PhD/DrPH (Public Health) Fall 2024 - The Grad Cafe Forums

[andrewsethna]

American schools

19 hours ago, Mamitis said:

DrPH, yes. Two faculty members. It went ok. I felt good afterward, but then I realized I missed some key opportunities to tell my story that I wish I had back. Ah well.

what kind of questions did they ask you?

[Mamitis]

6 minutes ago, andrewsethna said:

American schools

what kind of questions did they ask you?

A big focus was on the components of their program, what about those particular components were compelling for me, and what I offered in return. Another focus was on values and where I wanted to take the degree. 

[publichealth_0995]

On 1/17/2024 at 4:10 PM, publichealth_0995 said:

Has anyone heard back from UMich HBHE or Hopkins Public Policy & Health?

Bump

[BZG]

On 12/15/2023 at 10:56 AM, DrPH2024 said:

Longtime lurker first time poster - anxiously awaiting decisions! Can we fast forward to March?

 

Undergrad GPA around 2.9, MPH GPA around 3.6. 6+ years of experience, a few publications, and conference presentations. 

 

Applied to the following online programs:

- GWU (submitted interview video/recording)

- UIC

- JHU, HPM + Bloomberg Fellows Addiction/Overdose

- Tulane

- USF, Advanced Practice Leadership

I've been planning a DrPH for so long it's surreal to think I'll (hopefully) be starting somewhere in 2024. 

I also applied to UIC and Tulane as well. Kinda nervous since applying right out of Grad school but have 3+ work experience 

[Qantu]

23 hours ago, Mamitis said:

DrPH, yes. Two faculty members. It went ok. I felt good afterward, but then I realized I missed some key opportunities to tell my story that I wish I had back. 

I am sure we all got that feeling after the interview. I also forgot several things, even when I tried to connect some missing points of my story across different questions.

We did our best and I hope that is enough for us and they can appreciate that 😃

[Qantu]

4 hours ago, andrewsethna said:

American schools

what kind of questions did they ask you?

I would also advice to go through some things that happened recently and were not reflected in your application.

I had two interviews for one program and the second one asked: What can you share with me that is neither in your application package nor was it mentioned in the previous interview? I struggled with that question. Hope this info helps you 😃

[BZG]

On 12/7/2023 at 2:45 PM, Lesfin said:

Anybody else apply to UNC’s DrPH in Health Leadership program? 

I originally was planning too but saw they wanted experience post MPH. 😕

[BZG]

Does applying early before the deadline actually increase your chance of getting accepted?

I've applied to 5 schools so far. 

[catbug]

22 hours ago, srhpublichealth8 said:

Brown BSHS sent interview invitations today!

Also, just to put this out there, as many of us are getting interviews, rejections, and acceptances, I so appreciate how supportive this forum is! To echo some earlier comments, the right path will happen at the right time. If you don't have a strong support system, or even if you do, know that somewhere out there is someone who's rooting for you! You're not alone.

As a first-gen grad student, I know it can be really hard to navigate the doctoral application process without "insider" knowledge. Higher education is very much a gatekeeping community. So here are some tips I've received so far! It's not an all-encompassing list by any means, but I hope this is helpful.  

Things you can do to prep for interviews:

• Review your application materials
• Review prospective program materials
• If you know whom you're interviewing with, review their recent publications/CV
• Prepare questions/answers
• Prepare email drafts (thank you notes) to send after interviews are over
• Mock interviews with colleagues, mentors, friends, family
• Take time to rest and destress!

Things you can ask faculty about:

• Current and future research
• Mentorship style
• How their expertise/experiences/connections align with your career goals
• Funding/work opportunities for students
• What they enjoy about working at their school/department

Things you should be prepared to answer:

• Why a PhD or DrPH (vs. other higher education paths, work, etc.)
• Why this program vs. other ones
• Whom you'd like to work with and why
• Your research/public health interests
• Your career goals
• Important experiences in your life (challenge you overcame, influential moments, etc.)

