Phdhopeful2019 Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 Hi all! My anxiety about applying to PhD programs next year is creeping in as my friends are now receiving decisions from this cycle. I want to research the the effects of racism and other forms of discrimination on health and evaluate policies to eliminate systemic discrimination as a means to better health. My biggest worry for admissions is that I don't have a Master's. I don't want to pay for an MPH when I already have pretty substantial research experience and did a public health undergrad major. I'm wondering if you could take a look at my credentials and let me know your thoughts on whether not having the Master's degree will hurt me in admissions? Undergrad: top 30 US News private university, GPA was 3.8-something, magna cum laude, did double major + minor all directly related to my intended PhD studies Research experience: 4+ years editing/drafting papers for a professor and doing some analyses, 2 years in a psychology lab, did an honors thesis (collected my own data, passed IRB etc.), 2 years working for top public health researcher post-undergrad. My LORs will all be from profs I have done research with and will be stellar. GRE: On ETS practice exam I got 170V, 154Q (I'm working to break 160 on quant in the real test) Additional: I'm expecting to have 2 empirical papers under review by the time I submit my applications, and I will have a couple of non-peer reviewed public health publications. I received a couple of rewards and research grants in undergrad, but nothing too impressive (no Fulbright or anything like that) So... what do you think? It is a waste of time to apply to PhDs without the master's or do I have a shot? THANK YOU!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boisdejasmin Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 7 hours ago, Phdhopeful2019 said: Hi all! My anxiety about applying to PhD programs next year is creeping in as my friends are now receiving decisions from this cycle. I want to research the the effects of racism and other forms of discrimination on health and evaluate policies to eliminate systemic discrimination as a means to better health. My biggest worry for admissions is that I don't have a Master's. I don't want to pay for an MPH when I already have pretty substantial research experience and did a public health undergrad major. I'm wondering if you could take a look at my credentials and let me know your thoughts on whether not having the Master's degree will hurt me in admissions? Undergrad: top 30 US News private university, GPA was 3.8-something, magna cum laude, did double major + minor all directly related to my intended PhD studies Research experience: 4+ years editing/drafting papers for a professor and doing some analyses, 2 years in a psychology lab, did an honors thesis (collected my own data, passed IRB etc.), 2 years working for top public health researcher post-undergrad. My LORs will all be from profs I have done research with and will be stellar. GRE: On ETS practice exam I got 170V, 154Q (I'm working to break 160 on quant in the real test) Additional: I'm expecting to have 2 empirical papers under review by the time I submit my applications, and I will have a couple of non-peer reviewed public health publications. I received a couple of rewards and research grants in undergrad, but nothing too impressive (no Fulbright or anything like that) So... what do you think? It is a waste of time to apply to PhDs without the master's or do I have a shot? THANK YOU!!! It's possible to get admitted without a master's degree, but it likely will limit your options to a small group of schools. There is not set standard and even as someone who was applying to DrPH/PhD programs with a non-MPH, but still relevant master's degree I was getting mixed feedback on my chances. Your best bet is to try to identify your top program choices and then contact the program directly to discuss admissions criteria. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
storm_jonas Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 It's true that it's much harder to get into a PhD program without a master's degree - but if you have a good story and research plan it's definitely possible. As @boisdejasmin pointed out - you'll have to apply to a specific set of schools. Smaller schools or schools that have a program that combines a masters and PhD (like UNC) are probably your best bet. There are people that get into programs like Hopkins with no Masters - but they typically are coming in from years of work from a cross-cutting field (or have another doctorate). With your experience you might also consider a DrPH (but only if you want to go into practice). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
squirrelene Posted April 1, 2018 Share Posted April 1, 2018 I got into a PhD program without a master's degree! I was also concerned but during interviews, most of the professors stated that it wouldn't put me at a disadvantage. I also have a research background similar to yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now