PhD Applicants Fall 2017

[epi_08]

14 minutes ago, AryaStark said:

Not at all! Infectious diseases with a focus on social determinants of health and population health approaches.

Thanks! I am cancer epi so hoping there is still a chance!

[SocialPubHealth]

1 hour ago, JSnow said:

Has anyone heard from UCSF or UCLA?

Haven't heard from UCLA (Community Health Sciences--which dept did you apply to??). Here's the message I received from them when I inquired:

Application decisions will be released between mid-February to early March.

Thank you,

--

Jennifer O'Brien

Student Affairs Officer

Community Health Sciences | UCLA Fielding School of Public Health

[2016Epi]

Hi, everyone! First post this year.

• I applied to Stanford, Berkeley, UCSF, WashU, UCLA, and Oregon State 
• Got interviews for UCLA, Stanford, UCSF, and OSU so far.
• Accepted into OSU and WashU, UCSF, and an unofficial yes from UCLA POI.

Since I'm seeing some folks get rejections and worrying about silence from schools, I wanted to share to anyone interested where I was last year. As you can see from my profile name, I applied last year for the Fall 2016 cycle, to pretty much all the same schools as this year (replace Stanford with UMich). I got interviews at Michigan but ultimately was rejected from there and each of the other schools. It was a HUGE bummer.

Don't worry this cycle is definitely not over for those of you who haven't been accepted somewhere yet! You can find out all they way in April.

But if you DO get rejected from all the schools you applied to, like I did last year, please know that things can turn around. I tried again, and have heard good things from every school except Berkeley which is radio silence (and I didn't have a good research fit there). WashU is my dream school and I got in on the second try. Y'all can too. Last Spring I met with someone I would have loved to work with at one of the schools and asked what I could have done differently. I changed those things, and voila! Get feedback, talk to people, you got this. 

Stay positive! No rejection is a death sentence!

[EpiPhDGal]

Thanks for the positive words! Congrats on all your acceptances. Did you hear back from UCSF today?

[JSnow]

21 minutes ago, SocialPubHealth said:

Haven't heard from UCLA (Community Health Sciences--which dept did you apply to??). Here's the message I received from them when I inquired:

Application decisions will be released between mid-February to early March.

Thank you,

--

Jennifer O'Brien

Student Affairs Officer

Community Health Sciences | UCLA Fielding School of Public Health

I also applied to Community Health Science. Ughhhhh it IS mid-February! As of yesterday! hahaha this waiting game!

 

@2016Epi thanks for that wonderful response! Now, important question...is your last name in the beginning, or the end of the alphabet?

[2016Epi]

6 minutes ago, EpiPhDGal said:

Thanks for the positive words! Congrats on all your acceptances. Did you hear back from UCSF today?

Yep UCSF was this morning. How about you?

[EpiPhDGal]

5 minutes ago, 2016Epi said:

Yep UCSF was this morning. How about you?

I have not heard back, which I assuming is not a good sign. What are you research interests?

[2016Epi]

5 minutes ago, JSnow said:

I also applied to Community Health Science. Ughhhhh it IS mid-February! As of yesterday! hahaha this waiting game!

 

@2016Epi thanks for that wonderful response! Now, important question...is your last name in the beginning, or the end of the alphabet?

It's nearby to yours if your name was really Jon Snow

[2016Epi]

3 minutes ago, EpiPhDGal said:

I have not heard back, which I assuming is not a good sign. What are you research interests?

UCSF definitely does waitlist folks, so depending on what the accepted people do you could have a solid chance. I'm into infectious disease epi- spatial/mathematical modeling of transmission dynamics.

[fpf1290]

1 hour ago, light10491 said:

Rejected by NYU!

 

Anyone know about what's happening at Michigan HPM? Or Minnesota?

I reached out to Michigan a while back and they said that they release decisions throughout February (and have already started doing so).

[SDOHEpi]

1 hour ago, 2016Epi said:

Yep UCSF was this morning. How about you?

Thank you so much for the kind, honest, encouraging post!!  And congrats on all of your acceptances.   For UCSF, did you receive an official notification directly from the school or a professor that you spoke with throughout the process?  

[2016Epi]

18 minutes ago, SDOHEpi said:

Thank you so much for the kind, honest, encouraging post!!  And congrats on all of your acceptances.   For UCSF, did you receive an official notification directly from the school or a professor that you spoke with throughout the process?  

Thanks UCSF sent an official email from the admissions director saying I was accepted, then an automatic email to check the website (which was the same email they sent when I was rejected last year, just saying the status had changed). 

