PhD EPI 2010 Admits

[raredisease]

Just thought I'd start a thread for PhD Epi applicants to post when they start hearing from schools.

Applied: Michigan, UW Seattle, Harvard, Emory, BU, UNC

Heard from: WashU

[katalytik]

Did you apply for the DSc degree at Harvard?

[raredisease]

Did you apply for the DSc degree at Harvard?

Yep.

[immigrant]

Got an email from Columbia over the weekend informing me that I was accepted (PhD Epi).

(still waiting for BU and Harvard)

[socialepi]

Got an email from Columbia over the weekend informing me that I was accepted (PhD Epi).

(still waiting for BU and Harvard)

Congrats immigrant! I think you might be the first person to hear back from any department at Columbia on both gradcafe and SDN. What area of epi are you interested in?

[raredisease]

On 2/15/2010 at 9:01 PM, immigrant said:

Got an email from Columbia over the weekend informing me that I was accepted (PhD Epi).

(still waiting for BU and Harvard)

Congrats!

I heard from Harvard (accepted... a nice surprise!) last Friday via email. So far I've heard from UNC, Emory, WashU, and Harvard, and am still waiting on Michigan and BU.

[socialepi]

Congrats to you too raredisease! What are you considering in your decisions process? I applied to many of the same schools (though I applied to masters programs for all except UNC since most schools require a masters first) and am feeling so overwhelmed by the decisions process (though I suppose I would rather be in this position than to not have choices). So far I've heard from UNC, Emory, WashU, Michigan, and Tulane and am still waiting on Columbia and Harvard. Are you going to any of the visit days? UNC and Michigan unfortantely have the same visit days. I guess that will be the first choice I'll have to make...

And for those of you applying to PhD programs - how did you like your master's programs? I'm interested in social epi, HIV, and global health.

[raredisease]

On 2/16/2010 at 9:05 AM, socialepi said:

Congrats to you too raredisease! What are you considering in your decisions process? I applied to many of the same schools (though I applied to masters programs for all except UNC since most schools require a masters first) and am feeling so overwhelmed by the decisions process (though I suppose I would rather be in this position than to not have choices). So far I've heard from UNC, Emory, UW, Michigan, and Tulane and am still waiting on Columbia and Harvard. Are you going to any of the visit days? UNC and Michigan unfortantely have the same visit days. I guess that will be the first choice I'll have to make...

And for those of you applying to PhD programs - how did you like your master's programs? I'm interested in social epi, HIV, and global health.

Hey socialepi,

I've decided on Harvard, due to the combination of a full funding offer (whew!) and staying close-ish to family. (umm, and maybe the name, just a little) It's also a great match for my interests - methods, neuro, and environment.

I did my MPH at Emory, and don't have anything negative to say about it. There is a thriving social epidemiology and global health program there, and a huge contingent of HIV researchers (many affiliated with the CDC). There is also a large group, led by Susan Allen, that focuses exclusively on HIV programs in Africa (http://www.rzhrg.org/index.html). They are always hiring students for research programs, and many do a 1-year internship in Africa after their MPH. I seriously considered Emory for PhD, and would have stayed without reservations.

That said, all of those programs you mentioned are world-class. I know the least about Tulane, but I know they have a famous tropical disease epi program. UNC and WashU are, with Hopkins and Harvard, generally considered the "top" epi programs (WashU was my second choice). And Michigan is my undergrad alum, and I know they have a large infectious disease epi focus, and are famous for their social epidemiology researchers. So this is probably no help at all

Enjoy your decision process!

(p.s. don't discount the importance of the city where the program is. atlanta is great, but not for everyone. same for new york.)

[socialepi]

On 2/16/2010 at 9:18 AM, raredisease said:

Hey socialepi,

I've decided on Harvard, due to the combination of a full funding offer (whew!) and staying close-ish to family. (umm, and maybe the name, just a little) It's also a great match for my interests - methods, neuro, and environment.

I did my MPH at Emory, and don't have anything negative to say about it. There is a thriving social epidemiology and global health program there, and a huge contingent of HIV researchers (many affiliated with the CDC). There is also a large group, led by Susan Allen, that focuses exclusively on HIV programs in Africa (http://www.rzhrg.org/index.html). They are always hiring students for research programs, and many do a 1-year internship in Africa after their MPH. I seriously considered Emory for PhD, and would have stayed without reservations.

That said, all of those programs you mentioned are world-class. I know the least about Tulane, but I know they have a famous tropical disease epi program. UNC and WashU are, with Hopkins and Harvard, generally considered the "top" epi programs (WashU was my second choice). And Michigan is my undergrad alum, and I know they have a large infectious disease epi focus, and are famous for their social epidemiology researchers. So this is probably no help at all

Enjoy your decision process!

