Health profession schools will vary in their application requirements, timelines, and standardized test expectations. However, the programs to which you apply are likely to have the following steps:

Entrance examinations

Each profession requires that you take an entrance exam as noted below. We recommend taking your exam no later than May or June of the year before you hope to matriculate. Furthermore, you should have a good plan to prepare, allowing yourself enough time to gain a competitive score.

For anyone applying to physical therapy, occupational therapy, direct-entry graduate nursing, public health, and veterinary medicine, you will take the GRE.

GRE Information

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Common application services

Each group of professional schools has its own common application service, frequently referred to as the primary application. A list of the major application services is below.

Application services will require you to provide comprehensive information about your background, academic record, and experiences. In general, each will ask you for the following:

• Personal and demographic information.
• Your academic record–grades from every course you’ve taken at any college or graduate school, including any course that was not counted in your school’s GPA. You will also be asked to submit transcripts from all colleges or universities (including community colleges) where you have taken courses regardless or whether you received a degree from that college. Application services compute grade point averages by combining all college/university coursework so that all applicants can be equitably evaluated by admission committees.
• A comprehensive work and activities list, usually with a short written description of each activity.
• A personal statement.
• A report on any institutional action against you resulting from campus and/or academic conduct violations. This is rare, but if you believe you need to report institutional action on an application we strongly urge you to meet with a pre-health advisor first.
• A portal for receiving and distributing your letters of recommendation.
• The list of schools to which you are applying.

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Letters of recommendation

Almost every program will have its own specifications for the quantity and type of recommendation letters they require. You should check each school to which you plan to apply for what they require. We suggest that you request 3-4 letters. Here some general guidelines:

• Faculty letter: Many schools will ask that you include a member of the faculty who can speak in-depth to your academic abilities. This could be from work you did in a course, as a research assistant, teaching assistant, etc. The best letters will generally come from individuals who are very familiar with your work; faculty rank, prestige, or connection to the school to which you hope to gain admission is only helpful if the person in question has worked directly with you. From these letters, admission committees need to see that you have the ability to succeed in a curriculum that is fast-paced, information intensive, and analytically rigorous.
• Work supervisors, mentors, or athletic coaches: Schools value letters from people who know you in work settings, especially those related to the profession to which you aspire. In particular, they look for evidence from these letters that you work well with patients, collaborate effectively with colleagues, and conduct yourself professionally.
• Letters to avoid: Do not ask for letters from family friends or politicians. Letters from other high-status individuals who do not know you well are also not helpful. Additionally, you should request letters from people you have worked with since graduating from high school.

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Interviews

Upon reviewing your application, letters of recommendation, and test scores, schools will invite those they deem to be their strongest applicants to interview on campus. This can be a day-long affair that includes individual, group, or multiple mini interviews, a tour of the facilities, opportunities to meet faculty and students, and presentations on resources, financial aid, and other pertinent topics.

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Application process overviews

Health profession training programs have different application processes. Browse other programs:

• HPAC committee process
• PA school programs
• Other programs