[SocialPubHealth]

Could you share with us any feedback that you received on your applications that helped you get in to so many more schools this time around? UCLA is my top. And thank you for the words of wisdom!!

[2016Epi]

58 minutes ago, SocialPubHealth said:

Could you share with us any feedback that you received on your applications that helped you get in to so many more schools this time around? UCLA is my top. And thank you for the words of wisdom!!

Yeah totally! I'm sure it's different for everyone but I'll share what the professor told me last Spring and hopefully it helps.

Basically, he said they get a lot of applications and it helps a LOT if they know your name by the time your application hits their desk. I hadn't talked to any POIs before applying last year. I just listed whose research I admired from afar in my statements of purpose. So in the late summer/fall this cycle, I emailed every professor I thought had cool research and asked if I could discuss their work and the program. Some of them said they're not looking for new PhD students, but most of them agreed to talk with me over the phone or meet in person.

Individually some of them gave me even more feedback, like to emphasize that the projects I'd been on were specific to epidemiology on my CV. I've also submitted my thesis since then, and while it's not published they could at least see that I have done something with heavy stats so I'm sure that helped. I went to a conference which probably didn't hurt. I think most of it came down to talking to POIs beforehand though. One at UCLA actually even said that it was because I emailed her persistently and seemed excited about her work that she thought I'd be a good fit.

So it was like a double bonus piece of advice because meeting with people helped form a relationship with people at the school, and in turn they gave me more feedback specific to my application. It's like a mini practice application, and you can revise your strategy/ideas before the real thing. Plus, if a POI is not interested, at least it's a mini rejection instead of a big no thank you from the entire school. I wish I'd shared this advice earlier but I didn't know until recently that it was going to work for me.

Too long; didn't read: meet POIs

Best of luck!!!

Edited February 15, 2017 by 2016Epi
typo

[EpiApp]

I also received notice of acceptance to UCSF this morning.

2016Epi, have you settled on UW? I am also limiting myself to West Coast programs, so I'd be curious to hear your thoughts.

[2016Epi]

1 minute ago, EpiApp said:

I also received notice of acceptance to UCSF this morning.

2016Epi, have you settled on UW? I am also limiting myself to West Coast programs, so I'd be curious to hear your thoughts.

Congratulations!!

No I'm panicking a significant amount at this time. Definitely torn between SF and Seattle. Would love to hear your thoughts as well- happy to discuss more in the direct messaging thing.

[mph2phd2017]

Longtime lurker, first time poster.

Anxiety is through the roof waiting for the decisions to be made!

Has anyone heard from OHSU, OSU, or Colorado?

I'm nervous because despite having a great GPA (3.8), research, publications, grant writing experience, work experience, excellent LORs and consistent contact with my POIs, I had terrible GRE scores. My brain just doesn't do well during standardized testing. Help ease my mind, or confirm my fears. Whichever. Ha.

[modifer]

1 hour ago, mph2phd2017 said:

Longtime lurker, first time poster.

Anxiety is through the roof waiting for the decisions to be made!

Has anyone heard from OHSU, OSU, or Colorado?

I'm nervous because despite having a great GPA (3.8), research, publications, grant writing experience, work experience, excellent LORs and consistent contact with my POIs, I had terrible GRE scores. My brain just doesn't do well during standardized testing. Help ease my mind, or confirm my fears. Whichever. Ha.

Is this for Epi programs? If so, I received an invitation request late January for OHSU and received an acceptance early this month. For OSU, I applied a week or so before 12/1, my application was reviewed early January, and I was accepted the end of January. I haven't heard anything for Colorado, but I did applied on 2/1. 

Regardless, I had average GREs, and I knew people who got into Epi PhD programs with lower than average scores. From my perspective, it appears that the majority of schools look at your application as a whole, and the importance of GRE scores, especially if you already have a Masters, seems debatable (although they appear to be important for some funding opportunities). I think your experiences are great, so don't lose hope yet! 

Edited February 16, 2017 by modifer

[epi_08]

Has anyone heard from University of Michigan Ann Arbor for the PhD in Epi post interview? 

 

[anthrostudentcyn]

does anyone know anything about NYU's process? I interviewed but am waiting for next steps

[policy2017]

19 minutes ago, light10491 said:

Has anyone submitted any updates since their application. I submitted a recently accepted manuscript (it was on CV as in review, but I just sent the acceptance letter for it).

This was earlier this week. Do you think this affects anything, or only for schools still reviewing applications?