Things you can ask current students about:

• What they (don't) like about the program/department/school
• What they (don't) like about the area/city
• Are they happy? Do they feel supported professionally, emotionally, academically?
• Funding options and affordability (grants, stipend, etc.)
• General words of advice

Congrats and thank you so much for the helpful tips! Hope it all goes well for you:)

Edited January 19 by catbug

[catbug]

Has anyone interviewed at Berkeley/done in-person interviews at any university? Do you mind sharing your experience? Was the interview more conversational or do they actively try to grill your research experience? Bit anxious ngl

[qeeeeeeeeet]

On 1/17/2024 at 12:46 AM, ElieF said:

Hi all,

I'm a first-time applicant. Has anyone heard back from the Epidemiology program at BU, GWU, UCB, U of T, U Minni, or the University of Washington? Thanks.

I just received the rej from UW and also saw others' rej. Kinda sad. No message or interview before the rej saw on the GRADCAFE RESULTS. 

[YiL]

Seen a few posts about JHU admission process. Just want to shed some light into the process. Don't be discouraged. I don't know about other departments but for Epi, only those interviewed will be considered for admission and maybe even waitlisted (you will almost for sure be ranked after those who were interviewed and the waiting list is department-wise instead of track-wise). There could be late invitations and last year, someone got accepted from waitlist on 4.14. If you haven't received anything from the track you applied for in early February (there is still time for this year, I know people received interview on 1.19ish last year), reach out to the admission office or the track or even Fran to confirm. If they say they have sent out all the interviews, it should be considered as a rejection (unfortunate, but for me it's better than waiting with "'hope").

Bad news for international applicants, certain tracks (aging [100% sure] and ID track [not 100% sure but I remembered hearing someone from ID mentioned it] as I know of) will only consider those with citizenship/green cards if they only have a plan for 1 student for the year due to the requirements of NIH T32 training funding, regardless of interviews (they were sent out on a performance basis but admission has other factors to be weighed in)

I have a BSPH epi master of science. My boss was a previous JHU faculty who was a part of the admission process and I have friends/friends of friends all over Epi department (1-4 year PhD students and also applicants (myself a 2nd-time applicant) who are working in JHMI). So it should be accurate.

[Public health grl]

19 minutes ago, YiL said:

Seen a few posts about JHU admission process. Just want to shed some light into the process. Don't be discouraged. I don't know about other departments but for Epi, only those interviewed will be considered for admission and maybe even waitlisted (you will almost for sure be ranked after those who were interviewed and the waiting list is department-wise instead of track-wise). There could be late invitations and last year, someone got accepted from waitlist on 4.14. If you haven't received anything from the track you applied for in early February (there is still time for this year, I know people received interview on 1.19ish last year), reach out to the admission office or the track or even Fran to confirm. If they say they have sent out all the interviews, it should be considered as a rejection (unfortunate, but for me it's better than waiting with "'hope").

Bad news for international applicants, certain tracks (aging [100% sure] and ID track [not 100% sure but I remembered hearing someone from ID mentioned it] as I know of) will only consider those with citizenship/green cards if they only have a plan for 1 student for the year due to the requirements of NIH T32 training funding, regardless of interviews (they were sent out on a performance basis but admission has other factors to be weighed in)

I have a BSPH epi master of science. My boss was a previous JHU faculty who was a part of the admission process and I have friends/friends of friends all over Epi department (1-4 year PhD students and also applicants (myself a 2nd-time applicant) who are working in JHMI). So it should be accurate.

Thanks for sharing! I truly appreciate this thread and the lack of gatekeeping information! It’s good to fully understand things and share what we know. I work with faculty at Columbia Epi who have been on the admissions committee they take less than 5 students one year one department only accepted one student due to funding. It also comes down to faculty advocating for the applicant in committee. This is my first year applying for programs and I didn’t apply to Columbia yet because the department I wanted isn’t taking applicants at the moment and also they don’t like giving acceptances if they feel you would pick another school as it hurts their stats for accepted students to turn down the offer.

[PublicHealthShorty]

Anybody else feel a dagger in their heart when their interviewer mentions other interviews? Like ugh I thought we had something special 🥺😂

[BZG]

8 minutes ago, PublicHealthShorty said:

Anybody else feel a dagger in their heart when their interviewer mentions other interviews? Like ugh I thought we had something special 🥺😂

Yes 😂🫠😩

[epigirly]

Hi all!! I'm a first-time (v anxious) PhD applicant! I applied to a mix of programs: University of Toronto (epi), UW (health services), JHU (popfam), Harvard (PHS-SBS), Emory (epi), Brown (epi), McGill (epi), UNC (epi), and Columbia (epi) 

Has anyone heard from Columbia epi or Harvard SBS? Also, does anyone know if interviews are required for Emory and Brown? I didn't hear back so I'm taking that as a rejection (eep) but I have no idea what the process is/what to expect. 

