RunnerGrad
-
Posts
292 -
Joined
-
Days Won
1
Posts posted by RunnerGrad
-
-
I study attitudes towards obesity, particularly among future health professionals, such as students in dietetics programs. I look at their own experiences with weight management, as well as what they think causes obesity in adults and children, and what they think can be done to treat or prevent obesity in adults and children. I am also interested in what experiences have shaped their attitudes.
-
I'm happy to answer any questions about UofT or Guelph. I did my undergraduate degree at Guelph and absolutely love the university and the city. I hope to go back to Guelph to do a PhD! I only chose UofT for my MPH as Guelph doesn't offer an MPH that also includes the dietetic internship, which is a requirement to become a Registered Dietitian.
-
The TA for my policy course and my qualitative research methods course, in Public Health, was actually a PhD student in Social Work. He was nothing at all like what ohgosh describes. He was always challenging us to think about privilege, to think about what type of research gets published (and what gets missed), to think critically about how policy gets developed (and who gets forgotten in that process, and who doesn't have access to that process).
He was always challenging us to think about what types of information, sources, and groups of people are priviledged and why. He had an extremely critical lens, and was very much anti-oppression and into social justice.
Now granted, he was only one PhD student in the department of Social Work, but he certainly can't be the only one in that department who is interested in social justice, and who has an extremely critical view. He talked a lot about marginalized people who how we can have their voices heard in research and academia.
The social work students who have been in some of my public health classes also seem to be very interested in social justice, anti-oppression and marginalized groups. Maybe those are just the types of social work students at UofT who take public health classes. I don't know. But my limited experience with the department of Social Work at UofT leads me to believe that at least some individuals in that department have a very critical lens, do not support that status quo, but constantly challenge it, and are heavily interested in social justice.
-
Yes, many clinical placements want titres as proof of immunity, even if you have your vaccination records, because vaccinations don't "take" in 100% of cases. There are some people who are not immune despite a full set of vaccinations. The titres provide evidence of immunity (or not).
-
Very common, in my experience.
-
Hey I have a suuuper general question about U of T.
It seems to be the "it" school for Social Work on this forum as it's many people's first choice and I was just wondering if this is for specific reason, is it substantially better than other programs or is it more about location?
I will be reapplying next year and I'm really hoping to bone up on my experience so I have a better shot at getting in since I think my grades are competitive
trying to feel optimistic!UofT also has a lot of great courses offered in other departments that students take as electives. For example, we had social work students taking some of our public health courses as electives. Some of my classmates who took electives at OISE indicated that they had social work students in their OISE courses as well. For those interested in social justice, the courses offered by OISE's social justice education department can be great options.
-
Age doesn't matter. I have professors who didn't start their PhDs until they were in their 40s and 50s, and they had no problems finding tenure-track jobs after they completed their PhD. That said, in my field, there aren't a lot of RD PhDs, so most RDs who do complete a PhD and want to enter academia can generally do so. That's because undergraduate programs that are accredited by the Dietitians of Canada have to have a certain number of Registered Dietitians, with PhDs, who are tenured or in tenure-track positions. If the programs don't maintain the required number, they lose accreditation, and graduates of their undergraduate programs aren't able to become RDs.
-
In my field, the extra stuff definitely matters. Students without sufficient work or volunteer experience in my field are typically not accepted into graduate programs.
The extra stuff is also great to have for scholarship purposes! Extra money is always nice.
-
I have a chronic pain issue that is often managed alright, but at times I cannot even read or write let alone think or conduct research. Therefore, I am also contemplating telling my advisor. I will probably wait until I officially enroll in the PhD (still in masters atm), but I might have to start experimenting with meds again soon, which means that I might get worse for a while.
Are you registered with the disability services? I haven't had the guts yet to go that way, but they should be able to advise your on this matter.
Register with disability services / accessibility services! They will be able to provide you with whatever help and supports that you need. They will also be able to advocate for you if you run into problems with your advisor or other professors. Or if you need any accommodations, they will be able to either provide them to you, or connect you with those who can provide them.
