Dartmouth College Has No Undergraduate Major or Minor Called “Public Health”: The Closest Path Is Global Health, Offered Only as a Minor, With Majors Declared in Sophomore Year, for U.S., International (Including Chinese) and Transfer Students

The short answer: the “Majors and Minors” page on Dartmouth’s admissions site and the majors page on the college’s main site list no “Public Health” major and no public health minor. The nearest name is Global Health, marked [m], meaning “minor only”, not a major. The pages we could read do not describe the Global Health minor’s courses or requirements (the Organization, Regulations and Courses catalog is hosted on a third-party catalog platform and was not accessed), so for that route we can only report what the lists say. One more note: the Degree Finder’s filter shows a program named “Public Health”, but the page lists only the first 10 entries and we did not page through it, so we cannot confirm its degree level; check the college’s website. This guide does not repeat our general life-sciences guide for Dartmouth and covers only what could be read on public health. Below are the points for fall 2027 entry for U.S. applicants, international applicants and applicants from China, then transfer students.

1. Degrees and programs

• No “public health” degree: the admissions areas-of-study page groups majors into art and performing arts, engineering, humanities, interdisciplinary, physical and life sciences, and social sciences. None of them is public health.
• Global Health (minor): marked [m] on the majors and minors page. On the admissions page its link points to the spot of the Anthropology entry on the social sciences page, but that entry only describes anthropology; the pages we read do not give the Global Health minor’s number of courses, required courses, how to join or any GPA rule: not published. Check the college’s catalog and the relevant departments.
• Neighbouring majors and minors (names only as listed): majors include Biological Sciences, Anthropology, Neuroscience, Psychology, Sociology, Geography, Environmental Studies, Mathematics, Quantitative Social Science (QSS) and Cognitive Science; minors include Public Policy [m], Statistics [m], Mathematical Biology [m], Social Inequalities [m], Urban Studies [m] and Sustainability [m]. The site describes a few: QSS combines technical skills in statistics and computing with grounding in a social science; the Public Policy minor is open to all majors, and the site says students often describe it as a way to understand how policy affects urban development, international relations, technological change, health care, education and the law; neuroscience students can do independent research with a faculty mentor. Public Policy is marked minor-only on the admissions page but appears in the social sciences list on the main site’s majors page; the two differ.
• General rules for majors (main site): students declare a major in their sophomore year; more than 60 majors can be combined with any minor; modified majors and special majors exist; most majors take between eight and ten courses and a culminating project. Admissions adds that students do not need to declare before sophomore year.
• Combined bachelor’s-master’s programs (4+1/3+2), STEM designation and public health practicum hours: not stated on the pages we read: not published.
• Pre-health and graduate school: the pages we read give no public-health master’s pathway; for pre-health advising see our general life-sciences guide for Dartmouth.

2. How you get into a major, and the threshold

• You do not choose a major when applying. Admissions says students are admitted to the college without a major designation and declare in sophomore year; the pages we read describe no separate application, seat limit or minimum GPA for public health.
• So at Dartmouth the route is to choose among the existing majors after arriving and add the Global Health minor, not to be admitted straight into public health. Whether the Global Health minor has seat limits or an application: not published.

3. Prerequisites and curriculum

• High school course recommendations (admissions FAQ): applicants are expected to have pursued the most demanding curriculum offered by their school; in U.S.-style schools, five major subjects through senior year. Recommended minimums: English 4 years (writing-intensive literature preferred); mathematics 4 years (through calculus for engineering and STEM); history and social science 3 years; science 3 years of laboratory science (4 including physics for engineering); a foreign language, 3 years of one language, 4 preferred. These are recommendations, not specific biology or mathematics requirements.
• AP/IB credit: credit on entrance is granted for AP or IB examinations and in many subjects is used for exemption and placement. It appears on the Dartmouth transcript but does not count toward the 35 credits required to graduate; the policy applies to first-year and transfer students.
• Core courses and statistics requirements: not applicable, since there is no public health major to list them for.

4. Rounds, deadlines, fee, essays, testing (first-year)

• Common App only, opening August 1. Early Decision (binding): November 1 (application, financial aid materials, fee or waiver), decision mid-December, intent to enroll late December. Regular Decision: the dates page says January 1, decisions late March or early April, reply by May 1; the QuestBridge section of the same page says the Regular Decision deadline is January 2 — the two differ. The pages print no year; confirm the dates apply to fall 2027 entry.
• Application fee: $85 for first-year applicants, non-refundable; a waiver is available for hardship and requesting one does not disadvantage your candidacy.
• Essays and extras: the Dartmouth Writing Supplement; a Peer Recommendation and an alumni interview are listed on the apply page (the timeline marks the alumni interview invitation “optional”, and another page says interviews are not required for any first-year applicant). The number of teacher and counselor recommendations is not stated on the pages we read: not published.
• Testing: the college reactivated the standardized testing requirement beginning with applicants to the Class of 2029. Students who attend(ed) high school in the U.S. must submit the SAT or ACT (no preference; multiple sittings are superscored).
• Review: holistic: transcripts, grade trends, rigor, test scores, recommendations, essays and how applicants spend time outside school. There is no minimum GPA.

