Lean

I would have a look at how many professors are in the program, or affiliated with it, that have published qualitative research. Have you applied to a thesis-based MPH? I'm not familiar with the schools personally. It might also be more important to find professors with mixed methods/qualitative research experience in your area/population of interest if you have one. They would be able to connect you with others who focus on that area/have helped them in their work. Getting support for a mixed methods thesis can be very hit/miss as you'd need a professor experienced in that or a supervisory team willing to help with both parts. It can take longer to pass ethics as well. I won't say it's impossible, but unless you're familiar with qualitative research, I don't think the single qualitative course that most MPH programs I've seen offer will set you up very well. If it's your first foray, qualitative research can be a lot to learn (multiple epistemological/ontological approaches to choose from) You will definitely want to supplement that with a lot of your own reading. I took a qualitative course during my MSc., but personally spent months learning theory and methodology before I was comfortable submitting my study design to ethics.

Okay for those who will be going to Queen's, feel free to direct message me for a link to a Facebook group I've made. I see there's some interest. If you know of anyone else going into the program feel free to share the link I send you.

Any group chats for Queen's MPH?

I'm just going to write a list of ways not specific to any situation. There's family loans/gifts, student bank loans, working as a teaching assistant, research assistant, work-study, summer jobs, paid co-op rather than an internship, school jobs like events, cafeteria work, tutoring, working outside of school part-time, scholarships, tons of internal/external bursaries out there you may be eligible for based on financial need, merit, equity (check multiple university scholarship pages), taking a year off to work if a school offers deferred acceptance, having work fund part/all of the schooling (probably rare), applying/dropping down to part time status to work, choosing OSAP eligible programs (I think thesis-based MPH programs are?), choosing low cost schools/low cost of living areas if you have options.

My offer through uoZone states: Deadline to accept your offer: by 2022-05-23 Deposit: Amount: $250 Due date: 2022-06-01

I don't know your situation, but I just want to say GPA isn't everything when applying for MPH programs. For example Western specifically stated they prioritize the letter of intent. It's great you're looking to improve your GPA and I'm sure it will help, but it could be worth it to get some research/work/volunteer experience to help round out your next application depending on what you've done previously. When I first applied to two MPH programs back in 2018, my GPA for the last 2 academic years just barely reached the 75% minimum to apply. My final semester grades hadn't come in yet, which were my best grades. I had a rough first two years at university so my grades were in the upper 60s first year and in the lower 70s second year. I was rejected by McMaster and waitlisted at Western, never to hear back. I got a late acceptance into a thesis-based MSc. program based on my full final 2 years. After my MSc., I worked some contract jobs the next year while applying for full time work in health policy which never realized. This time when I applied I only had an 81.1% avg over the last two years of undergrad, with a cumulative average of 75.9%. I also averaged 88.33% over 3 courses during my MSc, which increased my average over the last 20 courses by maybe 1 percent. I was very happy to be accepted at 3/4 schools that I applied to this round. Since school wasn't my forte, some things that I feel helped me the most when applying this round was a combination of research/work/volunteer experience. If you go the route of taking any further schooling like a graduate diploma, do your best to be as involved as possible. Join a student council since they have a low weekly hourly requirement and depending on your role can give you experience in leadership, project management, communication, etc. Join a lab! My lab connections are how I got my contract work experience after graduation, some volunteer hours, and one of my reference letters. I felt that networking with professors was extremely valuable.

Just checked my portal for uOttawa MPH and saw I was admitted! No email yet so might be worth checking your portals.

Oh I actually got into an MSc. program after I didn't get into the two MPH programs I applied to 3 years ago. So those courses were the required courses for that degree on top of my thesis. You can take masters-level courses during a post-graduate certificate though. For example, at Western you can get an Applied Health Science Graduate Diploma or Masters Degree. The students take the exact same same classes, the diploma students just take fewer courses. I'm sure it's similar at other schools too.

I'm pretty sure all university level courses (undergrad, post-grad certificate, masters, etc.) would be accepted to count towards your GPA. My MPH applications were rejected 3 years ago likely due to not great anything (grades, experience, letter of interest). Getting some experience in research through my masters and some contract work experience in the last year definitely helped me when applying this round! My average from the last 20 courses/2 years probably only went up 5% from a 76-81ish from when I last applied because of better final semester grades and my 3 masters level courses.

