mpheels

The completely unhelpful answer is that it depends on the school. Some require that you have everything submitted by the deadline, but it doesn't matter how long it takes for SOPHAS to process and mail. Others require that everything be submitted to SOPHAS, processed and at the school by the deadline. To make it more complicated, some schools will accept applications if 2/3 letters are ready and others require all components. You should be able to find specifics for you schools, and go from there.

I worked for seven years between my masters and starting a PhD. I realized it was time to get a PhD when I started thinking of my own research questions and couldn't pursue that research until I convinced a faculty member that it was worthwhile. Having a PhD will let me cut out the middle man.

I bought a Brother HL-227DW and love it. It's a black and white laser printer with automatic duplex. It prints super fast! It was about $100 on amazon, and worth it. The cartridge included with the printer only lasted about 1,000 pages, but the replacement I bought for $30 (not Brother brand) should be good for 5000-6000 pages.

People in my programs dress nicely, but they don't dress up.The standard for women is dark jeans and a nice sweater or blouse. Skirts and dresses were pretty common when it was still hot out, and I expect they will show up again when it gets cold enough to wear tights. No sneakers, but no heels either. Most of us wear flats or boots. There aren't any men in my cohort, but the guys in other cohorts wear jeans and button down shirts or sweaters. There is one program in my deparment that requires students to wear suits two days a week when they work with hospital administrators, but those students make up for it by dressing even more casual on their non-suit days.

So first term is almost over. Wow. This is my first experience with 8 week quarters/terms instead of 15 week semesters, and the adjustment was easier than I expected. The classes move very quickly, but the assignments are all designed to keep us moving. For classes where the final is a written assignment, we've had to turn in drafts and sections almost every week. It's definitely easier to compile a several 15-20 page papers in one week when I've had to write 2-3 pages every week and have received feedback all along. The other great thing about terms is that the classes I don't like are over quickly! I have one class right now that I hate. The lead faculty member just rubs me wrong, and it's frustrating because it's a subject I usually love. But, it's over in two weeks, and I never have to take a class with him again.

I think it depends a lot on your prior experience and what you want to do with the degree. If the MPH is going to supplement another degree (MD, DO, BSN, etc...) or you are already working in the public health trenches, then online is great. It will give you a chance to learn a lot of public health concepts and technical stuff without disrupting your life too much. If you don't have any experience in public health or a related field, and you want to be a true public health worker, then I think traditional classroom program is worth it. There is a lot of out-of-class learning in campus based programs that you don't get online. You can make up for a lot of that if you're already working in the field.

Ours is a take home written exam - one week to answer 4 questions, up to 20 pages. We get a couple of weeks off after the end of classes in May, then take the test in June. The department emails the topic at 9am on a Monday, and we have until 5pm Friday to turn in our responses. We have a series of required courses this year that are supposed to prepare us for the exam. Each class has one major writing assignment, and in theory each writing assignment lines up with one of the four questions, so we're learning how to structure our responses now, and the test will really be test of our ability to search, compile and synthesize information.

It sounds like you know you want to do research, but don't have a really strong career plan beyond that. I recommend working for a few years before starting grad school. Look at industry jobs, and also research assistant positions at universities. Once you spend sometime working full time in research, you'll know if you are happy being a worker bee, of if you want to pursue your own questions. That is one of the essential differences between having a PhD or not. If you are content working on someone else's questions, then you'll be fine with a masters (or even a BS). If you find yourself thinking of new research questions all the time, then you'll probably want a PhD. The bottom line is that you don't have to know/decide right now. It's OK, even preferable, to work for a year or two. A few years of work experience will give you more direction, make you applications stronger, and put you in a better place if/when you do get a graduate degree.

My cohort made a pact to do something fun/social every weekend. It's usually just going out for drinks, but this weekend a bunch of us went to a baseball game. Other than that, I do end up doing a lot of school work. I'll work for 1-2 hours, then take a break and do something else. Yesterday, I managed to write most of a midterm paper due tomorrow night, but also went shopping (groceries and clothes), and checked out the book/literary festival going on in my neighborhood. Today, I need to edit that paper and study for a midterm, but will also go for a run, clean, and cook for the week.