-
Hi all,
I'll be starting a PhD in history at Toronto in the fall. I'm an American, originally from NY and I am currently finishing up my MA at the University of North Carolina. I'm excited (more so for the program than the weather, haha). Although, I admittedly know very little about Toronto and Canada in general. Are there any significant differences between the Canadian and American university systems y'all are aware of? I imagine there pretty similar, but I suspect there are key differences at the same time. Either way, I'm excited to be moving to the Great White North!
A few things are different. First of all, UofT, like almost all universities in Canada, is publically funded. Quest is the only private university that I'm aware of in Canada, and it's unique in a number of other ways as well.
Also, MOST PhD programs require a Master's degree first. Now, that's not always the case for all of the PhD programs at UofT (as you can see from Dedi's acceptance straight to the PhD program without a Master's), but the normal progression in Canada is Bachelor's -> Master's -> PhD. Certainly in my field, you won't get accepted to a PhD program without a Master's. But it does vary by field.
With respect to life outside of the university, Canada is different from the U.S. in a number of ways. First of all, we have universal health care, where basic medical care is covered by provincial health care plans (however International students will obtain their own health insurance through the university, since they are not covered by provincial health plans).
Same sex marriage is legal throughout all of Canada. Even in our military - it was actually legal within the Canadian Armed Forces before it became legal throughout the country. Our military also allows women to serve in all of the military occupations, including the combat arms and on submarines.
Depending on where you've lived in the U.S., you may not be familiar with certain colloquialisms or words used to describe various things. For example, "pop" is widely used in Ontario, as opposed to "soda" or "soft drink." A "toque" is a winter hat/wool hat. And there are other examples.
The second most common language people speak in Canada, besides English, is French. Although Toronto is so multicultural you'll hear a lot of other language more frequently spoken than French. Certainly I hear a lot of different Asian languages on campus at UofT and while travelling on public transit.
Guns are a lot less common in Canada, although we do still have gun crime and illegal guns being used by criminals. It's a lot less typical for your average Canadian to own a hand gun and keep it in their home. For example, the people I know who own guns own rifles for hunting or sport.
Right now the Canadian dollar is performing poorly compared to the American dollar. Not so good for Canadians looking to go to the U.S., better for Americans looking to come to Canada.
Gasoline/petrol is more expensive in Canada. Actually, most things (except certain foods) are more expensive in Canada.
Like Surefire, I'm happy to answer any questions about UofT, Toronto, or commuting to Toronto from outside the city. I just finished my first year as an MPH student at UofT, and as I don't enjoy living in big cities like Toronto, I commute into Toronto when I need to be on campus (which has generally been about three days a week).
-
If anyone has questions about the core courses that all the MPH students take at UofT, feel free to ask! I just finished up my first year in the Community Nutrition stream (which is being renamed the Nutrition and Dietetics stream). There are a number of courses all the MPH students take, so if you have questions about the content, format, etc. of those, I'd be happy to provide some input.
-
Grad1515, thank you so much for replying!! I'm relieved that it doesn't have to do with the program prestige, and wow, I didn't realize the tuition cost was so different between UWO and other schools. Perhaps it has to do with the case-based approach they take? But even then, that's still quite expensive. If I get into Mac's MSc in Global Health, and it's not as expensive, maybe I'll re-think my decision. So much to consider, ahh!
While it is super expensive, I don't think it's fair to entirely write off the entire program as one for "rich people who did not get in elsewhere." You don't know whether people did or didn't get in anywhere and what their financial, living and family situation is. I also really like the unique case-based approach which plays well to the strengths of students who did a great deal of case work in their undergrad. $30k is definitely difficult but it doesn't mean someone didn't get in elsewhere. Thanks for your input though.
Their case-based approach is nothing special. Most other public health programs will incorporate case-based learning or problem-based learning into their courses.
At UofT, the Intro to Public Health course is almost entirely case-based. Most of my other public health courses (with the exception of Public Health Policy) also incorporated case-based learning and problem-based learning, while also using other learning/teaching methods.
-
I think when people say "the Harvard of X", they might mean that "it's one of the best schools in X" because Harvard is one of the top schools in the US.
So although I personally do not like the expression "the Harvard of X", I would say with my interpretation above, McGill is indeed "the Harvard of Canada" because it is one of the best schools in Canada (top 3, exact ranking depends on your field).
