or certain 4+1 MPH programs, be sure to complete PH 142 and PH 150A by the end of your junior year.

  • For Non-PH majors or GPH minors: Enrollment and waitlist for public health core classes

    For the PH major core classes (PH 142, PH 150A, PH 150B, PH 150D, and PH 150E), there will be reserved seats for PH majors up until the middle of Adjustment period and sometimes a bit later into the Adjustment period depending on when we admit new PH majors. Sometimes instructors may release seats a bit earlier than Adjustment period depending on the class size and how enrollment is going. In any case, if you are not a public health major, you will be waitlisted until seats are released.

    If you are on the waitlist but there are open seats in the lecture, you may have chosen a discussion section that is full and will need to change your discussion section to enroll in the course. If you are on the waitlist but there are open seats in the lecture, you may have chosen a discussion section that is full and will need to change your discussion section to enroll in the course. See Switching Related Sections guide for further information.

  • For PH majors: Swapping discussion sections

    Students cannot swap discussion sections unless they are already enrolled in the lecture. To choose a new discussion section, you will have to drop and re-add the course with the open discussion section. Within 3–6 hours, the system will then recognize you as a declared PH major and be able to enroll you from the waitlist bypassing other students on the waitlist who are not PH majors as long as the class still has reserved seats for majors.

    Please note that PH seniors are not based on the standing listed on Calcentral but by terms 7–8. PH juniors are considered to be terms 5–6. If you are graduating early, please be sure to fill out the form under “Can I move my EGT?” here. So if there is reserved seating for PH seniors, it is usually around Phase 2 that we release all seats for the PH core classes to all PH majors. If you are attempting to enroll in a capstone course but are term 5–6, please email the instructor of the specific capstone you are interested in to explain that you are graduating early, confirming that you have submitted the appropriate forms, and cc: sphug@berkeley.edu.

    If you find you are unable to drop and re-add the course, be sure you are trying to do so during your allotted Phase 1 or Phase 2 time. If it is your enrollment time and you remain on the waitlist for an open discussion and lecture even after 3–6 hours, let us know and we can loop in our course scheduler to further assist.

Undergraduate Admissions Requirements

For students admitted Fall 2023

Transfer students must apply to the major by the end of their first semester at UC Berkeley. If they have completed their prerequisites prior to their first semester, they are able to apply to the major in the Spring cycle before they matriculate. Meet with an academic advisor to learn more.

Non-transfer students who did not indicate Public Health as their intended major should plan to complete the prerequisites no later than their fifth semester to prepare for a Comprehensive Review. We recommend to complete prerequisites by the fourth semester for course planning purposes. Summers do not count towards the fifth semester cap. You must complete the prerequisites with a C- or higher and maintain a 2.0 GPA in the following: Major Prerequisite GPA, Overall GPA, and GPA in the term you apply/declare the major. More details to come from campus, you can refer to High-Demand Majors for First-Year Students for additional information. Sign up for the prospective student listserv for more information: How to join the Prospective SPHUG List Server.

Non-transfer students who applied as intended Public Health majors (Applied High Demand) will receive an email with more details. We recommend that students aim to complete the prerequisite courses by the 4th semester and to complete the prerequisites with a C- or higher and maintain a 2.0 GPA in the following: Major Prerequisite GPA, Overall GPA, GPA in the term you apply/declare the major.

For students applying Fall 2023, Spring 2024, or Fall 2024 – fifth Term Semester Cap – Semesters are Fall and Spring semesters. Summer sessions do not count towards the fifth term semester cap. Non-transfer students must apply to the public health major by the end of their fifth semester in attendance at UC Berkeley. It is strongly recommended that students apply by the end of their fourth semester. We will not accept applications from graduating seniors or from students who are in their sixth term or above, even if Public Health is not the student’s first major.

GPA minimum & application review for students admitted prior to Fall 2023

A C- or higher is required for all the prerequisites. Most successful applicants have a above a 2.75 prerequisite GPA.

Our admissions process consists of a holistic review by multiple committee members. Although academic performance is important, your ability to articulate your passion for public health is equally as important.

Thus, the committee evaluates applications based on the following three criteria:

  • A review of your academic preparation (prerequisite coursework and GPA),
  • Your personal, professional and volunteer experiences, especially those regarding your decision to pursue public health, and
  • Your future leadership potential in public health.