There is no way I could attend every event in my department - there are so many, I would never get home! Plus, there are a lot of competeing/overlapping departmental and school-wide events, so it just isn't possible. I can't imagine anyone expects you to attend everything, nor will they notice if you aren't there. Go to the events that interest you - it will be easier to engage if you are interested in the subject or presenter. I think it's pretty normal for faculty to mention/promote their own lectures/seminars/receptions in class, but you should not feel obligated to attend unless you have a real interest. You should also probably attend events if you are directly/individually invited.

Does anyone know how AMD processors compare with Intel? I've been looking at all the options, and when all else is equal, laptops with AMD processors are about half the price of those with Intel. I basically need something that will run STATA, word, excel, and a web browser at the same time.

How do you list your university and/or department on your CV when they change names after your graduate? When I recieved my MPH, the school was simple the UNC School of Public Health and the department was Health Behavior and Health Education. A few years after I graduated, the school recieved a large donation and changed names to the Gillings School of Global Public Health. A few years after that, the department changed the curiculum and change their name to just Health Behavior. Currently, I list the school and department as they were called while I attended. I feel it better reflects my actual experience. I'm currently on a search committee for an open position in my department, and one of the applicants graduated from the same department a few years ahead of me. She uses the new school and department names on her CV. I wouldn't say it's dishonest or deceptive, but it strikes me as odd.

You can use old amazon packaging, just have to mark out or cover all of the logos and barcodes on the box. I like to use opaque packing tape to close the box then quickly cover all markings on the outside of the box before adding the address label. You can also buy sturdy shipping boxes from most big box office supply stores (And even Target/Walmart). You really should consider breaking it up into a few smaller packages. A 30 pound box costs $15.12 to ship via media mail. Three 10 pound boxes costs $19.56. That isn't a huge difference in price, but it will be much easier to pack, much easier to handle (for you and the USPS employees), and greatly reduce the risk of damaging your books.

Freecycle or list on Craigslist for free. If you live reasonable distance from a university, contact the department that best matches the books and see if they want them.

I'm going to be an "older" PhD student (30 isn't old, but still older than many in my program). I've been working and living alone for 7 years. No way I can go back to having a roommate and keep my sanity. So I'm giving up a little square footage and walls, and will be living in a 600 sq foot studio.

I think it depends a lot on both the school and the field. There are six departments in the school I attended for my master's. The "style" in my department (health behavior) was what I call Peace Corps business casual - my cohort was almost all female (39:1), and about 1/4 were Peace Corps veterans. Most people wore jeans most days, with sweaters, nice t-shirts, scarves, and "ethnic" jewelry. Skirts and dresses were pretty common, and lots of natural fibers. The maternal and child health deparment was pretty similar. The more "sciencey" departments (evironmental health, epidemiology, biostatistics) tended towards jeans and t-shirts. Health policy and management was dressier - slacks, blouses, skirts and dresses, less color (or less bold color), more formal over all. I currently wear slacks or khakis with a sweater or blouse for work most days, plus lots of skirts and dresses in the summer, and I wear a lot of color. When I visited campus for my PhD program in March, it was the same day as their annual career fair, so everyone was wearing suits and dark colors. My advisor was very well dressed (I don't know a lot about menswear, but I could tell his shirt was very well made). I'm going to play it safe at orientation and the first week of class, and dress pretty much like I do for work now (maybe with less bold color at first).

I'll second MsDarjeeling - what are you looking for in your career? I went straight into a terminal master's program after undergrad, thinking I wanted to do community health education. I ended up in a research position because that's where the jobs were. At this point, I could easily make a 30+ year career as a research manager, but I found myself thinking of more and more research questions on my own. That was the trigger for applying PhD programs - I want to ask and answer my own questions. If you're driven by the pursuit of answers to your own questions, then a PhD is good. If you're happy to make meaningful contributions to answering someone else's question, then a master's is fine. It's also fine to get the master's and work for a few years before deciding if you definitely want a PhD.

