SOPHAS Code of Conduct

In accordance with the ideals and principles of the public health profession, applicants are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner that demonstrates responsibility, integrity, honesty, respect, and good judgment. The Professional Code of Conduct provides a defined set of guidelines for applicant responsibilities and expected standards of performance and behavior.

SOPHAS Admissions Code of Conduct

Applicants to the public health profession are expected and required to take full responsibility for their application throughout the admissions process. Please review these responsibilities outlined below.

SOPHAS applicants will:

Be responsible for researching the application procedures, admission requirements and deadline requirements for each designated public health school and program and adhering to those requirements.
Complete and submit their SOPHAS application and submit all supporting documentation to SOPHAS at least four weeks prior to the earliest deadline of the programs to which they are applying.
Use the Transcript Request Form (available to applicants after they have listed their institutions attended in the Colleges Attended section) to submit transcripts to SOPHAS. To allow for timely processing, it is recommended that transcripts arrive at SOPHAS at least four weeks prior to the deadline of the earliest school or program to which the applicant is applying.
Agree to submit the correct SOPHAS application fee.
Provide honest, accurate and complete application information.
Report to SOPHAS any changes in contact information (mailing address, email, phone number) throughout the admissions cycle. It is recommended applicants provide the same updates directly to the schools and programs to which they have applied.
Monitor their application’s status and the submission and receipt of all application materials to SOPHAS, including all transcripts and letters of recommendation. The status of the application and supporting documents can be monitored throughout the application process within the Applicant Portal.
Follow up on any incomplete or undelivered application statuses and/or missing materials, such as transcripts, letters of recommendation, or payments, with SOPHAS staff and facilitate the submission or re-submission of those materials to SOPHAS. If letters of recommendation are missing, the applicant should contact the individual recommender to make sure the request was received and encourage timely submission. Please note that SOPHAS is not responsible for documents which are lost in the mail. These items must be re-submitted to SOPHAS in a timely manner.
Respond immediately to all notices and questions received from SOPHAS staff and public health schools and programs. Applicants are responsible for checking their SOPHAS application inbox available on the Applicant Portal, as well as their personal email and voicemail for these important notices and questions.
Print a hard copy of the completed SOPHAS application to save for their files.
Communicate and initiate all contact in a professional manner when interacting with SOPHAS staff and admissions staff of designated schools and programs.
Accept and/or decline all interview invitations and offers of admission in a timely and considerate manner.
Log off the SOPHAS application after the completion of each entry or review session to protect against unauthorized access of application information.

SOPHAS will facilitate through each of its participating programs a professional and equitable application process. Established protocols will provide applicants with a fair and complete initial review process of all application materials and support each school and program’s autonomy in further evaluating, selecting, and matriculating qualified students.

SOPHAS will:

Collect and collate all application materials submitted by applicants. SOPHAS is further responsible for verifying all academic transcripts and degrees, reviewing recommendations for completeness and authenticity, and disseminating completed application files to all programs designated by applicants in a timely and efficient manner.
Provide quality customer service. SOPHAS’s professional staff will maintain ongoing and responsive communications with schools and programs and applicants.
Ensure customer confidentiality and data integrity by maintaining a reliable and secure internet service and program of quality assurance.
Reporting year-end data to each member and providing an annual report of aggregate applicant data to the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH).

In educating caring, compassionate, and knowledgeable students, public health schools and programs should conduct themselves and their admissions processes in a professional manner that promotes the ideals of the profession and the mission of each school and program. Schools and programs will partner with SOPHAS in maintaining an admissions process that is fair, inclusive, and equitable.

SOPHAS schools and programs will:

Establish and publish accurate admission requirements and deadlines. Each school and program will make such information easily accessible to potential applicants by maintaining an accurate website. Schools and programs will adhere to their own established and published policies and procedures of admissions.
Optimize efficiencies and maintaining good communication. Each public health school and program should designate an individual to serve as the primary point of contact for SOPHAS and applicants.
Maintain ongoing communications with applicants. Schools and programs should encourage applicants to monitor their application status and complete their applications promptly.
Maintain the confidentiality of applicant information, including letters of recommendation, during all aspects of the application process, including the interview.
Conduct a fair, reasonable, and timely admissions process. Procedures should be established to regularly update applicants as to their status.
Make all admissions decisions based on complete and verified application information provided through SOPHAS.

