Dr. John Santelli

Professor

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Biography

John S. Santelli is a national leader in ensuring adolescents have access to medically accurate, comprehensive sexuality education and is appropriately and ethically included in health research. He is a past-President of the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine and a member of the 2016 Lancet Commission on Adolescent Health and Wellbeing. Santelli was the past chair of the Department of Population and Family Health at the Mailman School from 2004 to 2016. Before joining Columbia University in 2004, he worked for 18 years in local and national public health with the Baltimore City Health Department and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. His research focuses on HIV/STD risk behaviors, trends in teen fertility, and programs to prevent STD/HIV and unintended pregnancy. Santelli conducts research ethics and has been a principal investigator in NICHD-funded projects related to HIV risk in youth and reproductive health, particularly linked to the Rakai Health Sciences Program in southcentral Uganda.

Research Interests

Requirements for Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health

Master Program
Requirements
GPA Requirement
Required:3
TOEFL
Listening
Required:25
Reading
Required:25
Writing
Required:25
Speaking
Required:25
Total
Required:100
IELTS
Listening
Required:7
Reading
Required:7
Writing
Required:7
Speaking
Required:7
Overall
Required:7.5
Duolingo
Overall Score
Required:135
Overall
Required:135
GRE General
Prerequisites
Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution One semester of college-level mathematics (Algebra or above) One semester of introductory Biology Evidence of quantitative and analytical ability
Application Checklist
  • SOPHAS Online Application
  • Official Transcripts
  • Personal Statement (500-1000 words)
  • Three Letters of Recommendation
  • Resume/CV
  • Quantitative & Analytical Assessment
Specialization Notes

Master of Public Health (MPH) and Master of Science (MS) options available. GRE is optional for Fall 2026.