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hopeful2020PhD

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Everything posted by hopeful2020PhD

  1. PhD programs. As far as I know, many DrPH programs charge tuition and do not offer stipends.
  2. The school is tweaking their funding model. From my understanding, new PHS PhD students will be required to TA 10 credits (two full semester classes) unpaid. In addition, Epi requires we TA 5 more credits for pay. If student do not finish in 4 years they can apply for a fifth year of funding, and will be required to TA another 5 unpaid credits. From the way they have explained it to us, not all requests for 5th year funding will be fulfilled, so you cannot/should not bank on it. The UCSF stipend was $41,200 for 2020-2021. I was told students are expected to work 15-20 hours per week for this funding.
  3. I know it happens, but I am not sure how often. Someone from admissions or the appropriate program director might be able to give you more information. A few thigns. I got a masters degree. The first time I was adamant that my experience, grades, and GRE would be enough. I also gave an oral presentation at APHA and met folks at the schools I later applied to. I did research and got a few more papers under review before my apps went in. Also, I changed the programs I applied to. I only applied to 3 programs, identified specific teams I wanted to work with, and had phonecalls/zoom calls with PIs before I applied.
  4. I believe that Harvard PHS acceptances are all sent out on the same day (except some folks who will be admitted off the waitlist), and rejections are typically released the week after acceptances. I am not on an admissions committee, so take my understanding of the process with a grain of salt.
  5. If there are any admits to the Harvard Chan Population Health Sciences PhD who want to chat with a current student, DM me. Full disclosure, I really love my program (I'm in epi). But, I know I had questions about the PhD programs I applied to that I wasn't comfortable asking faculty about, so I am happy to give you candid nitty-gritty answers. Congrats. To those who didn't recieve an acceptance: I hope you all get accepted to wonderful, funded programs this year, but don't give up if things don't pan out. I applied to PhD programs twice. I have faith we each end up on the path we need to be on.
  6. I have no way of knowing what it is like at other schools, but an administrator told current students at HSPH that apps are up 50% for the entire Population Health Sciences PhD program. More than 800 applications for ~45 seats.
  7. Last year I recieved my interview invite on January 21st. Also, this year applications are up >50%, so the recruitment process could take longer than usual. But, I honestly don't know.
  8. At Harvard, the timing of interviews differ by department, and within epi, timing differs by track/specialization. Last year, I was invited to interview after many of my friends had already completed their interviews for HSPH Epi. I got in. Don't stress yet.
  9. Current HSPH epi student...Each track sends out their own interview invites, scattered across a few weeks. I can't speak to all tracks, but I was not interviewed by my advisor. During the interview I was asked about my research interests, what I was working on (including the methodological considerations for those projects and the implications of my findings), and why Harvard was the right fit for me. It was realy casual and conversational.
  10. I can't speak to UTHealth, but at Harvard, the applications are way up. Last week, the admins told us that there were 845 appliations for all of the population health sciences PhD programs combined. That is up 306 applications up from last year, and we only have about ~42 funded spots. I think the pandemic has reduced the opporutnity cost of going back to grad school and has put public health in the spotlight in a way we haven't seen in decades.
  11. I agree with CatMeow1234. One thing to add: You should contact this professor, and a backup, now. Like today. Apps are due in 3 weeks and we have a major holiday in that time window. The longer you wait, the less likely anyone is to say yes because there is going to be such a time crunch.
  12. Don't stress about it. Years ago I applied to the same schools for masters and doctoral programs. I wanted to go straight into my PhD but understood it was a longshot. In my personal statement, I clearly communicated that I wanted get my PhD at the school and that the masters would prepare me for it. Admissions committees are familiar with this scenario.
