dr_hopeful

Good luck saving_the_world! Would you mind sharing your stats?

So have you had your interview? how did it go?

I have heard nothing !

Karolinska is a good school. My observation comes from reading very good papers/articles published in epidemiological literature.I haven't come across much work from the other two schools so I can't comment on them.

Being an international applicant I totally understand Latte's perspective. I would like to get a degree from the U.S. as I see U.S, universities as leaders in health systems. But I want my degree and university to be recognized and valued. That's where prestige comes in. I don't think the MPH curriculum varies drastically between schools. So one would get the same set of skills/knowledge from an Emory MPH as from a Yale MPH. But Yale's brand is big in Asia/EU so the employment opportunities are way better with a Yale MPH. Moreover, the entry criteria for an MPH isn't very competitive (around 30%-50% acceptance rate is quite high) compared with a PhD (less than 10%). So I see no reason why one shouldn't try to go for the best! Also, 'big brand' universities are more likely to help international students get loans. Opportunity cost is an important personal decision one needs to make. If you think over the long-run you are better off without taking a loan to finance your degree then the investment in a degree isn't worth it. Good luck!

The HSPH website says interview invitations for the DrPH will be sent out in January. Anyone received an invite?

Some pointers: - LOR: Make sure you develop a good work/personal relationship with 1-2 professors before you leave university. Take them out for lunch and keep in touch with them. May be volunteer to help them on their research. Try to publish a few articles with them. Anything that would help you stand out. When you are ready for application, make sure your referees write a good story that explains why you got a low GPA. - GRE: Try to improve your GRE further. A near perfect score will help. -Work Experience: As people have suggested you really need great work experience (Clinton Foundation, Gates Foundation etc). - Volunteer:Start your NGO. - Network: Visit schools. Talk to admissions committee people. Good luck!

PhD Hopkins and Mailman, DrPH Harvard. I'm thinking whether I should apply to UNC (deadline is 14th Jan). Am I right in saying that outside of the U.S. not a lot of people know about UNC? In fact, a friend of mine who studied at Columbia only knew about Duke in Carolina. I am not sure how good a PhD in HPM from UNC is? How about you?

I visit this and the SDN forum daily to check for any updates. I can't stop thinking of how I could have made my application better! Good luck everyone :-)

If want to work in health systems then you obviously enrol in a health systems program phd. There is a big difference between epi and a health systems. As a first step I suggest checking out the curriculum of say john hopkins and Harvard epi and health systems program. Also check the phd topics. I think the world is changing. Previously epi/ biostats people worked everywhere. For health systems today however having an Econ/ health economics/ international health degree is preferred .

For UK, prior to admission it is essential to have a supervisor agreeing/interested in working with you. You then work with your potential supervisor to write a research proposal. I'm applying to Oxford, Cambridge and LSHTM and Imperial. It's easier for me to get funding in the UK as I am a home student.

Same here as well. I am confused on what type of individuals HSPH are seeking for the DrPh. I have around 6 years work experience. I was torn between applying for a PhD vs DrPh. Time is in an important factor for me, I didn't want to spend 4-5 years on a degree. In the end I decided to apply to DrPh programs in the US and PhD programs in the UK (usually takes 3 years to finish a PhD in the UK).

100 views and no response. Is DrPh such an unpopular degree?

Hi guys, Want to check if anyone's applying to the new Harvard DrPH? I have applied. I'm based in the UK where the DrPH is relatively unknown. Good to everyone who has applied!