Mine still says "Status: under evaluation. Last update: 2022-03-14". Hopefully we all hear back soon! For those of you who heard back did any of you apply to a specific stream?

Not your quotee, but I got that email this week before my rejection.

Rejection was via email, with the letter stating they will be updating the portal in the coming days.

I just got my rejection letter from McMaster MPH. Congrats to all those who got in!

If you go back a page or two I have a post where they responded with Mid May as their timeline to hear back, but it is subject to change (as always).

The deadline to accept is May 14th.

I applied on the last day for Western as well, but received an offer of admission. I think the rolling admissions process means if after first round they still need more students for their 60 person cohort, then they will send out subsequent rounds of offers to candidates on their wait list. Good luck on getting in, I will likely be declining my offer there so a spot should open up for someone!

Can I ask why you prefer Western over Queens? I've accepted Queen's offer over Western, mostly because the difference in the cost of tuition practically covers living expenses. Also aren't all professional programs (i.e., non-thesis based) ineligible for OSAP? Or can you get OSAP if you go to another MPH program?

For anyone waiting on Ottawa MPH, I emailed last week and they replied over the weekend stating that: Thank you for contacting our office. The Admission Committee usually has decisions by mid-May. However, this is subject to change. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions. Sincerely, Chantal Stone Bureau des études supérieures et postdoctorales | Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies Office Faculté de médecine | Faculty of Medicine Université d'Ottawa | University of Ottawa Tel.: 613-562-5800 ex: 5215

@alittlestitious99 I agree there isn't much on Reddit, although I was able to PM a few older alumni about their experiences and where they are now for the programs I applied to. It's also well worth looking up some alumni on LinkedIn if you can! I've reached out to a few who have been receptive to short conversations about their experience and any general questions I have. You could also try emailing the program emails to put you in touch with current students or alumni? Although I'm not sure how effective that is, since I haven't tried it.

I haven't accepted yet, but I also get "the page you requested does not exist" when I select view decision.

Yes the student center status now reads "offered admission".

Just got UWO offer of admission to the MPH program! I'm a domestic student. Western asks for a $1,000 deposit to hold your spot in the program and are providing until May 14th to decide.

I can be quite challenging to rank order programs. There are a lot of factors/variables to consider like duration (12-16-24 months), teaching method (in-person, hybrid, online, practicum, thesis), general/foundational or specialization, local access to co-op and internship resources (public, private and non-profit agencies), alumni network, name recognition, cost, certifications/accreditation's (e.g., CEPH if you want to work in the USA). These factors can be assessed objectively as well as subjectively which entail their own strengths and weaknesses. It would probably cost a lot to thoroughly assess every program annually or even less often for the benefit of the schools/applicants. I believe this is why it is up to the individual to identify their needs and search for a program that meets those needs. What are you looking to get out of the program? If you don't know maybe a general program is ideal. Once you have an idea, reach out to your network to see what they might recommend. Assess your budget to tuition/cost of living, etc. Personally, I don't think it matters too much where you go to school as long as you can demonstrate that you have the skills required for whatever job/program you want in the future. Here is a very recent discussion from Reddit on a subjective assessment of MPH programs in the USA. https://www.reddit.com/r/publichealth/comments/tr2pt8/new_us_news_health_report_rankings/

It might impact your networking opportunities in Canada since you would lose the ability to make local connections around your school. Outside of that, I doubt it would affect it too much. We don't have an accreditation standard like in the USA, but you might want to make sure the program meets the core competencies identified here: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/public-health-practice/educational-programs-public-health.html If you're planning on working in Canada it might be a good idea to try and find a practicum placement in Canada if that's possible. I can't say I've seen any jobs that I've applied to ask about my knowledge of the Canadian Healthcare System specifically, but that may depend on the jobs you're looking at. Health policy jobs might care more, data analysis might care less.

Nothing yet from Ottawa, Western or McMaster. I'll update if I do hear anything form those programs. @MPH2022applicant