Dartmouth CECS

[welovelamarodom]

Anyone know anything about Dartmouth's CECS program? It sounds expensive (30K), but you can get an MS in 9-months. Any specific info/recommendations? Thanks.

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[superdevil]

Origianlly Posted by welovelamarodom
Anyone know anything about Dartmouth's CECS program? It sounds expensive (30K), but you can get an MS in 9-months. Any specific info/recommendations? Thanks.

its a pretty new program, and the 9-month program you're referring to is the MPH or the MS. i may be going to DMS, and my fiance has been accpeted to the MPH program at the CECS, so i do know a bit about the program. they even send the accepted med students a packet of CECS stuff to talk about the MD/MPH program. like i said, its new, so the competitiveness may be a little less than the typical ivy league public health program (for instance, although i have no idea what her score was, my fiance says her GRE was just above the natl. average or something like that), so that's a plus. also, they have the c. everett coop institute there, and dr. coop (former surgeon general) still works there--totally cool! i know 30k seems like a lot of $$$, but to have an ivy league graduate degree in nine months is pretty friggin' cool, if you ask me.

 

[Phil Anthropist]

I think Dartmouth's CECS programs sound very intriguing, but I think that if you're trying to find a program that will help you make up for undergrad shortcomings (e.g., low cume GPA or low bcpm)...

DO NOT DO THE DARTMOUTH CECS!!!

My reasoning:

The Dartmouth 9-month MPH and MS programs through CECS both use pass-fail grading systems (well, I think the scale is something like Honors, High Pass, Pass, etc., but there are no letter grades). The Dartmouth CECS programs sound very interesting and unique (I know of no other MPH programs that are similar), but [not] if you're battling back from a low undergrad GPA...The Dartmouth programs sound GREAT if your application is already pretty good (3.5/3.5/30), but I think it's a very bad idea if you still need to prove your academic capabilities.

From: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showpost.php?p=2392513&postcount=2

In other words, one-year special masters/certificate >>> Dartmouth CECS for proving you're med school material. Dartmouth CECS would be a great glide year program, it would be a great way to make a difference in medicine (through clinical evaluation), its MPH is CEPH-accredited, and it's an Ivy League master's degree (ooohhhh....ahhhhh!)! I also remember loving the atmosphere when I visited Dartmouth. But this is simply not the best route if one is trying to make up for past academic shortcomings.

Edit: Also, I believe Dartmouth's Public Health programs are only through the CECS program. Most major public health schools (Harvard, Hopkins, Tulane, Berkeley, Boston U, etc.) have many concentrations (e.g., Biostats, International, Tropical Medicine, Epidemiology, Behavioral Health). Dartmouth's CECS program is unique, but all the concentrations are in CECS. There aren't any other MPH options outside the CECS, if I remember correctly.

 

[superdevil]

I think Dartmouth's CECS programs sound very intriguing, but I think that if you're trying to find a program that will help you make up for undergrad shortcomings (e.g., low cume GPA or low bcpm)...

DO NOT DO THE DARTMOUTH CECS!!!

My reasoning:

From: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showpost.php?p=2392513&postcount=2

In other words, one-year special masters/certificate >>> Dartmouth CECS for proving you're med school material. Dartmouth CECS would be a great glide year program, it would be a great way to make a difference in medicine (through clinical evaluation), its MPH is CEPH-accredited, and it's an Ivy League master's degree (ooohhhh....ahhhhh!)! I also remember loving the atmosphere when I visited Dartmouth. But this is simply not the best route if one is trying to make up for past academic shortcomings.

Edit: Also, I believe Dartmouth's Public Health programs are only through the CECS program. Most major public health schools (Harvard, Hopkins, Tulane, Berkeley, Boston U, etc.) have many concentrations (e.g., Biostats, International, Tropical Medicine, Epidemiology, Behavioral Health). Dartmouth's CECS program is unique, but all the concentrations are in CECS. There aren't any other MPH options outside the CECS, if I remember correctly.

i don't know anything about concentrations off the top of my head, but the grading system is high pass/pass/low pass/fail. sorry, guess i forgot to mention that. so yeah, if you need A's and lots of 'em, this probably isn't the correct path.

 

[welovelamarodom]

thanks a lot for the input. i'm not really looking for a grade boost, my grades and mcat are ok but i'm on 3 waitlists and needed a backup plan. i'm in at dartmouth and will probably go if not taken off the waitlists.

phil, do you have any idea what the chances are of getting taken off of the waitlist at psu/jefferson/drexel? thanks

 

[Phil Anthropist]

thanks a lot for the input. i'm not really looking for a grade boost, my grades and mcat are ok but i'm on 3 waitlists and needed a backup plan. i'm in at dartmouth and will probably go if not taken off the waitlists.

phil, do you have any idea what the chances are of getting taken off of the waitlist at psu/jefferson/drexel? thanks

I do not know the chances of getting off those waitlists. I've never applied to med school yet!