  13. You could reach out to admissions at each school and ask for more detailed admissions stats. Alternatively, the MPH application forums over here are much more active than on grad cafe, and many students post their GPA, GRE, experience, and outcomes: https://forums.studentdoctor.net/forums/public-health-degrees-masters-and-doctoral.94/ What you do for work in between your BA/BS and MPH really depends on what you are interested in. Think about your interests within epidemiology: methods, aging, social disparities, clinical trials, HIV, substance use, etc. You can always look for research assistant positions at universities, hospitals, and nonprofits aligned with those interests. Jobs at CDC/WHO are hyper competitive, but there is an uptick in openings due the pandemic. Who knows what it will be like in a year when you graduate.Insert other media
  14. First, keep in mind that you almost certainly will not receive $$ with your admissions offer this late in the game. If you are independently wealthy, you might not care. Second, keep in mind that a lot of folks are applying to public health right now because the crisis is drawing their attention to it. It may be harder than normal to get in. If you still want to apply, check out this website: https://programfinder.aspph.org/. It is tedious, but if you click to expand each school and each degree at each school, it will show you the application deadlines.
  15. I think it is reasonable to assume that current events will make more people aware of our field, and drive an interest in ID epi in particular. I also know the NIH is allocating funds for covid 19 research. However, I doubt either of these things will translate into more funding for graduate students.
  16. Is this for a Biostats MS? It is actually pretty common for MS students in stats and biostats to pay tuition (though I personally know more biostatisticians than pure stats folks, so keep that in mind). The good news about advisor/mentor match is that you don't need to wait for the school to assign you an advisor. Reach out to faculty at schools you have been admitted to. Ask about their ongoing research, whether there are ways you could get involved with their research, and what that would look like. Use that information to help shape your decision. Finally, US News rankings are, in my opinion, worthless for graduate school. If you don't want to be a professor, you should be even less concerned with rankings, and more concerned about the strength of the alumni network. Side note, UW (#7 in public health) can be unreliable about funding public health PhDs (speaking from personal experience, and the aggregate experience of my peers), so apply to multiple programs when it is time.
  17. I would be really hesitant about rejecting the offers and applying again next year. Faculty on the admissions committee could remember this, and won't advocate for you as strongly in the admissions process because you already turned down good offers from them. Instead, they will fight to take on other students who will actually come and contribute to their research team. A faculty member on an admissions committee explicitly told me that they aim to only admit students that they are 99% sure will attend if offered admissions-- you would fail that criteria if you turned down their offers. I don't know you, but my advice would be to (1) Explain that you and your partner are going through a life transition, and ask for a 1 year deferral (do not mention that they are a "safety" or that you are uncertain about the city), (2) If they say no, consult with your partner and pick a city they think they could find work in, or finally, (3) If they say no to deferral, pick the program that is the best fit for you, and hope your relationship can survive the move (2 vs. 3 depends on how serious your relationship is).
  18. You already have two strong LORs from tenured faculty in mathematics. The third letter does not need to be from a professor! Many people apply to graduate school after several years of work experience, and get letters from their supervisor/boss. If you can get a strong LOR from an employer, it will look much better than a mediocre letter from a professor who does not know you well at this moment in time.
  19. You can always ask! Many schools won't take the time to give a detailed answer, though.
  20. Do they actually need a follow up now? If so, simply state that you would potentially be interested, and ask for details about the scholarship.
  21. Wait a few days, up to 2ish weeks before asking. They are likely working on it, and will let you know as soon as they can.
  22. It cannot hurt to let programs know you have outside funding. Sometimes programs want to make more offers, but do not have the money to do so, so it could help you get in.
  23. Is it a good school and good program? If yes, people would be quick to understand why you stayed (like ivy undergrads who stay on for grad work). That being said, you should not spend your entire career at one institution. If you stay, look for postdoc and faculty positions elsewhere. I have benefited from changing schools, gaining exposure to different academic cultures, and different opinions on major issues in my field. However, I will likely be staying at the same school for my PhD as my MS.
  24. Are you sure they were supposed to call you and not the other way around? If you have already followed up by email politely saying they missed the call, and you would like to reschedule, I would wait a few days to a full week. After that time, I would email someone from like the program admin and explain what happened, and ask what you should do next. Make sure you are always polite and friendly and do not throw anyone under the bus.
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