However, "the Harvard of X" does not mean "as good as Harvard, but in another place". All Canadian research universities are public, which means that pretty much all top US schools (almost all private) will be better than the best schools in Canada. MIT is definitely a better place to be than McGill, overall (again, maybe there are some specific programs where this is not true).
The way I see it, when you put Canadian and American universities on a ranking scale, I'd say the first tier (top schools) are places like Harvard, MIT, Stanford, etc. and the second tier might be other strong schools but just can't quite compete with the top tier -- this list totally depends on the field of course, in mine, it would be places like U Michigan, U Maryland, U Washington, etc. I would say the best Canadian schools (McGill, Toronto, UBC) fall within this tier.
You can also see this in world university rankings. These top Canadian schools are generally ranked 20th through 50th, while the "top 20" worldwide tend to be the "top tier" I mentioned above. See link: http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2014-15/subject-ranking/subject/physical-sciences
The University of Toronto is ranked 19 in that link. So is it in the top tier? Or is it in your next tier? Personally, I think it is a top tier school, although I'm not sure how much longer it will remain there. Certainly in medicine and health, UofT is one of the top in the world, if you go by rankings. It's 13th in this list: http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2014-15/subject-ranking/subject/clinical-pre-clinical-health
-
Hahaha, there are other prestigious programs. Waterloo has top social and clinical programs, and Western's social program is traditionally great (though they've struggled a bit lately). York has a great quant program. There's a lot of great forensic psychology work at Simon Fraser and UVic. They're prestigious among people who know, but less likely to impress your dad's friends or whatever.
Exactly! Waterloo is also extremely well known for its engineering and computer science programs. Guelph is internationally known for its food science, nutrition, veterinary medicine, and agriculture departments. York has one of the leading researchers when it comes to the Social Determinants of Health. Alberta has a top nanomaterials department. Ottawa has one of the top Heart institutes in the world. I could go on for almost any university in Canada. They may not be prestigious across the board, but most have at least one or two departments that are well respected internationally.
-
This thread is depressing me... The closest I've gotten to leaving the country was a trip to Niagara Falls at age 6.
Not for lack of desire, just lack of funds/opportunity
Not a lot of funds here either. Most of my travelling is thanks to the U.N. (my father worked for the International Civial Aviation Organization for many years) or the Canadian Armed Forces! Being in the military or being a military spouse gives you many opportunities to travel - granted not all of the places you are sent as a seving member are vacation spots, but there are some perks (visiting nice places when you have leave during a mission, for instance, or beingn posted to Europe for four years and having plenty of opportunities to travel while on that posting). Military life, or being a military spouse, certainly isn't for everyone. For for those who enjoy it, there are lots of great opportunities to see many different places.
Also, I don't know how the Reserve system works in the U.S., but in Canada, if you are a member of the reserves, you can't get forced to do a mission overseas, nor can you be posted to a new location within Canada. The reservists who are part of missions overseas are those that volunteered for those missions. So the Canadian reservists who served in Afghanistan volunteered for the mission, they weren't forced to go there. That's unlike the regular forces, where you have to go where they tell you, unless you DAG red (i.e. aren't able to go on a mission at a particular point in time due to any number of reasons), and where you can get posted to locations you might not want to within the country.
-
Thank you everyone your input, it is much appreciated! And yes, I do agree parkland downtown is severely lacking. I should know, I did a whole group project just about the lack of parkland downtown Toronto. Sometimes land restraint forces you to get super creative!
Felinebookworm, it sounds like you've made the right decision for you!
I have to say that I enjoy most of my graduate classes at UofT (although one was a complete waste of time - we learned more and did more complicated/involved projects in undergrad, but that was just one course), but I absolutely do not like the city of Toronto at all. I much prefer Guelph as a city! It's one of the many reasons that I choose not to live in Toronto, and commute into UofT for grad school. I just don't enjoy living in a city like Toronto. I like being close to big cities, so that I can attend whatever events I want to that aren't offered in my smaller city outside of Toronto, but I much prefer smaller, greener, quieter, cheaper cities, where there isn't constant traffic, noise, and congestion.
-
I know nothing about those programs but can comment on both cities, if this is of any importance to you. Do you like living in a big city with great access to restaurants, public transportation, shops and amenities or living a remote location (that, in my option, looks barren in the winter) and requires a car to travel to most places, or a greyhound bus to go anywhere outside of Guelph including neighbouring Cambridge and Kitchener?
