123hardasABC

If you're in it for the money, you're gonna be wildly disappointed.

Just received an email a few days ago from UPenn saying that they've received my application. If there's a school that should get an award for taking their sweet, sweet time...

Absolute silence from Columbia here as well. From what I've heard, they're pretty notorious for being late on results. I would (try very, very hard to) remain calm until mid/end of February to early March.

Admitted to Emory. Check your OPUS everyone!

I haven't received a rejection yet but from what I've heard schools are releasing acceptances, rejections, and even some waitlists at around the same time.

Yup. Those are my exact sentiments.

It depends on what you're looking for. If you want the prestige of going to a top university for your MPH, then yeah, you're looking at a $60-80K loan, plus living expenses. For me, an MPH is not my terminal degree and I don't care about the "brand." I plan on getting a doctorate level degree afterwards, so what I care about are the research opportunities and the intimacy of the education. I opted for a smaller program rather than an Ivy League one. It's also more affordable, which bodes well with my plans of getting a PhD. Anyway, that's my personal anecdote. The point is, whether or not an MPH is worth it depends on what you're looking for in education. If you see it as income lost, then no, it's definitely not worth it. If you see it as an opportunity to get a Harvard degree, and you have the means and the brains, then go for it.

This is what my OPUS looks like. If I click "Pay Admission Deposit" it takes me to a payment page for $300.

I see it on the bottom of my OPUS page. I applied to epi. I just got my admission package for BU. I got $12000 merit scholarship. I thought this was generous until I looked up how much BU costs. Damn.

You got rejected from a program you didn't apply to? I'm...impressed actually...... Congrats? I think? On another note, for those who applied to Emory, on OPUS there's an option to pay your admission deposit even though decisions haven't been made yet. I thought that was kinda interesting.

Err, I only ask because the results search has some BU acceptances who are getting things mailed to them.

I only took two math classes during my undergrad, one calculus class and one biostats class. I took them because they were required for my major. I think a handful of biostats program would prefer their applicants to have some math background. I don't know about epi though. None of the programs I applied to mentioned a preference for math. To be safe, you should read the requirements listed on each program's website. Or maybe email the admission offices directly if you have any specific questions.

I don't know how many of you applied to NYU, but this just happened.... "Due to some technical complexities, our review process this year has been somewhat delayed" Wtf are "technical complexities"?

I really do hope you're right! It does seem like a lot of schools are starting make their moves now. Hopefully we'll find out soon! And for those who were also accepted to BU early (end of Nov/early Dec), did you guys get your acceptance packages yet?

I got two emails from Emory today. It was only an invitation to their upcoming info session thingy....but it made my heart jump out of my chest nonetheless. I really need to calm down....

Neuro basically covered the gist of it. I'm gonna confirm that his post is 100% correct because I was in your shoes this application cycle. I graduated with a lower GPA and scored lower GRE percentiles than you did. I also went to a state university. I had a year of research and half a year of volunteer work in public health up to the point of applying. My best advice is to apply early and to have strong letters. A well-written SOP won't hurt either. Make sure this gets proofread; that's the one thing I would have done differently in my application experience. I personally think experience is more important than grades when it comes to public health. Demonstrate that you have relevant research/volunteer experience; make sure this stands out in your CV. I think you stand a good chance. I also think it's doable to aim high. I was accepted to Icahn and Boston really early. If I can do it, so can you!. Good luck.

It's been so quiet lately on the public health front.... It seems like responses are coming in for other programs, while it's absolutely silent here

This silence is killing me.

I graduated in May 2012. Then I took a year off to figure out what I want to do with my life, work, and gather research and volunteer experience. I just finished applying and will start next fall...so in total, I will be taking about 2 years off between my undergraduate and graduate.

I don't see why not. I didn't take any public health courses during my undergrad, and my BS is completely unrelated to public health (toxicology). I also didn't have much public health experience. To be honest, public health is such a broad field that you can put a public health "spin" onto anything. The research I did was part of a nationwide study.....nationwide --> potentially affects everyone in country --> public health!! I wouldn't worry too much about the credibility of a school, so long as the program is accredited. Again, because public health is such a broad field, it's more important to consider the individual programs than the school's reputation: Do you want to get into a specialty track (epidemiology, biostatistics, policy, etc.)? Or do you just want a general MPH? Do you want a large program so you can interact with more students? Or do you prefer a smaller one so you can get more one-on-one interaction with your professors? Is an MPH your terminal degree? Or do you want to pursue a doctorate-level degree? If it's the latter, you don't want to get into too much debt. I personally think Hunter is an excellent choice. I would have applied there but I'm not a NY resident. I find out-of-state tuition to be unfair.

Have you guys started FAFSA and all that fun stuff yet?

I'm moving to New York City and I start late August/early September.......so I should be starting soon, huh? This is going to be rough considering home base is California.

Also if you are seriously considering Icahn and want to live near campus......you should shoot me a message because I'm seriously considering Icahn and would like to live near campus. I need to share the burden of rent.

Thanks for everyone's kind words. I'm still very sad and scared. I'm fighting every urge to talk to him. He moved across country for medical school but I did everything I could to give his transition a little more stability. But now that it's my turn to do it, I have no support system. I'm throwing myself into the unknown with no one to fall back on. Yay...even as depressed as I feel now, I know I can do it. It's just tough. Thanks to everyone though.

I think some schools don't require the GRE if you already have a graduate level degree.