Also, just to share info for others, I heard back from the following schools: 

JHU PopFam: emailed on 1/5 for interview

UofT epi: emailed on 1/18 for interview

UW: emailed on 1/19 for interview

Thanks so much in advance, and hoping for the best for y'all!! Wishing we could fast-forward to March!! 

Edited January 19 by epigirly

[andrewsethna]

thank you, did u receive an interview for the harvard drph as well?

17 hours ago, Qantu said:

I would also advice to go through some things that happened recently and were not reflected in your application.

I had two interviews for one program and the second one asked: What can you share with me that is neither in your application package nor was it mentioned in the previous interview? I struggled with that question. Hope this info helps you 😃

 

[ElieF]

Just out of curiosity, do we need to reach out to faculty members before submitting the application? (Especially for programs that are committee based.)

[PublicHealthBarbie]

Rejections are coming out....

I got rejected from Johns Hopkins PopFam and NYU Langone.

[Anairam]

I wonder why Tulane's taking so long to send invites this year. Maybe they've been sent we just don't know?!

[globalhealth_2024]

 

1 hour ago, PublicHealthBarbie said:

Rejections are coming out....

I got rejected from Johns Hopkins PopFam and NYU Langone.

I got rejected from JHU PopFam too... hang in there!

[binboy]

2 hours ago, epigirly said:

Hi all!! I'm a first-time (v anxious) PhD applicant! I applied to a mix of programs: University of Toronto (epi), UW (health services), JHU (popfam), Harvard (PHS-SBS), Emory (epi), Brown (epi), McGill (epi), UNC (epi), and Columbia (epi) 

Has anyone heard from Columbia epi or Harvard SBS? Also, does anyone know if interviews are required for Emory and Brown? I didn't hear back so I'm taking that as a rejection (eep) but I have no idea what the process is/what to expect. 

Also, just to share info for others, I heard back from the following schools: 

JHU PopFam: emailed on 1/5 for interview

UofT epi: emailed on 1/18 for interview

UW: emailed on 1/19 for interview

Thanks so much in advance, and hoping for the best for y'all!! Wishing we could fast-forward to March!! 

Did not receive an interview for Brown (epi), so also assuming rejection. Did get an interview for Columbia (EHS) this week, however.

[Qantu]

2 hours ago, andrewsethna said:

thank you, did u receive an interview for the harvard drph as well?

 

No, I applied to the PhD PHS in Epi

[YiL]

2 hours ago, ElieF said:

Just out of curiosity, do we need to reach out to faculty members before submitting the application? (Especially for programs that are committee based.)

Generally, it is not very helpful unless the faculty is in the committee or he/she really likes you and wants to advocate you to the committee. It is more useful if the decision is not made by a committee. But in some cases, we can get some information from contacting the faculty members.

[srhpublichealth8]

4 hours ago, ElieF said:

Just out of curiosity, do we need to reach out to faculty members before submitting the application? (Especially for programs that are committee based.)

Based on what current doctoral students and faculty have said to me, you should absolutely reach out to faculty you’d be interested in working with. It’s like an unspoken expectation you wouldn’t know about unless you were an insider. Most of them are more than willing to talk about their work in a short 30-minute Zoom call. (If they’re not, would you really want to work with them?) You can ask about current and future research projects, mentorship style, whether they can/want to take a doctoral student this cycle, and what value/new perspectives you could bring to their work. Even if they’re not on the committee, you can talk about your conversations with them in your statement of purpose. The committee will be more impressed with your application if you already have an idea of where you could fit into the department/program. It’ll also help you figure out if the department culture/vibes match what you’re looking for, and which ones you can weed out before you apply (preventing you from wasting time and money). The only time you shouldn’t reach out to faculty is if the program website specifically says not to.

Edited January 19 by srhpublichealth8