Students who have a prerequisite GPA of a 2.75 or lower will be required to discuss this in their Personal History Statement. More instructions can be found in Undergraduate Application Instructions. These students will be pre-screened to ensure minimum requirements to succeed in our courses. Upon approval of the initial screening, these students will be considered along with the remaining applicants.

The number of students accepted into the major is dependent upon the number of seats available. The major is allocated 440 seats. If the total number of applicants (including those who passed the initial screening because of low GPA) would keep the total class size below 440, all students will be admitted without further review. If not, there will be a holistic review of ALL students. A holistic review will include looking at academics (grades and course load), leadership, work/volunteer experience, and essays.

Prerequisite Coursework

All prerequisite courses must be completed prior to applying to the major. You can use the Search by Major Feature in classes.berkeley.edu to find prerequisite courses that meet the public health major admissions requirements.

For prerequisites taken during Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, and Summer 2021, meet with an academic advisor to discuss the grade policies for these terms.

  • Biological Science Prerequisites

    Complete at least 7 units of coursework from the following list:

    • BIOLOGY 1A: General Biology (3)
      Per the Molecular and Cell Biology department, students are required to enroll in both Biology 1A and Biology 1AL in the same term. Biology 1AL (2) will not count towards the 7 units of Biological Science Prerequisites.
    • BIOLOGY 1B: General Biology (4)
    • MCELLBI 32: Introduction to Human Physiology (3)
    • MCELLBI 38: Stem Cell Biology, Ethics and Societal Impact (3)
    • MCELLBI 50: Immune System and Disease (3 units prior to Spring 2018; 4 units starting Spring 2018)
    • MCELLBI 55: Plagues and Pandemics (3)
    • MCELLBI C61/W61/PSYCH C61: Brain, Mind and Behavior (3)
    • NUSCTX 10 or 10S: Introduction to Human Nutrition / Managing Life (3)
  • Mathematics Prerequisites

    Complete a full year of MATH (MATH A/B):

    • MATH 1A: Calculus (4)
    • MATH 1B: Calculus (4)
    • MATH 10A: Methods of Mathematics (4)
    • MATH 10B: Methods of Mathematics (4)
    • MATH 16A: Calculus (3)
    • MATH 16B: Calculus (3)
  • Social Sciences Prerequisites

    Three courses in at least two areas:

    Psychology

    • PSYCH 1/W1 or PSYCH 2: General Principles of Psychology

    Sociology

    Note: SOCIOL 3 is no longer offered at UC Berkeley however there still may be courses that will be eligible for SOCIOL 3 transfer credit.

    • SOCIOL 1: Introduction to Sociology or N1H: Introduction to Sociology for Pre-Health Majors or SOCIOL 3 or 3AC: Principles of Sociology (4)
    • SOCIOL 5: Evaluation of Evidence (4)

    Economics

    • ECON 1 or ECON 2 or ECON C3/ENVECON C1 Introduction to Economics (4)

    Anthropology

    • ANTHRO 3 or 3AC: Introduction to Social and Cultural Anthropology (4)

    Political Science

    • POL SCI 2: Introduction to Comparative Politics (4)
    • POL SCI 4: Introduction to Political Theory (4)
  • Data C8 Major Requirement

    You do not have to complete Data C8 before applying to the public health major, although it is strongly encouraged due to limited space in the course.

    • Data C8: Foundations of Data Science (4)

    Data C8 (also referred to as Data 8) has reserved seating for New First Year and New Transfer Students so it is strongly recommended to complete this requirement earlier for planning purposes.

    The major will accept CA Community College credit for this course requirement. See the list of equivalent DATA 8 courses that can be taken at a handful of community colleges in California.

Note: If you took a prerequisite course at another four-year institution or an out-of-state community college, please contact the appropriate UC Berkeley department to determine the course equivalency. Be prepared to submit your syllabus along with your request (for example, if you took Math 33 at Penn State, contact the UC Berkeley Math department to see if the course is equivalent to one of our prerequisite math courses). However, if your coursework was taken at a California Community College, and is listed on assist.org as an equivalent course, you do not need to submit additional forms.

During the fall and spring semesters, it is highly unlikely that non-public health major students will be able to enroll in public health core classes (with the exception of PH HLTH 142) since public health major students have priority during the Phase I & II enrollment windows. In addition, taking public health core classes does not guarantee admission into the major.

AP/IB Exam Credit

If you have taken both an AP or IB exam and the equivalent college-level course, we will only take the grade from the college-level course into consideration for admissions purposes. We will not accept both as two separate prerequisites.

