[Fall 2018 CANADIAN universities]

9 hours ago, Aurélie B said:

Hi all,

I am an international student and I applied to McGill for the Integrated Program of Neuroscience. The deadline for the application is the 15th of march.

Does someone has an idea to how long it takes to have the results? My file is already "in review" since a week.

Thank you,

Aurélie

A week is nothing.  They likely won’t make any decisions until after the 15th of March.  After that, it could be April or May before you hear back.

[Fall 2018 CANADIAN universities]

Ah Queen’s, why do you send me irrelevant emails when I’m waiting for a decision?  Yes, I know I started an application for the graduate diploma in Aging and Health, but that’s one of  my backup plans in case I don’t get into a PhD program. You don’t need to remind me that my application is incomplete.  It will remain such unless I get rejected from all the PhD programs I’ve applied to and don’t find another RD job.

[Immunization Issues]

As rising_star said, do not make up anything on the forms.  Speak with your physician.  The equivalent of the local school board or local public health unit may have proof of your vaccinations.  There are also other ways to show immunity that may be acceptable - your doctor will know what approach to take.

[anyone else losing weight in grad school?]

On 2018-03-06 at 3:49 PM, VulpesZerda said:

My weight was never something I thought about until grad school. Like others, a change in lifestyle seemed to occur (poor diet from new stress, no longer playing sports or working on my feet). I was a healthy weight at the start, but during year one I rapidly gained 30 pounds. Second year I worked on losing the 30, successfully, and I had a best friend's wedding to help motivate me. Now third year I'm back into unhealthy eating habits. These habits and my cognitive gymnastics to justify them are so ingrained at this point, I think I might consider CBT to help maintain my weight and re-learn my relationship with food. 

I’m running a group program right now called Craving Change that uses CBT to help participants change their relationship with food.  It’s an awesome program that has been well-evaluated and has had great success!

[What's your craziest backup plan?]

My crazy back-up plan is to get a second master’s degree.

I’m geographically limited because of my husband’s job, and there are no dietitian jobs in the area.  In order to maintain my license as a registered dietitian I either need to be working as a dietitian or continuing my education.  So, if the PhD applications fall through and if I don’t find a dietitian job, then more education it will be!  Either a second master’s (yes, crazy, I know) or just more course-work.  But I need to maintain my registration!  I already have two undergraduate degrees (in Canada, you need to complete an undergraduate degree in dietetics in order to become a dietitian, even if you already have an undergraduate degree in another subject), so why not get two master’s as well?

Like I said, crazy.

[Fall 2018 CANADIAN universities]

Waiting is hard!   Of course, one of the programs I’ve applied to still has applications open until March 16th, and one other only had applications close February 15th.  Still, it would be nice to have an answer and be able to move on with my life.  My current work contract ends March 16th, so I’m also busy looking for jobs.  I have to either be in school or working as a dietitian to maintain my registered dietitian credential, so if I don’t find a job or get into a PhD, I might be looking at a second master’s degree!  Craziness, but that’s life. I’m a military spouse, so we move every 4 years or so (my husband is an officer), which makes finding and keeping long-term employment challenging!  

[anyone else losing weight in grad school?]

As a dietitian, I am saddened to see people without any education in nutrition giving others nutrition advice!  Nutrition is a science, and if you are interested in learning more, seek out a registered dietitian or a registered dietitian nutritionist.  Do NOT see a “nutritionist” who doesn’t have the dietitian credential, because that term is meaningless - people have certified their pets as nutritionists!  Dietitians provide science-based, evidence-based nutritional guidance, which is something that I hope anyone who is interested in grad school would be interested in.

[Fall 2018 CANADIAN universities]

On 2018-03-03 at 8:01 AM, lovewemll said:

Hi everyone, I was wondering for those who applied OISE, before receiving the admission emails, will everyone's Acorn status change to invited or something else? At least I have somewhere to look up to before getting emails. The waiting is 

I didn’t go to OISE, but attended UofToronto for my master’s.  ACORN (or ROSI which is what we had when I was accepted) will change to “invited” before anything else happens.  It took forever to receive my official letter from UofT.  

