University of Washington vs. Columbia

[GH123]

Hi Everyone,

 

I've been perusing these forums for quite some time now, but thought I would post about my current predicament.  I got into UW Global Health and Columbia P&FH.  I know it's also very dependent on specifics of what I'm looking for, what I want out of a program, etc., but if there's anyone out there who has any insight, or advice, I would really appreciate it.  I don't want to pick Columbia just because it's an Ivy, but I hate to admit it, it certainly helps. 

 

Thanks! 

[FreeRadical]

In case you're not already aware, there are a ton of global health organizations in the Seattle area... Gates Foundation, PATH, World Vision, Health Alliance International, etc. Most of them have direct connections with UW. Obviously New York City has plenty of organizations too, but the global health network out here in Seattle is pretty vibrant. (My wife works for World Vision.)

 

Edit: Actually my post wouldn't be complete without mentioning how beautiful the city is. It's on the Puget Sound and -- on a clear day -- you can see the Cascade Mountains to the east and Olympic Mountains to the west. If you're into hiking at all, as home to the headquarters of REI, Seattle is basically the urban hiking Mecca of the United States IMHO.

Edited February 24, 2014 by FreeRadical

[livenlearn]

having lived in seattle, i gotta agree with free radical it's an amazing city and UW has plenty of connections with global health organizations. Either way you can't go wrong . both universities have great public health schools. Congrats

[faithfullywaiting]

I think it depends on your interests and if the school matches your interests. I've heard that UW is good if your are interested in pursuing research-and maybe Columbia would be better if you weren't. Make a list of pros and cons-it really helps!

[faithfullywaiting]

I think a the only thing that would make me choose Columbia over UW (other than prestige) would be that Columbia has specific tracks and it seems like students are able to choose a concentration within that program-where as UW has a general program. 

[Methylmadness]

I agree with all that has been stated here. I'm currently getting my MPH at Columbia and all my friends in the PopFam department absolutely love what they are doing. One thing I will say is that the Core curriculum here at Columbia is still getting some kinks figured out, it will be a lot of work, but it really helps prepare students thinking about public health problems with an interdisciplinary focus, rather than a departmental focus. I can't speak much about the PopFam department itself, I'm EHS, but really any MPH experience is what you make of it and the effort you put in to network.

 

The city is pretty great, the school housing is "affordable" at about $1000-$1200/month depending, but it is well worth it. There are also several other places to live in the city and there is always something to do. With that said, I'm from Washington state and I've basically grown up in Seattle, so part I can't put it down. Seattle is a beautiful place and UW is really a fantastic school. Like FreeRadical has stated, there are plenty of places to do networking in Seattle and they are all great. Also if you love just seeing nature and not transplanted nature, it's also wonderful. The cost of living there is significantly less, you will be paying about $1000 for an entire apartment instead of just a room in NYC. You should also take into consideration whether or not you want to have a car, this is a big factor, because as much as Seattle has public transportation, it really is a city where you should have a car.  The U district is a great place where there is always something going on and really fun places to eat (then again so is NYC).

 

Like Faithfullywaiting stated, make a pro- and con- list, not just about the school, but the location. When I was deciding schools I definitely noted professors I wanted to get in touch with and when I got to school, I got involved in the department with research and TAing, so make sure there are professors at both schools that you want to potentially work with.

[niihla08]

Where would you prefer to live post-graduation? Both are excellent programs, but their main networks are on opposite coasts. You should visit both cities if you haven't and decide which you like better, they are extremely different! Personally, I would never live in NYC (dirty! expensive! cold!) and i love the west coast (nature! weather! laid-back culture!) but that is just me  

[catsushi]

Congrats on the programs, but are you me?? I also am deciding between the same programs!! Same department at Columbia, too!

 

I grew up in Seattle, and I also have to say that UW is a beautiful campus and Seattle is a great city to live in. Also a great network of organizations (PATH, Fred Hutch, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, etc) and creative minds (Boeing, Adobe, Microsoft, etc). Plus the school seems very strong in quantitative/research areas, I absolutely love playing around with the charts on the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation website (http://www.healthmetricsandevaluation.org/).

 

Same as you, tempted to go for Columbia because of the name and ranking, although that's not really all that I am looking for. They're also one of the few schools that conducts research in Central Asia (which is quite rare it seems). 

 

I'm in the process of talking to some alums of Columbia MPH programs, I'll let you know what they say.

[GH123]

These are all so helpful, thanks!  

 

As vibrant and full of opportunities New York is, I just don't know if I want to live there.  I started making a pro/con list for each school, so we'll see where that takes me.  I am visiting the "admitted students weekend" for both, so no final decision will be made until I visit!

[catsushi]

Alright, so I asked my friend who is currently finishing Columbia through the Sociomedical Sciences program, and this is what she messaged me...

 

I'm in the Sociomedical Sciences department...to be perfectly honest I probably wouldn't recommend it. I can only really speak for my department, so you may get a different answer from someone in PopFam, but I ultimately wasn't in love with my program. I think we may be biased coming from [insert college we both went to], but I just felt like there was a lack of faculty support for students. The professors are all brilliant and are doing great work, they just don't really focus on students as much as I wish they would have.

 

I've taken a couple classes in PopFam and have a few friends in the department. I loved all the professors in PopFam and had a completely opposite experience than my own department. PopFam, probably the most so out of all the departments, has the perception that their professors care most about their students. So it sounds completely different from my department haha. As for the Global Health certificate, a bunch of my friends were Global and most of them loved it. It really depends on where you want to spend your 6 months abroad and what kind of organization you end up working at, but if you get a good placement then people really love that certificate.

 

I ended up ultimately decided between BU, Brown, Columbia, and Emory, so sadly I can't speak to any of the other schools. I would recommend visiting during admitted students weekend at each school, except you're in [insert country I am currently in] so that's not entirely feasible...I ended up choosing Columbia because they were so enthusiastic about their new curriculum and The Core, and the fact it was in NYC I thought there would be a lot of opportunities for jobs and research.

 

I've learned a lot in terms of research techniques and statistical software (SAS, SPSS, etc) on the technical side, but to be fair those are things you could learn at any school and I don't think Columbia excels in those skills on their own.

 

Mailman is on the medical campus, which is on 168th St in Washington Heights. It is not the best area of town, and I chose not to live on campus either year. There is not a lot up here in terms of grocery stores, bars, restaurants, etc. I lived closer to Columbia's main campus (on 116th St) last year, and this year I live in Midtown. I would definitely recommend living off campus if you want to take more advantage of the city. That being said, New York is amazing, has so much to offer, I'm sure you've heard that all before.

 

 

 

[SDOHEpi]

Hello all!

I'm a little late to this thread, but thought I'd put things out there to see if any of you are still following or active in the grad cafe forums!  I'm curious to hear what you ended up deciding as I'm currently deciding between the same exact two program for an Epidemiology PhD.  Let me know - any and all insight would be much appreciated!!