If you need clarification on AP or IB Exam credit, please contact our Berkeley Public Health undergraduate academic advisor.

  • Advanced Placement (AP) Exam Credit

    The undergraduate public health major accepts Advanced Placement (AP) units for the Social Sciences and Math prerequisites. AP scores of 3, 4 or 5 are acceptable for the following courses:

    • Psychology for PSYCH 1 or PSYCH 2
    • Economics (both micro and macro needed) for ECON 1, 2 or 3
    • Government (either AP Comparative Government OR AP Government & Politics scores are acceptable) for POL SCI 2 or 4
    • Math
      • A minimum score of a 3 on the Math AB or BC exam is equivalent to Math 1A
      • A score of 5 on the Math BC is equivalent to MATH 1A and 1B
  • International Baccalaureate (IB) Higher Level Exams

    The undergraduate public health major accepts International Baccalaureate (IB) Exams units for the Social Sciences and Math prerequisites. We defer to the appropriate department to determine equivalency so please be sure to double check the department websites listed.

    Psychology

    • Psychology – score of 5, 6 or 7 can be used to fulfill the Psych 1 or Psych 2 social science prerequisite.
    • Major Requirements

    Economics

    • Economics Micro/Macro – score of 5, 6, or 7 can be used to fulfill the Econ 1 social science prerequisite.
    • Freshmen Information

    Math – Please see Math website for prior to 2021 equivalencies.

    • IB Math Exams from 2021 onwards:
      • IB Math, Analysis and Approaches (Standard Level): No credit for any score.
      • IB Math, Analysis and Approaches (Higher Level): A score of 5, 6 or 7 can be used to satisfy Math 1A or 16A. A score of 7 can be used to satisfy Math
      • 1A and Math 1B.
      • IB Math, Applications and Interpretations (Standard Level): No credit for any score.
      • IB Math, Applications and Interpretations (Higher Level): A score of 5, 6 or 7 can be used to satisfy Math 16A. A score of 6 or 7 can be used to satisfy Math 10A.
    • High School Exam Credits

Admissions Statistics

Please note in Spring 2020, Fall 2020, and Spring 2021 (the initial semesters of remote learning due to COVID-19) there was an increase of applications by an average of 30% which lowered the Public Health admissions rate to 70–80%. In Fall 2021 and Spring 2022, the Public Health major has received less applications than the usual average and this is reflected in the 100% admissions rate noted in the Admissions Statistics. We encourage students to still prepare for a backup major while applying to Public Health and complete the major application to the best of their ability. Students may only apply to the Public Health major once.

Admissions Rate*Average Prerequisite GPA of Accepted StudentsAverage Overall GPA of Accepted Students
Spring 2023100%3.473.52
Fall 2022-Spring 2023100%3.453.49
Overall Stats
(2011–present)
85.5%3.43
(from 2016 and onward)
3.44
(2016 and onward)
*Students who apply without having met the requirements are not included in the Admissions Rate.

Undergraduate Application Instructions

Before submitting your application, please review the undergraduate admissions requirements and follow the instructions below to apply to the major. The application process outlined below only applies to select students.

During the academic year, the opportunities to apply include:

  • December 17–31 (Fall)
  • May 17–31 (Spring)

Our admissions process consists of a holistic review by multiple committee members. Although academic performance is important, your ability to articulate your passion for public health is equally as important.

In our application process if a student has a prerequisite GPA of 2.75 or lower we ask that they explain why they have been experiencing academic difficulties in their personal history statement. These instructions are laid out on our website in the “Personal History Statement” section. These students will be pre-screened to ensure minimum requirements to succeed in our courses. Upon approval of the initial screening, these students will be considered along with the remaining applicants.

The number of students accepted into the major is dependent upon the number of seats available. The major is allocated 440 seats. If the total number of applicants (including those who passed the initial screening because of low GPA) would keep the total class size below 440, all students will be admitted without further review. If not, there will be a holistic review of ALL students. A holistic review will include looking at academics (grades and course load), leadership, work/volunteer experience, and essays.

Thus, the committee evaluates applications based on the following three criteria:

  • A review of your academic preparation (prerequisite coursework and GPA),
  • Your personal, professional and volunteer experiences, especially those regarding your decision to pursue public health,
  • Your future leadership potential in public health.

Public Health Major Application Components

Below is a listing of all the required components of the Public Health major application. Please read through each section below and be sure to submit all components with your application.