5. Three groups of readers

U.S. applicants

• Same process; SAT or ACT required. The 2026-27 cost page gives a single figure with no in-state/out-of-state split: tuition $71,697, fees $2,426, housing $13,032, food $8,746, books and supplies $1,005, miscellaneous $2,040, and a printed total of $98,946 (which includes $519 of first-year orientation fees). Extras: the group health insurance plan $5,216 (waivable with comparable coverage), a basic computer package $1,700, and at least $250 of travel assistance in aid awards. The page does not mention in-state preference.
• Aid: the college says its aid covers 100% of demonstrated need of its students; the page also prints “$78,590 Average Scholarship Offer for the Class of 2030”.

International applicants

• Who counts as international: all non-U.S. citizens, except U.S. permanent residents, eligible non-citizens and undocumented students in the U.S.
• Review and aid: international applications are evaluated like all others, holistically. The college practices need-blind admissions for all applicants including international students; after admission the financial aid office determines need and awards aid, and the cost page says aid meets the full demonstrated need of admitted students.
• Testing: students at schools outside the U.S. can meet the requirement in one of five ways: SAT or ACT; three AP examinations; final or predicted IB Diploma results (1–7 scale; predictions must come from a school official); final or predicted British A-Level results (at least three encouraged); or final results of an equivalent standardized national exam (examples “include but are not limited to” WASSCE, CAPE, French Baccalaureate, CBSE, ICSE, KCSE; school-based exams do not count).
• English: required if your first language is not English and your curriculum has not been delivered in English for at least two years; TOEFL, IELTS, Duolingo or Cambridge English. There are no minimum scores, but most successful applicants score above 7 on IELTS, 135 on Duolingo and 185 on Cambridge English; for TOEFL taken before January 21, 2026 above 100, and for TOEFL taken on or after that date 5 or above. TOEFL iBT Special Home Edition and IELTS Indicator are accepted; TOEFL MyBest scores and TOEFL Essentials are not. An InitialView interview is not required.
• Three-year secondary schools: if your country’s high school is three years long, include grades from the last year of middle school if possible; otherwise the high school report alone is accepted.
• After admission: the Office of Visa and Immigration Services (OVIS) supports the visa process.
• Proof of funds and limits on international students in public-health-related internships or employment: not stated on the pages we read: not published; ask admissions and OVIS.

Applicants from China

• The college has no China-specific page or statement on the pages we read. Whether the gaokao can serve as an “equivalent standardized national exam” is not published: the examples do not include it, but the list says “include but are not limited to”. Senior-high proficiency-test (huikao) records and transcript format are not stated on the pages we read: not published; ask admissions.
• General points that do apply: students at schools outside the U.S. choose one of five testing options; if secondary school is three years, include the previous year’s grades when possible; applicants whose first language is not English submit an English test, with no minimum score.

6. Costs and scholarships

See the U.S. applicants section (2026-27). Program fees: not applicable, since there is no public health major. Check the financial aid office for aid details.

7. Transfer

• Timeline: the 2027 transfer application opens in January 2027 (the page says you can fill in an interest form to be notified); due March 1 (application, financial aid materials, fee or waiver); notification mid-May; intent to enroll late May; the final spring transcript is due in May and June.
• Fee: the transfer application fee is $90, paid in the applicant portal after submitting; non-refundable; a waiver is available.
• GPA: there is no minimum college GPA; the college says most admitted transfer students have a 3.7 GPA or above.
• Credit: credits from online and community college courses are not typically transferable; for entering first-year students, credits from other four-year universities may be considered up to four credits; faculty review coursework case by case. AP/IB entrance credit is available to transfer students too but does not count toward the 35 credits to graduate.
• The pages we read have no special note on transferring into public health or the Global Health minor, and no transfer-specific note for international applicants: not published.

Checklist

U.S. applicants:

• Common App: Early Decision November 1; Regular Decision January 1 or January 2 (the site gives both); $85 fee; SAT or ACT required
• No major at application; declare in sophomore year; Global Health is a minor only, with requirements not published

International applicants (including China):

• Outside the U.S.: choose one of five testing options; non-native English speakers submit an English test (no minimum)
• Whether the gaokao counts as a national exam, and proof of funds: not published; confirm with admissions

Transfer students:

• Due March 1, $90 fee, no minimum GPA, most admitted students 3.7 or above

Sources: Dartmouth College, Admissions: majors and minors; Areas of study; Social sciences; Interdisciplinary; Physical and life sciences; Main site: majors and minors; Apply: process and dates; Testing policy; High school courses; AP/IB credit; Minimum GPA; English proficiency; Three-year secondary schools; Who is international; International students; Application fee; College credit; Transfer GPA; Cost of attendance. Information is for fall 2027 entry (costs are 2026-27). The dates on the apply page show no year, so check the college’s website to confirm they apply to fall 2027 entry. The Organization, Regulations and Courses catalog (ORC) is hosted on a third-party catalog platform and was not accessed, so the course requirements of the Global Health minor were not read.