holykrp

I don't think an MPH/MPP would be worth it, there's TOO much overlap. Maybe an MPH/JD IF the JD is at a top 20 law school and you want to practice law. Otherwise the JD might be interesting but you won't get much ROI as the market is already saturated with JDs. I'm not sure what your GPA/GRE scores are, but they might be better than you think. MPH programs aren't really all that competitive, so as long as you did decently well in school and can write a good essay, you shouldn't have too difficult of a time finding a good fit. Washington University has a trans-disciplinary program you might find interesting. I only know about them specifically because I am going there in the fall, but I think their program has a lot of policy focus as it is in the school of social work. They also let you take classes at the business school, law school, medical school, etc. and really let you customize your curriculum without pigeonholing into a specific concentration, though you can create a concentration if you choose. That's part of what I really liked about them. A lot of schools like Emory, Pitt, and Columbia have additional certificates you can add no matter what your concentration is, so you can get more breadth that way. Just from these forums it sounds like GWU is a good place to go for policy, but I didn't apply there so I don't know much about it. If your GPA is >3.5 you have a realistic shot at all of those programs I just mentioned. >3.3, a decent shot when combined with other strong application components.

I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask but hoping someone will know the answer! I am from Ohio and moved to Kentucky over 5 years ago, so I'm obviously currently a Kentucky resident. I will be selling my condo and am not married to my boyfriend, who will be getting his own apartment in KY or OH. I'll be moving out of state to MO. After my masters degree I plan to apply to medical school, so I'm wondering if I am totally forgoing my KY residency and becoming a MO resident, or if there is a caveat if you just moved to a city to go to grad school there? Or if I can claim a "permanent" address with either my dad or boyfriend in OH or KY? Anyone know?

The difference is between whether or not there is a free standing school of public health vs the program being housed in another school. I chose a program over a school. The schools will tend to be bigger but the quality of education nor connections are necessarily correlated directly to size. It all depends on whether you can take the coursework you want and have then opportunities you want.

Are you planning on visiting WashU? Did you end up getting into Emory? Those are the 2 I'm deciding between

$555 a year is a steal... At least compared to where I went for undergrad. It was about $300/quarter, and I always took some summer classes.

Is anyone doing this or did anyone consider? I am deciding between WashU and Emory. The main bonus about Emory is the employment network. So, I decided to hedge my bets and applied to WashU's MBA yesterday since today was the deadline. I'm just wondering, assuming I even get accepted, if that really would make a difference in job prospects? My interests are all over the place, my intention is to do something research related, but I also would like to have enough money to do whatever I want in the future, whether it be pay for more education or travel or whatever. So, that's why I think maybe managing pharma projects or consulting would be nice. Anyway, rambling, just wondering what everyone's thoughts on the dual degree are.

For what it's worth, I've decided to hedge my bets on WashU and also apply to their MBA as a dual degree since it is well established and recognized. If I go there, that would make me feel more comfortable with the new program, since the network would be outstanding. The network is the main attraction to Emory, which is what I'm deciding between.

Take it both very seriously and with a grain of salt. On the one hand, you want to be fiscally responsible as much as possible. On the other hand, what is the real impact? It's not like you're going to be living in complete desolation if you take out the loans. You're just going to be working and paying on them. And, if you're going to go for the MPH anyway, the $6k difference isn't really anything. But, if you go in somewhere else where they gave you some funding, you might want to factor that into the equation.

Wow you are so helpful, thank you very much!

I'm taking a long weekend in STL to visit WashU soon. Any spots I should definitely hit to get a feel for the city?

I'd say definitely Hopkins UNLESS you definitely want to work in Atlanta after graduation and/or you would be saving a significant sum of money by going to Emory.

I think WashU is really trying to build up their public health programs and thus giving generous funding. Keep in mind that WashU is a global university with the #6 medical school in research. Yeah JHU is ranked a couple of notches higher but they're also going to be a lot more expensive. But, you do have to weigh the cost of paying 1 full year of tuition + 50% tuition for 4 more years versus the salary you will be making. If you think that it is worth the investment, then go to JHU. But, it's really hard to pass up full funding. Before you decide, really try to get a feel for what very specific opportunities you would definitely have at each school and do some basic cost/benefit analysis. With a PhD you may be able to get outside grants and funding in the later years as well, but of course that's more work and not guaranteed.