It's a matter of personal preference. If you like remote locations with a little downtown core, go for Guelph. I know I would prefer the first option, not to mention U of T is ranked 16 world wide (although I cannot comment on the ranking of your particular field).
Congrats and good luck!
Guelph is not remote, nor is it barren in the winter. Guelph is only an hour from Toronto, has winters incredibly similar to Toronto, and is far from barren! It has many wonderful green spaces, and is a wonderful place to live if you like being outdoors, due to the numerous parks, running paths and cycling paths.
Guelph has GO train service to Toronto during the morning rush hour (and service back at the evening rush hour) so you do not need a car nor do you have to rely on Greyhound buses. Guelph transit is great for getting around Guelph, but Guelph is incredibly bike-able, and much, much more bike-friendly than Toronto!
That said, Guelph is obviously much smaller than Toronto, so if someone likes big cities, Guelph will not be for them.
Guelph has a very active downtown core, with lots of activities going on. There are plenty of sports and cultural opportunities in the city. Every weekend there is a festival of some sort or another going on.
As for landscape architecture, Guelph is extremely well known in the field. Also, with the arboretum attached right to the campus, landscape architecture students have wonderful opportunities available right on campus! One landscape architecture student recently re-did the cross-country course for the Ontario provinicial university championships, which runs through the Guelph arboretum. I don't think you get that kind of green space in downtown Toronto (at least I don't as an MPH student in downtown Toronto at UofT - I wish there was more green space on campus!)
OP, I'm sure you've seen this site at Guelph, but if not, check it out: https://www.uoguelph.ca/sedrd/landscape-architecture/why-choose-la-guelph
Guelph also has the only ASLA accredited program in Canada at the undergraduate level: http://www.asla.org/contentdetail.aspx?id=21636(which probably doesn't matter for grad studies, but shows how seriously Guelph takes landscape architecture)
UofT is a great university. But Guelph is just as strong when it comes to certain programs, and landscape architecture is one of them.
-
Hey guys, I've been lurking this thread (and others like it) for a while, and thought it was high time I posted. As someone pretty fresh out of school with absolutely no relevant experience or publications, its more than likely that I won't be recommended for admission this year. I'm really passionate about epidemiology and have a background in biology and statistics with a ~3.4 gpa. So yea, I'm not exactly sitting pretty. Can anyone share some advice as to how I can make myself a more competitive candidate in the future?
Do you have a local public health unit you can volunteer with? Or a community health centre? Basically, many public health programs want to see you have some experience in public health, and know what's involved. That can either be work or volunteer experience.
-
My classes have typically been 0900-1200; 1000-1300; 1200-1500; 1300-1600; 1300-1700; or 1400-1700.
I was only part-time this past year, due to recovery from a concussion and dealing with post-concussion syndrome.
On the days I had classes:
0500 - wake up
0530 - leave the house
0530-0630 - commute by car or train with husband
0630-0700 - commute by subway
0700-0745 - do physiotherapy exercise and whatever other exercise I was allowed at the gym
0745-0830 - shower, dry hair, put on make-up, etc.
0830-0900 - grab a tea, a bite to eat (usually a piece of fruit and a yogourt)
0900-1200 - class if I had a morning class that day; if no class, relax in the grad lounge and crochet (needed to stay off computers/tablets to let brain heal) or, if not caught up on readings, do readings with plenty of breaks; meet with group members if needed for group projects
1200-1300 - normally lunch, unless class time overlapped with this time (then lunch would be before or after)
Afternoons were different, depending on whether I had an afternoon class or not
If I had an afternoon class:
1300-1600 - class (or whatever time class started and ended at)
1600-1630 - subway commute
1630-1830 - commute by car with husband
1830-1930 - make and eat dinner
1930-2030 - relax and spend time with husband
2030-2100 - listen to book on tape (not allowed to read for pleasure to let brain heal)
2100 - go to bed
If I didn't have an afternoon class:
1345-1415 - physiotherapy
1430-1300 - subway commute
1300-1630 (approx) - commute by car back home with husband
1630-1730 - relax with husband
1730-1830 - make and eat dinner
1830-1930 - do readings in small chunks if needed, or work on assignments in small chunks if needed; if not, relax with husband
1930-2030 - relax and spend time with husband
2030-2100 - listent to book on tape
2100 - go to bed
Weekends, and the days I didn't have class, would be spent doing readings and working on assignments (in small chunks), Skype with group members if required for group projects, etc.