If I were in your shoes, I would update those med schools with recent accomplishments and send letters of intent. If your grades/MCAT are fine, then you don't need an SMP-type program (Georgetown, BU, Drexel, etc.). Dartmouth might be a great backup plan--it's a unique MS program, I've read some really interesting things from some previous students in the program, it will give you a lot to talk about in your interviews, etc. Whether or not it would be a good option for you depends on what you need to do to improve your application. If you don't get accepted off the waitlists, ask Penn State, Jefferson, and Drexel what you can do to improve your application for the following app cycle.

 

[wannabedoc34]

What do people usually do after they come out of Dartmouth CECS MS program? Anyone have any idea?

I do not know the chances of getting off those waitlists. I've never applied to med school yet!

If I were in your shoes, I would update those med schools with recent accomplishments and send letters of intent. If your grades/MCAT are fine, then you don't need an SMP-type program (Georgetown, BU, Drexel, etc.). Dartmouth might be a great backup plan--it's a unique MS program, I've read some really interesting things from some previous students in the program, it will give you a lot to talk about in your interviews, etc. Whether or not it would be a good option for you depends on what you need to do to improve your application. If you don't get accepted off the waitlists, ask Penn State, Jefferson, and Drexel what you can do to improve your application for the following app cycle.

 

[welovelamarodom]

bump

 

[muert12]

What do people usually do after they come out of Dartmouth CECS MS program? Anyone have any idea?

I graduated from CECS a couple of years ago with an MPH and now work as a research associate/project manager at a medical center.

I found the CECS experience, as a whole, to be terrific. The school offers an excellent education (albeit expensive) and there are many "big names" on the faculty there who are more than willing to share their knowledge, expertise and connections with you.

You can either obtain the MS or MPH degrees, both of which can be completed in 9 months. The MS degree has several concentrations from which to choose (Epidemiology/Biostatistics, Health Care Decision Making, Health Policy, Improvement of Health Care) while the MPH has a field experience/internship requirement to complete. There are also a number of opportunities for students to take elective courses outside of their respective concentrations (for example, I was in the MPH track but took a number of Health Care Decision Making courses because I was interested in it and was doing research with one of the faculty members who specialized in it).

The grading system is High Pass/Pass/Low Pass/Fail and perhaps the most interesting part of the program is that about 1/3 of the class are recent undergraduates, 1/3 are health care professional types (administrators, etc) and 1/3 are physicians. This makes for some excellent class discussions because everyone brings a little something different to the table in terms of their experiences with the health care system. At the same time, however, it makes the social interactions a little difficult as well.

The school is in Hanover, NH (along with the rest of Dartmouth) and there isn't a whole lot to do. Some people are fine with this (I'm from New England and loved it) and others are not. There were a bunch of people in my class from thriving metropoli (NYC, Boston, etc) or warm weather environments who were not overly thrilled with the surrounding area. There were others, however, who liked it a lot. There are lots of outdoor activities available (skiing, hiking, etc) and the scenery is beautiful. While there are bars in the surrounding towns, there is not too much of a bar scene and if you're looking for the type of place where you can hang out at a Starbucks all day, keep looking. Also, it gets real cold in the winter. Real cold.

While I was there, there were several students (all of them recent undergrads) who were applying to medical school while enrolled in the program. Off the top of my head, I'd say a little more than half of these individuals ended up getting accepted into medical school (mostly MD, a couple DO) for the following fall or the fall after that (I've kept in touch with some of my classmates after graduation). I do not know their nitty gritty stats (BCPM GPA, MCAT, etc) but it was pretty well acknowledged amongst the faculty at CECS (the majority of whom are Dartmouth Med School Faculty) as well as the students that CECS is not geared towards getting you into medical school. It is geared towards educating you about the health care system in this country and how to address it, manage it, evaluate it, improve it, etc.

As I previously mentioned, I loved my experience at CECS. I learned an inordinate amount and it reaffirmed my desire to become a physician, which led to me enrolling in and completing the BU MA Program. During my med school interviews, my education at CECS was incredibly valuable because it enabled me to talk about the health care system in this country in great depth and detail. Plus, CECS helped me land a sweet job which pays well. You gotta like that.

If anyone has any more questions about CECS, post them or PM me and I'll try and answer them.

 

[wannabedoc34]

Thanks for such a great post. CECS bottom line will help you no matter what in your life (atleast that's what i hear) - doctor or no doctor.

