UMichigan vs BU vs Oregon State

[Dance321]

Hey guys! I'm in such a pickle right now. I've been offered acceptances to BU, Michigan, Oregon State and Tufts. I've already ruled out Tufts. However, I'm really torn on choosing between the other 3. BU and Oregon State I'm in for Intl Health and at Michigan I'm in for Intl Epi.

BU - I like that I have the opportunity to focus on infectious diseases as a concentration and the faculty have been so nice and catering (I've gotten a billion emails). However the school and the cost of living in Boston is insanely expensive. Plus with the curriculum changes going on in the next year - I'm a little uneasy about going to a school where I'm not sure what the curriculum will be. Plus I feel like boston is a huge program and like I would just be another fish in the pond here.

Mich - the schools prestige is definitely drawing me a bit, it is expensive but the cost of living seems much cheaper than boston, plus I think I would really enjoy Ann Arbor. The one thing that I'm turned off from is that the program is really Biostats heavy. I'm more interested in the biological and disease related aspects of epidemiology and less on the stats.

OSU - I think I would love Corvallis and I really like the curriculum set up (similar to BU, I would be able to generate a personal concentration in Epi in addition to the intl health one). It is a smaller school though and much less well known. It's a newer SPH, it used to be part of the Oregon MPH program that was similar to The Colorado MPH in that it is an umbrella program of all of the schools in the state. However OSU recently broke off and became independent. I really love the program but it isn't as well known.

I know I just wrote a book haha but any insight would be very helpful.

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[Dance321]

Also OSU has a much smaller program, similar to yale, and I feel like I would have a more intimate relationship with the faculty. However, this also could mean that the alumni base is smaller as well.

 

[JaneOakmede]

Hey guys! I'm in such a pickle right now. I've been offered acceptances to BU, Michigan, Oregon State and Tufts. I've already ruled out Tufts. However, I'm really torn on choosing between the other 3. BU and Oregon State I'm in for Intl Health and at Michigan I'm in for Intl Epi.

BU - I like that I have the opportunity to focus on infectious diseases as a concentration and the faculty have been so nice and catering (I've gotten a billion emails). However the school and the cost of living in Boston is insanely expensive. Plus with the curriculum changes going on in the next year - I'm a little uneasy about going to a school where I'm not sure what the curriculum will be. Plus I feel like boston is a huge program and like I would just be another fish in the pond here.

Mich - the schools prestige is definitely drawing me a bit, it is expensive but the cost of living seems much cheaper than boston, plus I think I would really enjoy Ann Arbor. The one thing that I'm turned off from is that the program is really Biostats heavy. I'm more interested in the biological and disease related aspects of epidemiology and less on the stats.

OSU - I think I would love Corvallis and I really like the curriculum set up (similar to BU, I would be able to generate a personal concentration in Epi in addition to the intl health one). It is a smaller school though and much less well known. It's a newer SPH, it used to be part of the Oregon MPH program that was similar to The Colorado MPH in that it is an umbrella program of all of the schools in the state. However OSU recently broke off and became independent. I really love the program but it isn't as well known.

I know I just wrote a book haha but any insight would be very helpful.

I am currently taking classes at OSU so I can provide some insight there. Although I haven't taken any grad classes, I did take an undergrad epi. The teacher was awesome and it was a small class. Given the class size we were able to have great discussions and would get into a circle to discuss journal articles. I know the students in the program seem to really like it. Actually the TA for my bio lab was an epi student in the masters program, indicating that you can definitely find paid positions. I am also working on a research project with an epi professor. My interests are infectious disease too, so he is helping me work on my own research project. He has been fantastic to work with. Very easy to get a hold of and willing to answer all my questions. Keep in mind that I am technically an undergrad in a total different program (micro). I sought him out and he was willing to work with me even though I'm not a grad student or a public health student. Overall if you go to OSU you will have great, approachable professors, who are doing solid research. I don't think it would be a bad choice to go to OSU. A couple caveats here. There are very few professors doing infectious disease research. Secondly, although Corvallis is a quaint town in a beautiful area, there are TONS of undergrads, and the majority of the rest of the people are families and retired folks. Given that you would be a grad program you would probably be able to make more friends in the right age group than I have, but in general it is a very slow area. I prefer to have some options for night life and cultural activities, which is part of the reason I did not apply to OSU. I'm not feeling the small town life. On another note, Oregon itself is awesome. If you are into any sort of outdoor activities this is THE place! Almost everyone participates in something from hiking, to biking, to climbing, etc. Hope this helps! If you have any other questions about the area or the school let me know...feel free to PM me or ask in the forum. Good luck!

 

[Dance321]

Thanks so much! I'm from Seattle so I'm going to visit the school over spring break.

 

[JaneOakmede]

Thanks so much! I'm from Seattle so I'm going to visit the school over spring break.

Oh, well then you know all about how great the PNW is .

 

[Stories]

I thought I should chime in an say that biostatistics is a critical part of any epidemiology program. While the biologic basis of disease is critical to certain subfields of epi (molecular epi), biostats makes up the bulk of all coursework so that data can be properly analyzed and interpreted and is critical in certain subfields (genetic epi).

As for school, I would personally say going to a place you'd want to live afterwards is a good starting point. Then cost is also important to look at too.

 

[Dance321]

I thought I should chime in an say that biostatistics is a critical part of any epidemiology program. While the biologic basis of disease is critical to certain subfields of epi (molecular epi), biostats makes up the bulk of all coursework so that data can be properly analyzed and interpreted and is critical in certain subfields (genetic epi).

As for school, I would personally say going to a place you'd want to live afterwards is a good starting point. Then cost is also important to look at too.

You're right Biostats is a necessary part of a epidemiology degree and career. What I meant to say was that there were less options for study of the biological aspects of disease than at the other programs.

 

[Mismi2]

Dance321,

I'm in a similar boat, but I live in Portland. I'm still waiting to hear from OSU and OHSU, but I got into BU and UAB (heard they had a great, underrated program, having second thoughts, wishing I had applied to Emory instead).

I applied to the ID Epi program at OSU as well. OHSU for the Epi, looking to get the Global Health certificate added on.

I'm glad to at least see someone on here that also applied to OSU. It was a last minute decision for me (after I really looked at housing prices in Boston), but I had just been on campus for a conference and heard good things about their program (small class sizes).

Keep checking back, let us know what you choose.