[Fall 2018 CANADIAN universities]

I’ve applied to two PhD programs at Queen’s University.  I’m limited geographically due to my spouse’s job, which supports us at this point in time.  Both of the programs match my research interests quite well. One of them only closed applications on February 15th and the other has applications open until March 16th, so I expect it will be a while before I hear anything.  I have a master’s degree from the University of Toronto (where I was awarded two scholarships for academic excellence) and I graduated at the top of my class from my undergraduate studies.

I have no idea when I’ll hear back about admissions.  I will also be applying to a UK PhD program.

I’m a Canadian Citizen, born and bred in Canada!

[MPH Canada 2018]

On 11/9/2017 at 10:45 PM, AspiringDove said:

Okay, Thanks for the help. 

I was wondering whether the LOI had a particular formal format which the universities ask for. Maybe it's just a regular letter to the admissions committee.

When I applied to UofT's MPH program (from which I graduated in 2016), I treated my Letter of Intent like a SOP.  There were 500 applicants to my stream, and only 12 acceptances (Community Nutrition), so that approach certainly worked for me.

[What does my professor mean]

This is a great paper on thematic analysis (it is valid for disciplines outside of psychology): Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in  Psychology, 3, 77‐101.  

You can do thematic analysis with pre-decided themes (based on literature or a theoretical framework), or the themes can come from the data itself.  Obviously, your prof wants the latter.  

[AAS (American Astronomical Society) calls for removal of GRE and Physics GRE in admissions]

I've always found it odd that the U.S. places a significant emphasis on standardized tests both for undergraduate and graduate admissions.  These tests are a significant financial burden for students from lower income families, especially if they are ill on the day of their first test and need to retake it.  As a Canadian, I'm just not used to such widespread use of standardized tests, with a few exceptions (MCAT for medical school, LSAT for law school, GRE for some graduate psych programs).  Even so, some medical schools in Canada don't use the MCAT because it disadvantages students whose mother tongue is not English.  So universities with large populations of Francophone students (see UOttawa or NOSM), or exclusively Francophone students (see most of the Quebec medical schools) don't use it.

[US Citizen Considering Applying to Canadian School?]

2 hours ago, PoliticalOrder said:

Academic masters programs aren't really that competitive in Canada. 

That doesn't mean you will get in, but it is fairly easy to get accepted to masters programs even in the top Canadian universities. 

Not true.  My masters program only accepts 12 students per year and has over 500 applicants.  Other programs receive many more applicants for maybe 10 spots.  In Canada, most programs require a master's before you can apply to a PhD program (there are exceptions, mostly at the universities trying to attract American students) so the masters programs can be very, very competitive (in my field, I don't know of a single PhD program in Canada that will accept someone without a master's).

[US Citizen Considering Applying to Canadian School?]

I'm not familiar with the math department at UofT, but I can say that overall, there are a lot of international students doing graduate work at UofT.

The things you can do to improve your chances are the same as for U.S. universities:  have an excellent letter of intent, outstanding reference letters, and research experience.  I would make sure you have all of the suggested prerequisites listed on the UofT web site: http://www.math.toronto.edu/graduate/admissions/Suggested%20Prerequisites.pdf

There are other excellent Canadian universities.  I would suggest seeing which ones are doing research that interests you, and see what their requirements are.  Some Canadian master's programs will only look at your two more recent years of coursework, so you'll want to get marks that are as high as possible in those two years / 4 semesters.

[PhD in Germany?]

Thanks @fuzzylogician.  That sounds very much like my experience in the workforce when I lived in Germany.  People were dedicated to their work while at work, but outside of work they didn't answer work-related emails or phone calls.  I definitely liked that kind of work-life balance.  I also liked living in Bavaria and having all the Catholic feast days as statutory holidays!