  • Statement of Purpose

    Please answer each of the following and note the following word limits. The actual questions do not count in the word limit.

    Please see an example of what the Statement of Purpose and Personal History Statement format should look like.

    • What have you done to learn about Public Health in your time at UC Berkeley? What are your previous experiences in Public Health? If you do not have any experiences in public health, why? (200 words)
    • What do you plan to do in Public Health after graduation? How do you see the Public Health major helping you achieve your goals? (200 words)
    • Describe an experience where you demonstrate leadership qualities. (100 words)

    If you are a double major or simultaneous degree applicant, you are required to answer the following question in your Statement of Purpose. Please keep in mind when planning courses, you may need to consider time conflict issues and/or policies around overlapping courses between two majors or simultaneous degrees.

    • Why are you choosing to pursue two majors, and how will they prepare you for a career related to public health? (100 words)

    For an example of guidelines, please see Writing the Statement of Purpose on the UC Berkeley Graduate Division website.

    We also recommend looking at our application essays guidelines.

  • Personal History Statement

    Your Personal History Statement gives you the chance to add individuality and depth to the information provided in your Statement of Purpose. Your essay can include information about who you are as a person, your family background, cultural background, socioeconomic status, educational disadvantages and experiences growing up. This is an opportunity to provide a narrative about your diverse life experiences. For guidelines, please see the Personal History Statement Guide on the UC Berkeley Graduate Division website.

    Please note that the word limit for the Personal History Statement is 400 words.

    Note: If you have a prerequisite GPA of a 2.75 or below, you must explain by stating the following “I have a prerequisite GPA below a 2.75 because…” within your personal history statement’s 400 words. This is not a separate statement. If you have questions please contact the undergraduate advisors at sphug@berkeley.edu.

  • Resume or CV

    The purpose of submitting your CV or resume is to demonstrate your future leadership potential in public health. The review committee would like to see what type of opportunities you have been involved in that are related to your specific public health interest. Opportunities can range from involvement in jobs, internships, research, volunteering, student organizations, etc.

  • Prerequisite Information and GPA Calculation Form

    The purpose of submitting your prerequisite coursework and prerequisite GPA calculation is to demonstrate that you have met the application requirements for the major. Please report your grades honestly when calculating your prerequisite GPA.

    Use the form below and review some of the examples as you complete this part of the application.

  • Academic Records

    You will be required to include copies of your unofficial transcripts to show confirmation that you have actually met or completed the prerequisite coursework. We also accept Advanced Placement (AP) exam scores and International Baccalaureate (IB) exam scores for some of the math and social science prerequisites. Refer to the admissions requirements for specific score requirements.

    Accepted types of academic records:

    • Unofficial copy of your UC Berkeley transcript (an unofficial transcript [Academic Summary] from CalCentral or screenshots of your CalCentral would be sufficient)
    • Unofficial transcripts from other institutions (if using towards prerequisites)
    • Unofficial copy of your AP Exams score report (if using AP scores towards prerequisites)

    Please highlight the course and grade for the applicable prerequisite coursework, if possible.

Application Checklist

Please have the following materials ready as uploadable PDFs. Note two of the sections might require combining more than one PDF into a single PDF. See this guide above on how to download your unofficial transcript and merge multiple PDF documents into a single document (Created by Shakira Cordova October 2020). Also note the naming of each PDF.

While submitting the application you will be required to upload each of these documents individually.

  1. Essays:
  2. Resume or Curriculum Vitae
    • Save your PDF file as “LastName_FirstName_resume.cv.pdf
  3. Prerequisite Information and GPA Calculation Form
    • Save your PDF file as “LastName_FirstName_GPA.pdf
  4. Academic Records:
    • Save your PDF file as “LastName_FirstName_transcripts.AP.pdf
  5. Other Required Uploads
    • Extra application materials that have not been requested of you will not be considered in the reviewers admissions decisions.
    • Save your PDF file as “LastName_FirstName_other.pdf
  6. Combined Application Materials PDF
    • You will be requested to upload your application materials as a pdf in the order of the checklist above.
    • Save your PDF file as “lastname_firstname_PHApplication.pdf

Application Verification

By submitting an application for admission to the public health major, you certify that the information provided is true and accurate to the best of your knowledge.

Misreporting of grades, whether mistakenly or intentionally, will result in an automatic denial to the major. We suggest using this online GPA calculator to calculate your GPA.

