FDawg

Hahaha you got it! Davis will always have a special place in my heart. The advisor was Dr. Christopher Barker. I think his appointment is technically in the vet school but his work is largely in mosquito-transmitted diseases. I also remember he was exceedingly kind to me - at the time a wee undergrad wondering what the heck epidemiology was. Would definitely reach out if you're into ID stuff!

Hey - congrats on Davis!!! I feel you though. I lived in Davis for a year and actually RAed for an infectious diseases PhD student there. I still keep in touch with her loosely and she's currently working at the CDC. From what I remember, she loved her program and her advisor was incredibly supportive. Sorry I don't have more info on the program, BUT I do have a lot of info on Davis. First of all, I have to say I ABSOLUTELY LOVE DAVIS. It is a gorgeous little town. So chilled out and beautiful. Summers are HOT but you'll just have to take refuge in Tahoe (1.5 hrs away) and Yosemite (3 hrs away). I've had some of the most positive experiences of my life in Davis, and I was only there for a year. My brother did his PhD at Davis in Econ. When he first applied, it wasn't his top choice either but 6 years later he is a fancy professor at a liberal arts college and has never looked back. The community he built at Davis are now some of his closest friends (and mine). Also, super fun events that happen during the year (picnic day, tour, farmer's markets). AND Davis is super duper safe. Hope this helps a bit and let me know if you want more info! Edit: how could I forget? Davis is the bike capital of the world. Super flat and loads of bike lanes. You should see the bike racks in UC Davis during the semester. Pretty crazy

Thank you! I can't say for sure but my sense is acceptances have already been sent out. I know that admitted students weekend is happening on March 14-16.

Sorry meant to quote you! See reply above.

Hey guys, sorry to be the bearer of bad news - I got my official acceptance letter to Tulane epi on Friday the 5th. Also, I matched with Dr. Jiang He for the program. It definitely was a very based on fit with faculty as you start your dissertation research like the first week in.

Just got my official letter of acceptance to Tulane Epi. My only acceptance/13 applications. So excited and relieved. Full funding and stipend email package followed. Accepting the offer now. Other Tulane epis, let's connect!

Folks, I wanted to share my experience this application cycle so people really know how difficult it was to apply this year. I applied to mostly epi PhDs. Here goes: Stats: Undergrad GPA 3.8 (well-known foreign school), MPH epidemiology and biostatistics from top 5 PH program (GPA 3.93), GRE: 170V 165Q, 2 years full-time research experience at top 5 PH school, 2 co-author publications, 1 first-author publication. Worked on my personal statement for months and got a lot of feedback. Looking at it now, I still think it was a good one and checked all the boxes you're supposed to check for a statement. I did all my due diligence with contacting PIs before applying. I must have done 20 meetings. In each meeting, I'd specifically ask the PI if they are accepting PhD students next year, and if they'd feel comfortable with my including their name in my application. I always asked if they had any questions for me, and usually got interview-type questions. I had incredibly positive meetings with almost all the PIs I met with. 2 PIs at Harvard told me they highly anticipate my being accepted into the epi program. One PI at Hopkins who's on the admissions committee said she'd be very surprised if I didn't get at least an interview to the program. Results season comes around - my first rejection was from Hopkins. What followed was a stream of rejections from "safety" schools and everything in between. My anxiety was through the roof as getting a PhD offer was literally the only way I could stay in the US. I applied to 13 programs in total and finally got one acceptance. The irony was that I hadn't spoken with the PI at all before, and his research has nothing at all to do with my research interests or experience. Don't get me wrong, I'm super grateful to have the offer and will definitely take it. Just wanted to illustrate how odd/difficult of a cycle this was to apply. Anyway, hope this helps a bit. Congrats to all the folks with acceptances and for the folks with none, you'll come back fucking stronger next year.

Woooo Columbia epi rejection club!

Updating Tulane info: - Brown: 36K guaranteed for 5 years, TA required all semesters - BU: 36k guaranteed for 4 years, no TA required - Columbia (Mailman): 35k guaranteed for 5 years, TA required for 1 semester - Emory: >30k stipend for an unknown duration, (TA requirements unknown) - Harvard: 36k guaranteed for 4 years, TA required for 1 semester (@hopeful2020PhD please correct me) - JHU (Hopkins): just tuition guaranteed~24k stipend for 4 years but NOT guaranteed, (TA requirements unknown) - NYU: 25k??? for 5 years but only for 9 months/year, no TA required (@teabunny do you or anyone else remember the exact amount from the NYU interview day?) - Penn State Uni: 31k for an unknown duration, (TA requirements unknown) - Tulane: 28k for 4 years through RA-ing with advisor, no TA required, tuition, health insurance, fees guaranteed for 4 years - UCSF: ~40k guaranteed for 4 years, (TA requirements unknown) - U Minnesota: 24-25k for unknown duration, (TA requirements unknown) - U Penn: 34k stipend for an unknown duration, (TA requirements unknown) - Yale: 38k guaranteed for 5 years, TA required for 2 semesters

My economist brother said the same! Apparently after 2008, econ admissions went BANANAS for a few years. Other fields experienced a big uptick too. Looks like this year is the start of the same.

I was thinking about this as well. I really don't know if next year is going to be all that different. I can anticipate that all the great applicants from this year that didn't get in will apply again next year along with other great applications. I almost think it could the same or even more competitive next year. What are other people's thoughts?

Hi! I've been in contact with my PI from Tulane's epi program. He let me know they recommended me for admission but I haven't received an official offer letter yet. He just updated me that these will be sent out in 1-2 weeks. PS I didn't interview.

That definitely sounds promising!! Tulane is my only offer right now but glad it is as their program sounds great. Hey maybe we'll meet in person if we both join the program!

Hey! I got an email from a Tulane epi PI after some back and forth saying "we accepted you into our program", but haven't received an official acceptance yet. I wasn't interviewed. I talked to the PI and some of his students and feel excited about accepting the offer, but don't really know where to go from here since I haven't gotten official notice from the school yet...

I just want to say folks: it seems like we applied to public health PhD programs in the worst year to apply in a long time. That said, if you haven't/don't receive acceptances this year, this is not an accurate reflection of you or your application - it's an accurate reflection of how shitty this year was to apply. And if you've only received 1 acceptance, you should be so fucking proud of yourself. Take care everyone.