One of the draws of the German PhD for me is the lack of coursework.  So much of my coursework for my master's has been disappointing.  I'm at what is considered to be one of the best, if not the best university in Canada, and yet a bunch of my master's coursework has just been a repeat of my undergraduate studies, maybe with one or two new concepts thrown in. I have had a couple of really great courses, where I learned a lot and was really challenged, but those were the minority.

Thanks again.

[PhD in Germany?]

Thanks Flou.  I'm looking at a combination of the "traditional" doctorates in Germany and the "structured" PhDs that are more like a North American PhD (although shorter at 3-4 years, although 4 years is pretty typical in Canada).  Now that I've found plenty of information on how the application process works, I guess I'm mostly wondering if life in grad school differs in Germany.  

[MPH FALL 2016 !!! Applications and choices of Universities]

The Health Promotion stream at the University of Toronto's MPH is actually the largest of the streams.  Nutrition & Dietetics, and Occupational Health, are both much smaller.

I'm currently studying at UofToronto (MPH Nutrition & Dietetics), so if you have any questions about Toronto's program, feel free to ask.  I can't tell you anything about your chances, as I'm not involved in admissions, but I can talk about the program in general, as well as the courses that all the public health streams have to take.

 

[PhD in Germany?]

Thanks @kokobanana, I appreciate you sharing your experience with me.  I will have a master's by the end of next summer (August 2016), so that's not an issue (it's pretty common in most programs here in Canada to require the master's before the PhD as well, although there are a few exceptions).

I'm not too worried about my stipend.  My husband will be making more than enough to support the two of us, so any stipend I earn will just be extra savings.  I'll also have health insurance through my spouse (and was very impressed with the German medical system last time we lived there - very quick and efficient compared to Canada!)  I also don't expect to stay in the German university system - we'll have to return to Canada after 4-5 years in Germany (it's just the nature of his job).

I'm not surprised that things are very hierarchical in the German system, given my previous experience living there.  I'm thinking that maybe one of the more structured PhD programs would be worth investigating further, as opposed to the traditional doctorates.  They seem geared to international students.

Thanks again for sharing your experience!

[PhD in Germany?]

I'm wondering if anyone has any experience with German PhDs?  My spouse has a wonderful opportunity to work in Germany, we both have a working ability in German (although his job would be in English), and there are two English-language PhDs in the city where we would be.

I was going to start a PhD here in Canada in Fall 2016 (I've basically been told I will be accepted to my top choice program as long as I jump through a few hoops), but it's hard to pass up an opportunity to live and work in Germany!  We lived there before, and had a wonderful time, so we know we will deal just fine with the culture, and differences between Canada and Germany, etc.  Also, because of my spouse's employment, I will have a permit to work over there, so won't need a student visa or work permit.

Since this German opportunity came up, I have been researching web sites on German PhD programs.  It appears that, in my field, I could either do a "traditional" German doctorate,  or a more "structured" PhD, which is based on the North American model.  Although the PhD programs would be in English, and although my German is very good (it was at a level B2 when we lived there last), I would still make the effort to improve my German before we moved over there again.  It would be another year before we moved overseas, so I would have time to work on my German and to try to contact some professors about the possibility of working in their labs/programs.

So, I've been doing my research and actually reading everything I can about completing a PhD, as a foreigner, in Germany.  I was curious if anyone here at any personal experience with completing a doctorate in Germany?  Or any experience on applying for one?  Any ways the application differs or should differ from Canada/U.S.?  Thanks! 

[Academic family tree]

My fields aren't listed on that site.  I am curious as to whether it lists any Canadians, or if it is US-centric.

[Second Year Students Fall 2015 How's It Going]

I hear you!  Although I did not know second year blues were to be expected.  I believe I have a slight case.

Yes I have no motivation to do anything.  Perhaps a lot of that can be contributed to the fact I have a broken leg for the past nine months and everything is a chore.  My first year I felt more on top of things.  This semester I feel so disjointed.  Weird, I can't really explain it. Looking forward to surgery to fix my leg this week.  Then looking forward to the Christmas break.