Oh, well, you should be ready to apply now, then! Depending on whether you've taken the GRE and all that jazz

What do you mean by few places recognize them? Like it is hard for her to find practicum/job opportunities? It seemed like from their stats their graduates had some pretty solid results and even higher starting salaries than some other schools.

From Pitt: If you are applying for student loans -- in addition to the FAFSA form, you will also need to submit a supplemental form to the University. For more information on the FAFSA and to access Pitt’s supplemental form, please see https://oafa.pitt.edu/learn-about-aid/applying-for-aid/graduate-school-instructions/. (The form for the 2015-16 academic year is not yet on their Web site but should be added very soon.) Your completed supplemental form will need to be submitted to our Student Affairs office for a signature. We will then forward to the Office of Financial Aid for their processing. - Please note that the Office of Financial Aid does not release financial aid information until the summer semester. They usually wait until the new tuition rates are released, which typically takes place in July. Please contact the Office of Financial Aid directly with any questions – 412-624-7488. Whaaaaat?!?!?!?!?! Welp, Pitt's tuition is super high and if they can't propose options for how to pay for it...

MPH programs aren't all that competitive. Just about 2 years of public health experience + maybe some global experience + 75%+ in GRE scores + 3.5+ GPA will get you into the top programs.

I am in the same boat. Probably going to get the MD later on. I am deciding between Emory or WashU currently, but leaning toward WashU. It sounds like they have close ties with their medical school, so it'd be a great opportunity to do some research there, and with the scholarships it's a lot less expensive than Emory; the difference could pay for about a semester or more of medical school.

What are your thoughts? Where are you leaning? I got into Columbia as well and also Emory and Pitt, but no funding at any of those. Just turned down Columbia because their financial aid package made me laugh out loud.

Hi everyone - I am considering grad school at Columbia and want to get a general sense of how feasible it would be before agreeing to it. My long time friend, not romantic partner, is moving with me. I'm just starting to get this straight, but it looks like in order to rent an apartment you have to prove your income is 30-40x the monthly rent, and if not get a guarantor that lives in the area that makes 75-100x the monthly rent? That seems pretty impossible to me. How does this work for other full time students and young people?

I was born in Dayton, I live in Cincinnati. It's a little bigger than a suburb, not too much exciting going on there. A little run down. They have a mall and a few strip malls. Probably pretty cheap. About 45 minutes to Cincinnati, which is better.

Though I've found that not every school is receptive to this, most are... E-mail the admissions office and briefly explain your situation and what you are interested in (not sure if there's MHA concentrations or if you plan on doing research or anything, but include that). Ask who the best person to speak with would be and set up a brief call with them. Have your questions written out beforehand and it'll be a pretty quick and informative call for you. I would also ask for some student contact info so you can get a feel for what the program is actually like.

You're going to be paying roughly $10k more to go to BU, then. BU is great. I love BU. I love Boston. However, it doesn't come close to Columbia as far as brand name and global recognition alone. Haven't looked at BU's research funding, but I'm very confident that Columbia trumps BU in NIH and other funding (though there is a possibility I'm wrong on this; you can look it up if you want). The only reasons to choose BU would be as follows: 1) you can live dirt cheap in Boston because you have family there 2) you currently have a relevant and outstanding flexible part time job 3) there are multiple professors in the school of public health researching something very specific you are interested in. Otherwise, choose Columbia.

I submitted mine around then too and have only heard from WashU (actually I heard from them about 1 or 2 weeks later!). Emory's is supposed to be "in March on a rolling basis" according to their admitted students portal website and I haven't heard from Pitt at all. I didn't apply to the others so I don't know. I think in general it should be any day now; you're right that we do all have decisions to make by April 15.

Are either giving you funding? If not, I'd probably just choose Columbia then. It's actually less expensive tuition-wise and better ranked both as a school of public health and as a university overall. Plus in Boston you're going to be competing for practicums and jobs with Tufts and Harvard.

And back to the topic of this thread... I got a hand written note from WashU's dean inviting me to their admitted students day. Honestly they have been so impressive with how personal, friendly, helpful, and professional they've been throughout the whole process. That's some major points for WashU. Though I can't help but wonder if I'd be an idiot to pass up Columbia.