(p.s. don't discount the importance of the city where the program is. atlanta is great, but not for everyone. same for new york.)

Thanks so much for the advice! Are there specific social epi profs at Michigan that you would recommend? I'll confess that I know the least about their program but applied since my boyfriend is considering law school in that area.

Also, thanks so much for the tip on Susan Allen. I'll definitely reach out to her.

Finally, I can't remember if you said if you got into WashU, but if you did, without going into too much detail, can you compare WashU's financial aid package to Harvard's? I don't expect to get any money as a Masters student but it would be nice to know what my chances are at funding for the future. Future funding opportunities and the likelihood that as a master's student I will be admitted into the school's PhD program is going to play a large role in my decision.

[infectdisease]

On 2/16/2010 at 8:54 AM, raredisease said:

Congrats!

I heard from Harvard (accepted... a nice surprise!) last Friday via email. So far I've heard from UNC, Emory, WashU, and Harvard, and am still waiting on Michigan and BU.

Congrat! I am still anxiously waiting for the results from the schools I applied to. I also applied to Harvard for their SD in Epi, but I don't expect myself to get in. If you don't mind me asking, what qualifications are they looking for the most? Do you already have some decent publications?

[infectdisease]

On 2/16/2010 at 9:18 AM, raredisease said:

Hey socialepi,

I've decided on Harvard, due to the combination of a full funding offer (whew!) and staying close-ish to family. (umm, and maybe the name, just a little) It's also a great match for my interests - methods, neuro, and environment.

I did my MPH at Emory, and don't have anything negative to say about it. There is a thriving social epidemiology and global health program there, and a huge contingent of HIV researchers (many affiliated with the CDC). There is also a large group, led by Susan Allen, that focuses exclusively on HIV programs in Africa (http://www.rzhrg.org/index.html). They are always hiring students for research programs, and many do a 1-year internship in Africa after their MPH. I seriously considered Emory for PhD, and would have stayed without reservations.

That said, all of those programs you mentioned are world-class. I know the least about Tulane, but I know they have a famous tropical disease epi program. UNC and WashU are, with Hopkins and Harvard, generally considered the "top" epi programs (WashU was my second choice). And Michigan is my undergrad alum, and I know they have a large infectious disease epi focus, and are famous for their social epidemiology researchers. So this is probably no help at all

Enjoy your decision process!

(p.s. don't discount the importance of the city where the program is. atlanta is great, but not for everyone. same for new york.)

Hi raredisease,

Just wanted to add some more questions/comments. I haven't heard from Harvard and other schools yet, so do you think it implies that I am rejected? I wonder if others have already heard from Harvard as well. I am sure you must be among the top applicants they are looking for. If you don't mind sharing, what kind of qualifications do you have that make you stand out? (This is what I was trying to ask, indeed.) I did my MSc in Epi at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, but the grading system there has been extremely stringent, so I am sure my grades didn't look as good as those who studied in the U.S. I am looking forward to hearing from you soon. Thanks!

[raredisease]

Hi raredisease,

Just wanted to add some more questions/comments. I haven't heard from Harvard and other schools yet, so do you think it implies that I am rejected? I wonder if others have already heard from Harvard as well. I am sure you must be among the top applicants they are looking for. If you don't mind sharing, what kind of qualifications do you have that make you stand out? (This is what I was trying to ask, indeed.) I did my MSc in Epi at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, but the grading system there has been extremely stringent, so I am sure my grades didn't look as good as those who studied in the U.S. I am looking forward to hearing from you soon. Thanks!

Hey infectdisease -

From what I understand, Harvard contacts individuals as soon as their application is decided upon. So you may be on a wait list, but it's unlikely that they've rejected you. I haven't heard of anyone else who has heard from Harvard, so I'm not sure how many people they've alerted.

As for qualifications, I have a few publications, two masters degrees, and good GRE scores.

Good luck!

[infectdisease]

Hey infectdisease -

From what I understand, Harvard contacts individuals as soon as their application is decided upon. So you may be on a wait list, but it's unlikely that they've rejected you. I haven't heard of anyone else who has heard from Harvard, so I'm not sure how many people they've alerted.

As for qualifications, I have a few publications, two masters degrees, and good GRE scores.

Good luck!

Hey raredisease,

Thanks for your reply. Where did you do your 2 Masters degrees, and in what areas? I understand that you did one of them at Emory, based on 1 of your previous messages. May I also ask how good your GRE scores were? As for publications, how many do you have as first or second author? I just wanted to see where I stand in the application pool. Thanks!

[edge2125]

I'm applying for doctoral Epidemiology programs starting in Fall 2010 as well. I've heard from Hopkins and Berkeley, but not from Harvard or Michigan.

Seems like not many have heard from Harvard (on this board at least). Anyone have any news from Michigan? According to an e-mail I had from them last month, they hoped to send out their initial offers by the end of February.