Oh, the Ikea lists... Currently my closest Ikea is 2.5 hours away, so I'm limited to one trip/year, and we usually have 3-4 people piled into a car, which seriously limit what you can get. Once I move, I'll be less than 30 minutes from Ikea and within their $60 delivery area. The list just keeps growing!

I am not an Apple fangirl. My iPhone is the only Apple product I own, but I really like it. I'm generally good with computers, but always found the Android interface to be overwhelming and confusing. I don't feel the need to have the latest and greatest, so just waited until the iPhone 4 was released and bought the 3GS model for $50. Apple usually keeps three models available - the newest for $200-$300, the next newest model for $50, and the third new/old one for free (all prices with phone contract). I'd recommend going to the phone store and playing around with a few models. There are legitimate reasons to love both iOS and Android, and I've found people tend to love one and dislike the other. I'm also on my parents plan - most phone companies offer shared data bundles for family plans. We found that my parents together (without me) used more data than the smallest bundle, while the three of us can comfortably share the next size up, so the only expense in having me on the plan is the cost of the exra line. This is definitely worth looking into if your parents already have smartphones or are interested in them.

I think work experience goes a long way. Even if your grades are iffy, the fact that you already have experience doing the work in the real world is an indication that you know what you're talking about. I ended up getting into the health policy program at Johns Hopkins. When I interviewed, it sounded like they hadn't even really looked at my transcript beyond verification of my degrees (the interviewer hadn't even noticed that I don't have a GPA for my masters). When I went to visit campus, every single faculty member I met with wanted to talk about my research experience, especially grant writing. They all talked about how much I've already learned, and how they are really looking to hearing my contributions in class since I've been in the trenches already. No one mentioned my undergraduate GPA at all, and the only mention of my master's coursework was a discussion of which I can place out. When I say my undergrad GPA was abyssmal, I mean it - I graduated with a 2.98.

I still have 6 weeks to go before moving I'm so excited, but the only thing I can do right now is pack - I started packing in early May! At the rate I'm going, I'll have everything but the bare essentials packed next weekend, then I just have to wait.

Get a few estimates from movers, just to see how much it costs. I'm packing myself, but having movers load/drive/unload. I also considered having a POD and hiring labor at each end, but found it wasn't much less expensive than full service movers. One thing to consider with a truck share is the time it will take to get your things - the one truck share estimate I got said 7-21 days for delivery. Also, get estimates with and without furniture - it could end up being less expensive to move the furniture than it would be to replace it.

What field within public health interests you? What kind of work do you want to do? Public health is a huge area with a lot of different specialties and career prospects. Also, it's probably best to avoid calling it your plan B. Applications will suffer if committees get any sense that you aren't 100% excited and committed.

I'm moving from NC to Balitmore. I looked into using a POD or relocube, and hiring movers to load/unload. It's definitely the cheapest option (the same or cheaper than driving a uhaul yourself). I ended up going with a full service mover because of the logistics of parking and unloading in downtown Balitmore. If you will need street parking for the truck or POD, you have to get a special permit from the city. Logistically, it seemed difficult to get POD to drop off and pick up on the same day while also having enough time to unload.

The big, national moving companies generally charge by weight, and will put your stuff on a truck with things from other familes moving to/from someone on the same general route. You have to have some flexibility if you use one of them, since pick up and delivery can both vary based on where else they have to go. From getting estimates, it seems you can probably get them to guarantee one date (pick up or delivery), but the other will be at the mercy of their schedule. I had an estimator from United look at my apartment, and he suggested their crate/freight option. They would load my stuff into wooden crates (POD size), and take them to their warehouse. The crate would go on a regular freight truck, to be delivery sometime between 7-21 days after pickup. The earliest they could deliver was the first day of orientation for me, so that's a no go. I ended up getting four different estimates. Three were about the same price - one could deliver within 48 hours, but had terrible reviews. United has great reviews, but would take at least a week to get my stuff. A smaller local company could deliver quickly, but only if someone else was moving to the same general area at the same time. Finally, my hair stylist recommened a friends moving company - great reviews, can deliver within 48 hours, and $600 less than the others! They are a small company - just the owner, a 2 man crew, and a truck, so not much overhead. So, definitely shop around.