I did because I had a work project that directly related to something on my SOP and my eventual goals come up two weeks after I locked the app in early September (and then waited two months for a LOR). This was mid-January, and I don't know if it made a difference?

[kl_sn]

I sent an email inquiry on my application status in Harvard and I got his reply back - 

"Applications are presently under review.  You will be notified by email when a decision has been made on your application. Decisions will be available to view by logging into your application using your login and password.  All decisions will be made by early March.

Sincerely,

Harvard GSAS Admissions"

[kl_sn]

15 hours ago, 2016Epi said:

Yeah totally! I'm sure it's different for everyone but I'll share what the professor told me last Spring and hopefully it helps.

Basically, he said they get a lot of applications and it helps a LOT if they know your name by the time your application hits their desk. I hadn't talked to any POIs before applying last year. I just listed whose research I admired from afar in my statements of purpose. So in the late summer/fall this cycle, I emailed every professor I thought had cool research and asked if I could discuss their work and the program. Some of them said they're not looking for new PhD students, but most of them agreed to talk with me over the phone or meet in person.

Individually some of them gave me even more feedback, like to emphasize that the projects I'd been on were specific to epidemiology on my CV. I've also submitted my thesis since then, and while it's not published they could at least see that I have done something with heavy stats so I'm sure that helped. I went to a conference which probably didn't hurt. I think most of it came down to talking to POIs beforehand though. One at UCLA actually even said that it was because I emailed her persistently and seemed excited about her work that she thought I'd be a good fit.

So it was like a double bonus piece of advice because meeting with people helped form a relationship with people at the school, and in turn they gave me more feedback specific to my application. It's like a mini practice application, and you can revise your strategy/ideas before the real thing. Plus, if a POI is not interested, at least it's a mini rejection instead of a big no thank you from the entire school. I wish I'd shared this advice earlier but I didn't know until recently that it was going to work for me.

Too long; didn't read: meet POIs

Best of luck!!!

Thank You Very Much! Much appreciated! And Congratulations!! :-)

[SocialPubHealth]

16 hours ago, 2016Epi said:

Yeah totally! I'm sure it's different for everyone but I'll share what the professor told me last Spring and hopefully it helps.

Basically, he said they get a lot of applications and it helps a LOT if they know your name by the time your application hits their desk. I hadn't talked to any POIs before applying last year. I just listed whose research I admired from afar in my statements of purpose. So in the late summer/fall this cycle, I emailed every professor I thought had cool research and asked if I could discuss their work and the program. Some of them said they're not looking for new PhD students, but most of them agreed to talk with me over the phone or meet in person.

Individually some of them gave me even more feedback, like to emphasize that the projects I'd been on were specific to epidemiology on my CV. I've also submitted my thesis since then, and while it's not published they could at least see that I have done something with heavy stats so I'm sure that helped. I went to a conference which probably didn't hurt. I think most of it came down to talking to POIs beforehand though. One at UCLA actually even said that it was because I emailed her persistently and seemed excited about her work that she thought I'd be a good fit.

So it was like a double bonus piece of advice because meeting with people helped form a relationship with people at the school, and in turn they gave me more feedback specific to my application. It's like a mini practice application, and you can revise your strategy/ideas before the real thing. Plus, if a POI is not interested, at least it's a mini rejection instead of a big no thank you from the entire school. I wish I'd shared this advice earlier but I didn't know until recently that it was going to work for me.

Too long; didn't read: meet POIs

Best of luck!!!

WOW! Thank you!!! That is so kind of you to share. I hope everyone benefits from it. I always wonder what to talk about in those pre-application emails to POIs. I did it a couple times before and it seemed to go okay but I haven't heard back from one of them (the other was an app I did three years ago for a PhD that was a long shot and I got rejected as expected). At the end of the call the POI said "good luck with your application" and it sounded kinda like he had no faith in me...

[2016Epi]

4 hours ago, SocialPubHealth said:

WOW! Thank you!!! That is so kind of you to share. I hope everyone benefits from it. I always wonder what to talk about in those pre-application emails to POIs. I did it a couple times before and it seemed to go okay but I haven't heard back from one of them (the other was an app I did three years ago for a PhD that was a long shot and I got rejected as expected). At the end of the call the POI said "good luck with your application" and it sounded kinda like he had no faith in me...

I still have no real idea; there was a lot of confusion and awkwardness in all my emails! I forgot to attach my CV in one initial email to a PI then in my 'whoops I forgot the CV' email I also forgot to attach it so I had to email a third time. Horrifying. I'm sure your POI was very glad you reached out- and if not, then maybe they wouldn't even be a good person to work for for the next five years