[infectdisease]

I'm applying for doctoral Epidemiology programs starting in Fall 2010 as well. I've heard from Hopkins and Berkeley, but not from Harvard or Michigan.

Seems like not many have heard from Harvard (on this board at least). Anyone have any news from Michigan? According to an e-mail I had from them last month, they hoped to send out their initial offers by the end of February.

Hi,

As of today, I still haven't heard anything yet. If you don't mind me asking, how did it go with Hopkins & Berkeley? Did you mean that you received an e-mail from Michigan that they hoped to send out initial offers by the end of February? Or did you mean Harvard?

[laeldo]

Hi raredisease,

Congrats on the acceptances! How did you hear about funding from Harvard? I was accepted via form email over the weekend, but no mention of funding or when they would be sending more info. Thanks!

[raredisease]

Hi raredisease,

Congrats on the acceptances! How did you hear about funding from Harvard? I was accepted via form email over the weekend, but no mention of funding or when they would be sending more info. Thanks!

Hey laeldo, I heard via email shortly after the acceptance (same day, I think). Congrats to you too! Planning on accepting it?

[edge2125]

Hi,

As of today, I still haven't heard anything yet. If you don't mind me asking, how did it go with Hopkins & Berkeley? Did you mean that you received an e-mail from Michigan that they hoped to send out initial offers by the end of February? Or did you mean Harvard?

It might take a while; I think decisions are sent out in batches, but I might be wrong. Perhaps you can e-mail the schools you applied to if you're getting anxious. I was accepted at both Hopkins and Berkeley. It was Michigan that I was referring to with the end of February thing.

Hi raredisease,

Congrats on the acceptances! How did you hear about funding from Harvard? I was accepted via form email over the weekend, but no mention of funding or when they would be sending more info. Thanks!

Congrats! I was accepted as well over the weekend. I was wondering about this as well - according to the academic coordinator, funding details will be provided over the next few weeks.

[infectdisease]

<br />It might take a while; I think decisions are sent out in batches, but I might be wrong. Perhaps you can e-mail the schools you applied to if you're getting anxious. I was accepted at both Hopkins and Berkeley. It was Michigan that I was referring to with the end of February thing. <br /><br /><br /><br />Congrats! I was accepted as well over the weekend. I was wondering about this as well - according to the academic coordinator, funding details will be provided over the next few weeks.<br />

<br /><br /><br />

Congrats to you all! I have to admit that this is kind of making me feel depressed, coz it seems to me I am not in, although I haven't received any letters yet.

[infectdisease]

<br />It might take a while; I think decisions are sent out in batches, but I might be wrong. Perhaps you can e-mail the schools you applied to if you're getting anxious. I was accepted at both Hopkins and Berkeley. It was Michigan that I was referring to with the end of February thing. <br /><br /><br /><br />Congrats! I was accepted as well over the weekend. I was wondering about this as well - according to the academic coordinator, funding details will be provided over the next few weeks.<br />

<br /><br /><br />

Hi edge2125,

I called HSPH on last Tuesday, and the office admissions assistant told me that mine is still under review and that they haven't sent out all of the letters of admissions and rejections. As of today, I still haven't received any news yet. I thought I would receive a letter of rejection over last weekend, but I didn't, so can I say no news is good news? I wonder if anyone else has received a letter of admissions/rejection from HSPH, and whether the HSPH send out all of the rejection letters at once after admissions letters are sent. I would really appreciate it of someone can "enlighten" me.

[laeldo]

Hi raredisease,

I'm not sure if I'll accept the offer from Harvard. I'm interested in reproductive epi and they don't really have much money in that area, which is really unfortunate. I got a better financial offer from BU, so we'll see. I'm waiting on a financial package from Illinois at Chicago (I don't expect too much) and still waiting on admissions decisions from Minnesota, Pittsburgh, and Toronto. I'm so sick of waiting!

Hope everyone had a nice weekend!

[edge2125]

<br /><br /><br />

Hi edge2125,

I called HSPH on last Tuesday, and the office admissions assistant told me that mine is still under review and that they haven't sent out all of the letters of admissions and rejections. As of today, I still haven't received any news yet. I thought I would receive a letter of rejection over last weekend, but I didn't, so can I say no news is good news? I wonder if anyone else has received a letter of admissions/rejection from HSPH, and whether the HSPH send out all of the rejection letters at once after admissions letters are sent. I would really appreciate it of someone can "enlighten" me.

I don't really know, to be honest. I think, obviously, it is better to have heard something than to have not heard at all, but if they're still sending out both acceptances and rejections, then there's still hope, isn't there? Some decisions might just take longer than others, for any number of reasons. Good luck - I hope things work out for you.