I graduated from CECS a couple of years ago with an MPH and now work as a research associate/project manager at a medical center.

I found the CECS experience, as a whole, to be terrific. The school offers an excellent education (albeit expensive) and there are many "big names" on the faculty there who are more than willing to share their knowledge, expertise and connections with you.

You can either obtain the MS or MPH degrees, both of which can be completed in 9 months. The MS degree has several concentrations from which to choose (Epidemiology/Biostatistics, Health Care Decision Making, Health Policy, Improvement of Health Care) while the MPH has a field experience/internship requirement to complete. There are also a number of opportunities for students to take elective courses outside of their respective concentrations (for example, I was in the MPH track but took a number of Health Care Decision Making courses because I was interested in it and was doing research with one of the faculty members who specialized in it).

The grading system is High Pass/Pass/Low Pass/Fail and perhaps the most interesting part of the program is that about 1/3 of the class are recent undergraduates, 1/3 are health care professional types (administrators, etc) and 1/3 are physicians. This makes for some excellent class discussions because everyone brings a little something different to the table in terms of their experiences with the health care system. At the same time, however, it makes the social interactions a little difficult as well.

The school is in Hanover, NH (along with the rest of Dartmouth) and there isn't a whole lot to do. Some people are fine with this (I'm from New England and loved it) and others are not. There were a bunch of people in my class from thriving metropoli (NYC, Boston, etc) or warm weather environments who were not overly thrilled with the surrounding area. There were others, however, who liked it a lot. There are lots of outdoor activities available (skiing, hiking, etc) and the scenery is beautiful. While there are bars in the surrounding towns, there is not too much of a bar scene and if you're looking for the type of place where you can hang out at a Starbucks all day, keep looking. Also, it gets real cold in the winter. Real cold.

While I was there, there were several students (all of them recent undergrads) who were applying to medical school while enrolled in the program. Off the top of my head, I'd say a little more than half of these individuals ended up getting accepted into medical school (mostly MD, a couple DO) for the following fall or the fall after that (I've kept in touch with some of my classmates after graduation). I do not know their nitty gritty stats (BCPM GPA, MCAT, etc) but it was pretty well acknowledged amongst the faculty at CECS (the majority of whom are Dartmouth Med School Faculty) as well as the students that CECS is not geared towards getting you into medical school. It is geared towards educating you about the health care system in this country and how to address it, manage it, evaluate it, improve it, etc.

As I previously mentioned, I loved my experience at CECS. I learned an inordinate amount and it reaffirmed my desire to become a physician, which led to me enrolling in and completing the BU MA Program. During my med school interviews, my education at CECS was incredibly valuable because it enabled me to talk about the health care system in this country in great depth and detail. Plus, CECS helped me land a sweet job which pays well. You gotta like that.

If anyone has any more questions about CECS, post them or PM me and I'll try and answer them.

 

[welovelamarodom]

muert, i'm headed to dartmouth this fall unless i get off any of my 3 med waiting lists. i called the fin aid department, and they told me living expenses/rent will be 20k for the year(on top of the 30k tuition). is this accurate? the dartmouth site seemed to portray the area around hanover as relatively affordable, but i'm a little reluctant to drop 50 thousand on a master's. anything more you can add will be of great help, thanks.

 

[muert12]

muert, i'm headed to dartmouth this fall unless i get off any of my 3 med waiting lists. i called the fin aid department, and they told me living expenses/rent will be 20k for the year(on top of the 30k tuition). is this accurate? the dartmouth site seemed to portray the area around hanover as relatively affordable, but i'm a little reluctant to drop 50 thousand on a master's. anything more you can add will be of great help, thanks.

Off the top of my head, the 20k seems to be a bit high, but I would not be surprised if the Financial Aid office is overestimating simply because there are always extra expenses that pop up and they want to have their butts covered just in case someone calls them on their estimate.

Somewhere on the CECS site (CECS), they have a link for student life and what not and they also provide a link to the Dartmouth College Real Estate Office. Check this out because they provide a good listing of apartments in the area and you'll be able to get a feel for rental prices and what not.

When I was enrolled there, I remember people's rents ranging from around $500 or so a month to around $900 or so a month (or higher) depending upon where they were living and who they were living with, etc. Also, the overall cost of living in the Upper Valley (where Hanover is located) is not too bad when compared to what you might pay to live in a city like Boston or New York.

Another thing to consider is that unless you are living with someone who has a car and is more than willing to let you drive it whenever you want, you will probably need a car if you decide to go to CECS. There is not a great system of public transportation and the area is pretty rural and spread out, so remember to factor that into your thinking as well.

Hope this helps. If there is anything else, PM me or post here.