Advice seeker here. How to sell myself to PhD adcom?

[slaNYC]

I'm looking for feedback about my chances for admission to PhD programs in community health science type programs and how to sell myself in my SoP.

Undergrad GPA: 3.26 UCSB

Graduate GPA (I have a MPA): 3.82 NYU

GRE: Q: 156 revised (90%) = 720 old version

V: 164 revised (74%) = 640 old version

AW: 5.0 (87%)

I should have 3 great letters of rec.

I have worked for a professor doing research since I was in my graduate program (2003). I have managed many large-scale research and evaluation projects and participated in all aspects of the work including design, data collection, interviewing, analysis, and writing. I've also published and presented at conferences including APHA. The prof I work for has allowed me to do whatever I want. I'm going back to school though so I can be a colleague and work on projects I want rather than what she is funded to do.

My issue is that all advice (and it makes perfect sense) is that you have to be the right fit for a school. However, I don't have a strong preference as to my content area. I just love to do research and can get excited about many topics. I've done research/evaluations on obesity/diabetes prevention and health services. Though I'm more interested in other topics including substance abuse, tobacco control, reproductive health, violence prevention, and obesity. What I really like to do is to figure out the most rigorous design possible given the limitations of an applied setting, I like figuring out data collection methodologies, and I like being in the field to see the real world. I guess my question is, how should I sell myself to schools in my SoP?

[Gradstar]

Your GRE, GPA, and research experience makes you a strong candidate. Have you looked at which schools you would be interested in applying to? Being interested in several areas is not really a bad thing. On the contrary, it gives you many options. If you have a potential list of school you are interested in, I think the best strategy would be to tailor your statement to match the research interests of that school in areas that are strongest in that school. Research programs focus on developing skills and techniques in scientific methodology. You can write about your interest in gaining these skills and what you would like to do with a PhD. Also, you can something like " Community health is a broad area and encompasses several areas such as substance abuse, tobacco control, reproductive health, violence prevention, and obesity. I think that in the face of complexity we face in this discipline, it would ineffective to specialize too narrowly." or you can express your intention of choosing your area of emphasis as you progress through the fist year. Hope this helps.

[DeeLovely79]

I'm looking for feedback about my chances for admission to PhD programs in community health science type programs and how to sell myself in my SoP.

Undergrad GPA: 3.26 UCSB

Graduate GPA (I have a MPA): 3.82 NYU

GRE: Q: 156 revised (90%) = 720 old version

V: 164 revised (74%) = 640 old version

AW: 5.0 (87%)

I should have 3 great letters of rec.

I have worked for a professor doing research since I was in my graduate program (2003). I have managed many large-scale research and evaluation projects and participated in all aspects of the work including design, data collection, interviewing, analysis, and writing. I've also published and presented at conferences including APHA. The prof I work for has allowed me to do whatever I want. I'm going back to school though so I can be a colleague and work on projects I want rather than what she is funded to do.

My issue is that all advice (and it makes perfect sense) is that you have to be the right fit for a school. However, I don't have a strong preference as to my content area. I just love to do research and can get excited about many topics. I've done research/evaluations on obesity/diabetes prevention and health services. Though I'm more interested in other topics including substance abuse, tobacco control, reproductive health, violence prevention, and obesity. What I really like to do is to figure out the most rigorous design possible given the limitations of an applied setting, I like figuring out data collection methodologies, and I like being in the field to see the real world. I guess my question is, how should I sell myself to schools in my SoP?

I think have already spelled out your disease interests and your desire to understand and develop data collection methods (hint you may want to research the field of psychometrics) I think you should focus on applying to schools that have strong focuses in those conditions. You may want to think about a focus on adolescent health as many of those topics are especially relevant.

I have an MPH but this is my first time applying to PhD programs so I don't know this definitively public health and academia in general seems to be biased towards specializing in a few topics. I do feel that generalists have a place in public health but in my opinion the field seems to prefer researchers who specialize. You need to find a way to balance presenting your interests (the more of them you have the more faculty you can be matched with) without seeming too scattered and unfocused. My guess is if you spent more time thinking about your interests you could probably narrow them down even further.

Another thing to consider when writing your SOP is "What qualifications do I have /perspectives that I can offer that are not obvious from my transcript/CV/recommendation letter?" Many schools of public health do not conduct interviews for doctoral so your only opportunity to show them what sets you apart from the other candidates (if you haven't spoken to any faculty) is your SOP. So you should think about using your SOP to tell the story your other materials can't.

Hope this helps.