Hi raredisease,

I'm not sure if I'll accept the offer from Harvard. I'm interested in reproductive epi and they don't really have much money in that area, which is really unfortunate. I got a better financial offer from BU, so we'll see. I'm waiting on a financial package from Illinois at Chicago (I don't expect too much) and still waiting on admissions decisions from Minnesota, Pittsburgh, and Toronto. I'm so sick of waiting!

Hope everyone had a nice weekend!

Hey laeldo,

Congrats on your acceptance. If you don't mind me asking, did you actually get a financial offer/scholarship from the department or from the Financial Services Office? I haven't received any news on funding yet. I'm attempting to stay optimistic though, given that decisions are apparently still being made. However, my interests are in the area of substance use and psychiatric epi, which I fear might also be relatively impoverished areas at HSPH. And despite the allure of Harvard, I'm not sure I'll accept the offer, unless the funding is at least decent. I applied to University of Toronto as well - I have some knowledge of the school, so if you have any questions about them, I may be able to help. Good luck with your other schools!

[laeldo]

I don't really know, to be honest. I think, obviously, it is better to have heard something than to have not heard at all, but if they're still sending out both acceptances and rejections, then there's still hope, isn't there? Some decisions might just take longer than others, for any number of reasons. Good luck - I hope things work out for you.

Hey laeldo,

Congrats on your acceptance. If you don't mind me asking, did you actually get a financial offer/scholarship from the department or from the Financial Services Office? I haven't received any news on funding yet. I'm attempting to stay optimistic though, given that decisions are apparently still being made. However, my interests are in the area of substance use and psychiatric epi, which I fear might also be relatively impoverished areas at HSPH. And despite the allure of Harvard, I'm not sure I'll accept the offer, unless the funding is at least decent. I applied to University of Toronto as well - I have some knowledge of the school, so if you have any questions about them, I may be able to help. Good luck with your other schools!

Hey edge,

I got an email from the OSFS three days after I got the acceptance email. It directed me to the myfinaid page, where it detailed the loans they are so generously offering me. It is my understanding that unless you're in cancer or environment, the epi department is not the best place for funding. I agree that the allure is so tempting, but without some kind of financial package I'm not sure it's worth it. It sounds like Toronto would be a good place for psychiatric epi, with access to CAMH and everything. What do you think of the department? I'm hoping to hear from them soon so I can visit if I get in. I have a feeling it might be awhile though...

[edge2125]

Hey edge,

I got an email from the OSFS three days after I got the acceptance email. It directed me to the myfinaid page, where it detailed the loans they are so generously offering me. It is my understanding that unless you're in cancer or environment, the epi department is not the best place for funding. I agree that the allure is so tempting, but without some kind of financial package I'm not sure it's worth it. It sounds like Toronto would be a good place for psychiatric epi, with access to CAMH and everything. What do you think of the department? I'm hoping to hear from them soon so I can visit if I get in. I have a feeling it might be awhile though...

Thanks for your reply. I received an e-mail from the OSFS a few days after the acceptance e-mail as well. However, they weren't able to offer me any aid (I'd be an international student and am therefore ineligible for the various loans administered by the OSFS). According to the academic coordinator, that e-mail is preliminary: decisions are still being made, by both the department and OSFS, regarding various other awards, so there may still be some hope. Like you, I'm not optimistic, but there's nothing much to do but wait and see. I don’t think that it’s worth enrolling without funding, but I’m holding off on a final decision until I’ve visited and got all the relevant information.

The School of Public Health in Toronto seems well-regarded locally and nationally. Many of the faculty come from the various research hospitals and centres in the Toronto area, and many graduates find research jobs in these same institutions. I'm not sure of its reputation internationally, but I'm pretty sure it's not in the same league as the better known American schools. I think the Epi department is considered to be pretty solid though. Complaints I've heard specific to Epi courses relate to lack of electives and a lack of rigour in some areas (e.g. biostats). I didn’t actually take any Epi courses at the school, so I can’t vouch for this. On the plus side, they do appear to offer full-funding + stipend for all doctoral students. The amount is relatively meagre, once you subtract tuition, but it's better than nothing, and international students do get a little bit more.

There's a report of a survey of students regarding their experience at the school at http://www.sph.utoronto.ca/phssa/, which you might find useful, although it is a couple of years old. Regarding Ph.D decisions, I think they're generally expected starting mid to late March, so you may not have too much longer to wait! Good luck.

[Think_Positive]

Wow.... congrats to many of you for all your acceptances!

I'm afraid my application process isn't going quite as well. I've heard back from Johns Hopkins and Yale and was rejected to both. Still waiting to hear from U Pitt and Georgetown. However, I'm interested in emerging infectious diseases so the programs at the two schools I haven't heard from are a better fit anywhere. So I've still got my fingers crossed.