Any student found to have provided false documentation will receive an automatic denial to the major and may be referred to the Center for Student Conduct and Community Standards for further investigation.

Admissions Notification

Admissions results are sent via email once all the applications are reviewed. This process may take up to six weeks. Please do not email Berkeley Public Health’s undergraduate admissions department to inquire about your application decision status. Every applicant will receive a final application decision. All admissions decisions are final and may not be appealed.

Apply

If you have read all of the application instructions in full and you are ready to apply, click the button below:

Application Form

Admissions Instructions FAQ

  • How do I obtain my unofficial transcript from UC Berkeley?

    You will not have to pay for an official transcript, an unofficial transcript will suffice. Go to your CalCentral and then to the My Academics tab. Click on My Academic Summary. There, you should be able to print your unofficial transcript. When you click print, there should be an option to save the file as a PDF. This will be different depending if you are using Windows or Mac.

  • I'm having trouble getting access to my College Board or my unofficial transcript from another institution. Can I use my Transfer Credit Report on CalCentral instead?

    Yes, you may use the Transfer Credit Report from CalCentral if the unofficial transcript from the other institution is not available to you.

  • My grades are not posted yet. Can I still apply?

    Yes, you may still apply if you are worried about not receiving your grades in time for the deadline. You may include your unofficial transcript with the missing grades but you must email sphug@berkeley.edu with your updated unofficial transcript, prerequisite GPA, and Berkeley GPA. However, please try your best to have grades available before submitting your unofficial transcript and GPA.

  • My grade for my class isn't accurate on my unofficial transcript. What should I do?

    If you are in a situation where CalCentral is not reflecting the accurate grade, you should email the Professor confirming the correct grade and include that email as part of your application. You can calculate your GPAs using the accurate grade for the class.

  • How do I calculate my prerequisite GPA? How do I count the units from a community college? How do I calculate AP courses or PNP classes?

    Note: PNP is only accepted for courses in Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Summer 2021.

    You would calculate your prerequisite GPA by including only the classes you are using to fulfill the prerequisites. You would not include any other Public Health classes or electives in the prerequisite GPA. Please make sure to convert any quarter units to semester units when calculating this. Find a GPA calculator on the UCB PH Application page.

    If you are fulfilling prerequisites using course units from a CC or any other institution, use the original units of the course. If it is a quarter school, units need to be converted to semester units.

    For calculating the 7 units of Biosciences, we use the Berkeley equivalent units. (For example a Bio course at a CC may be 5 units but equivalent to our 3 unit course. In this scenario, you would use the 5 units & grade to calculate the prerequisite GPA but the course would count as 3 units towards the 7 unit prerequisite requirement.)

    AP scores or a Pass are not calculated into your prerequisite GPA, only classes taken for a letter grade.

    Data 8 is not a prerequisite but is a major requirement once admitted into the major. We strongly recommend taking it in your first year as it can be difficult to get seats in this course later on. There is limited reserved seating for new incoming first year undergraduate students and new transfer students.

    If you have PNP for a prerequisite course during the following terms, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Spring 2021, Summer 2021, due to COVID-19, you may still use that prerequisite to apply. If it is PNP, it will have no impact on your prerequisite GPA. During these four terms, you had the option to receive a PNP or a letter grade for your courses. You may request grades from your professor for prerequisite calculation purposes if you chose PNP (screenshot of email with application). Requesting grades is not required and we will still accept a P. You would only need to request a letter grade if you would like for it to count towards your prerequisite GPA. The review committee will take into account that these four terms were impacted by COVID-19. A PNP does not impact your GPA.

  • What is my overall/Berkeley GPA?

    Only use classes taken at Berkeley to calculate this; do not use AP credits or Community College (CC) classes. If you are a transfer student and have yet to take any classes at Berkeley, put in your overall GPA from your transfer school.

  • Can I enroll in the Public Health core classes?

    You will be waitlisted for PH core classes but may enroll in PH elective courses. PH core classes are reserved for PH majors only and there will be some reserved seats for PH 142, PH 150A, PH 150B, PH 150D. PH 150E can be a bit more limited in seating and Data 8 does not have reserved seating for PH majors so please plan accordingly. If you are admitted into the major, please make sure to complete any paperwork with us if switching colleges/majors so we can begin the declaration process. We also recommend planning your schedule with your backup major in mind. Having a backup major does not mean you are any less interested in the PH major but rather shows that you are taking time to make sure you are prepared.