-
So to get our U of T student cards, we will actually have to go to campus to do it - before we can set up our email?
That's what I had to do last year. Had to go to Robarts library with my offer of admission, get my student ID card, and then I was able to get my UofT email.
My classmates who were coming from far away (i.e. Other provinces) didn't get theirs until just before class started, when they moved to Toronto. I was able to get mine early, because I only live 1.5 hours from the campus.
-
I agree to some extent that age is irrelevant in terms of success in grad school. For me, age in relation to competition and comparison of others is of less concern: if there is one spot left, my opponent being 20 or being 60 doesn't matter because regardless you 'fight' to win that one spot.
Age is more important in my opinion because it gives individuals an idea of the generational backdrop applicants, and subsequently colleagues, will have. Being able to effectively communicate with someone who is 20 is different than effective communication with someone who is 60, their coming of age was markedly different and historically characterized by unique phenomena. Effective communication is important whether you are in the work force or in graduate school, and understanding those who you have to communicate with is vital.
I wonder about this poll's validity because it is online; convenience sampling with an online poll wont capture a generalizable sample of applicants and won't be very representative of those who are older and less tech savvy but I still don't think the poll should not be done.
Older and less tech savvy? I swear that the "digital natives" only know how to use social media (exaggerating, but it boggles my mind how many 20-somethings don't really know how to use computers). Whereas those of us who are "older" remember command lines, having to program to get a computer to do anything, etc. I find those in their 40s who had Commodore 64s as their first computers are much more "tech savvy" than the 20 year old who uses social media, but can't put together a computer or program anything.
-
Have you considered getting an AS in nursing, working for a few years, and then pursuing a MS in nursing?
Canada is not the U.S. Associates degrees don't exist in Canada, the way they do in the U.S. Nursing is a bachelor's degree in Canada. Practical nursing is a college diploma, but you won't get into a master's in nursing with a college diploma in Canada. You need a bachelor's with at least a B+ standing (and it is usually higher) in your last two years of a bachelor's to get into a master's program in Canada. Or you need a B average with plenty of work experience.
Lots of people in Canada do a second undergraduate degree to make themselves competitive for health professions.
-
So it's a gluten free diet and then some? Sorry I'm in naive- when I looked online it looked like gluten was a FODMAP.
Not quite. Wheat has fructans in it, and some people who are sensitive to FODMAPs can't have fructans, but others can have them, or they can have them in small amounts. Whereas someone with Celiac disease can't have any gluten. So someone on a FODMAP diet may be fine with whole wheat products, but needs to stay away from certain fruits, vegetables and beans. So it may not be gluten free at all.
We generally have patients with IBS keep a food and symptom diary, so they can figure out what foods they are sensitive to. Some are just fine with gluten. There's nothing inherently bad about gluten, unless you have Celiac disease. Those who are sensitive to fructans may want to avoid wheat, but not because of the gluten (so gluten free foods may not help them at all).
-
I just looked up FODMAPs (digestive issues here) and it seems like most of the diets are mostly gluten free? So it's basically the same thing? (I'm genuinely curious)
They aren't the same at all. Gluten is found in barley and wheat. FODMAPs are found in a variety of foods, including some that are gluten-free, like several fruits (apples, pears for instance), some vegetables (Ex, broccoli, asparagus), some legumes (ex, kidney beans, chickpeas), some dairy, etc.
Grad. School Supplies?
in Officially Grads
Posted
I have an iMac at home and I have an iPad that I bring with me to university. I don't take notes on my iPad though - I'm old fashioned and prefer to take notes by hand. I use the iPad mainly for my readings (so I don't have to lug around a gazillion print-outs), to access my class portal (Blackboard) and to surf the web and answer emails. I do know people who takes notes on their iPad, however, either with a bluetooth keyboard, or with a stylus and an app like Noteability. A stylus like the Jot Script will work with an iPad.