Good luck with the surgery.  I can imagine that everything must be a chore with a leg in need of surgery.  All the best!

[MPH CANADA FALL 2015 APPLICANTS]

Hi, 

I am an MBBS doctor from india, I am looking to apply for MPH at University of Waterloo and University of Toronto for fall 2016. Some of the MPH programs ask for a undergraduate stat requirement. Though i have published research papers which included stat based findings and studied basic stats in Community Medicine course during my undergrad. I am not sure whether that will be sufficient to get admission into MPH in epidemiology or any other speciality.

Can anyone suggest any online course that these universities will consider for credit for example from coursera, or athabasca etc?.  So that I can attach it along with my application. or is it necessary that i have to take a course from one of the universities? 

Thanks in advance.

Coursera won't be accepted, but an accredited university, that offers online courses, such as Athabasca, will be accepted.  Here is a list of statistics courses offered by accredited Canadian universities through online learning: http://www.cvu-uvc.ca/cgi-bin/cvu/cvucrsinfo.cgi?qn=subject&lang=en&longname=Statistics#X90  (note some courses are only open to those currently in Canada, but some are open to anyone).  In addition to Athabasca, Thompson (TRU) is quite well known in Canada for its online learning.

[Second Year Students Fall 2015 How's It Going]

Took  my first exam of the semester and I did okay.  Not as great as I would have liked but okay.  Feeling a little lonely this semester, don't know what that's about.  Also the changes with the layout on gradcafe have made it more of a challenge to keep up with old friends.  Hanging in there, researching in preparation to write two big papers this semester.  

Sorry to hear you are feeling lonely.  I think there must be something about second year.  A lot of my classmates report being totally unmotivated.

A lot of them (they are mostly traditional-aged students) are realizing that there are no answers in our field, and that everything depends on context.  Yet in our classes, we're asked to propose solutions to enormous problems that haven't been solved yet (i.e. childhood obesity, increasing fruit and vegetable consumption, etc.)  If experts haven't figured out how to solve these, how are we supposed to?  Most of them understand that it is more about understanding how complex these problems are, how many different ways there are to approach them, and how to critically analyze the literature that is out there and not just accept things that are published in peer-reviewed journals as "correct."  It really is amazing how much "junk" gets published - where authors, for example, use totally inappropriate and incorrect methods.  It really makes you wonder about the entire peer review process if papers with those kinds of flaws get published (and in my field, I'm talking about simple things, like using the DRIs correctly to assess dietary intake - nothing controversial or difficult).

[Help advise a newbie? Global Health]

I don't know about the U.S., but in Canada, both the University of Toronto and the University of Alberta have excellent global health programs.

Many MPH programs require a year of public health-related experience, whether that's through work or volunteer experience.  Again, this is from a Canadian perspective. 

If there are particular aspects of global health that appeal to you (a particular topic, region, etc.) then look at the research being done in those areas, and see what universities they are from.  That will give you a place to start in terms of which universities you should be looking at.

[Second Year Students Fall 2015 How's It Going]

Happy that I have a long weekend (it's Canadian Thanksgiving).

Unfortunately for me, it seems that I'm not fully recovered from my concussion.   I was doing so well with my practicum this summer, we were hopeful.  Unfortunately, it seems like the kind of mental concentration and heavy reading and computer work required by graduate school has caused my concussion symptoms to flare again.   Fortunately, my program is very understanding, and I have accommodations through Accessibility services.  It definitely makes things challenging, though, as I can only work in short chunks of time before I need a break.  And I have a headache at the end of the two days I have class, since those are solid days (class from 9 to 4 or 10 to 5, with only an hour break for lunch on both days).

Also struggling to get a couple of papers published.  Been rejected pre-review from the first two journals we submitted to.  Trying to find other journals we can submit to that don't charge open access fees.