Professional Code of Conduct

As an applicant to the public health profession, I pledge to:

Act with honesty and integrity throughout the admissions process when interacting with school admissions officers, admissions committees, and SOPHAS staff.
Each applicant is obligated to accurately represent themselves during the admissions process and to provide SOPHAS and the public health programs with accurate, honest, and complete information. Applicants must not falsify information, including but not limited to falsifying transcripts or letters of recommendation, plagiarizing personal statements, and misrepresenting academic and professional achievement. Applicants must identify themselves correctly to all admissions and SOPHAS staff and should not inquire about an application claiming to be someone else. In addition, applicants must reveal information about any previous legal offenses.
Communicate in a professional manner throughout the admissions process when interacting with SOPHAS staff and the admissions staff at designated public health programs.
The applicant should use the highest professional courtesy when interacting with SOPHAS and admissions staff. It is unacceptable for an applicant to disparage the competence, knowledge, qualifications, or services of faculty and staff involved in the admissions process. It is inappropriate to imply in word, gesture, or deed that an application has been poorly managed or the applicant was mistreated by a staff member without tangible evidence. Offensive or threatening comments via email or voicemail messages or any other form of verbal or nonverbal communication will not be tolerated. SOPHAS and admissions staff reserve the right to terminate any conversation should the staff member feel threatened. The use of foul language will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
Be responsible and accountable for my actions and personally manage and respond to all matters related to my application.
Applicants to the public health profession must demonstrate responsibility by taking ownership of all aspects related to the application process. Applicants are expected to review the application requirements of SOPHAS and the requirements of the public health programs to which they apply. It is the applicant’s responsibility to meet deadlines, provide information as requested, and follow the admissions process for each program to which they apply. Applicants are also responsible for promptly correcting any errors or omissions identified in their file and for responding to all notifications in a timely manner. If an applicant has a question about the admissions process after exhausting all available online and printed resources, the applicant should contact SOPHAS or the appropriate public health program’s admissions office directly for clarification. SOPHAS and admissions staff will not discuss an application with an applicant’s parent, spouse, relative, friend, or employer regardless of who submits the fee payment. The SOPHAS fee payment does not relieve applicants of the obligation to properly submit all requested data and application materials by the deadline. Applicants who have not been accepted may consult program admissions staff to learn how they may correct deficiencies in their application or academic performance or seek to learn more about admissions criteria for schools to which they may apply but should remain respectful of decisions made by those involved in the admissions process.

Violation Policy

Misconduct, as defined in the Professional Code of Conduct, and all forms of dishonesty, will not be tolerated during the application process. The SOPHAS Admissions Committee will determine whether an applicant has violated the Professional Code of Conduct and will report this to the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH), who will confirm if a violation has occurred and whether sanctions should be imposed. Sanctions imposed by the programs, ASPPH, and the SOPHAS Admissions Committee can include, but are not limited to:

Revocation of application
Sharing documented conduct violations with the SOPHAS participating program(s) to which the applicant has applied to
Sharing documented conduct violations with all SOPHAS participating programs
Sharing documented conduct violations with other public health admissions committees whose programs are not members of SOPHAS
Sharing documented conduct violations with other health professions
Loss of privilege of applying to or entering the public health profession

Any applicant found to have violated the Code of Conduct risks losing the privilege of applying to or entering the public health profession. Documented conduct violations may be communicated to all SOPHAS participating programs as well as other health profession education associations and admissions committees. Once an applicant receives written notification they have violated the Professional Code of Conduct and sanctions have been imposed, ASPPH will provide an opportunity to appeal the decision. Such appeal must be submitted in writing to ASPPH within 10 business days of the notification to the applicant of the determined violation and sanctions. The appeal will be reviewed by a panel comprised of members from ASPPH, SOPHAS, and the Centralized Application Service provider. Once the appeal is reviewed by the panel, one of the following decisions will be made:

Uphold the original sanctions
Revise the sanctions
Repeal some or all sanctions

Upon reaching the decision, the appeal panel will send its decision to the applicant by email and certified US mail. In the event the applicant wants to pursue a secondary appeal, they may resubmit their appeal with any additional supporting documentation. The secondary appeal will be reviewed by individual(s) from ASPPH, SOPHAS, and the Centralized Application Service provider. This panel may either uphold or reverse the original decision regarding the sanctions to be imposed. The decision of the second review panel will be final. Any reversal of the violation will be communicated to all parties that may have been previously notified