PhD Issues associated with a new PhD Program?

[Qazwsx16]

A University I attended for my MPH is starting up their public health Ph.D. program this year, and they reached out to me to see if I was interested. I do want to preface that my knowledge of Ph.D. programs are somewhat limited so I'm hoping to gain some insight from more experienced forum members.

Here is some additional information about the program.

• Full-time only.
• Fully funded (~$2,250/month stipend with classes and health insurance covered)
• 3-year program for epidemiology
• Expected cohort size: ~5

Here is some additional information about me:

• Undergrad GPA: 3.4/4.0
• Major/Minor: Biology/(Minors: Biochemistry/Substance Abuse)
• GradGPA: 4.0/4.0
• Grad Studies: Emphasis: Epidemiology
• GRE: 99%Q/73%V/49%W (01/2013)
• Experience/Research:
  • Research: Cancer registry reporting practices
  • Experience: 3.5 years SAS programmer (advanced certified), 2 years as a biostatistician, taught 1 year of biostatistics at my University.

Although my MPH was in epidemiology I have a strong interest in health informatics and programming. There currently is only faculty member who works primarily in health informatics and database management at this school and he handles the majority of the database needs of the State health department and hospitals in the area.

Questions:

1. What is the job market looking like for individuals who pursue a Ph.D. in health informatics?
2. Are there generally any implications associated with being a part of the first cohort of a Ph.D. program in public health? If so, what exactly is it?
3. I'm familiar with more research orientated dissertations, so for health informatics, what kind of dissertation topics do people generally have?
4. Any other advise?

I appreciate any feedback whatsoever! Please let me know if I can provide any additional information!

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[Stories]

1.) Generally pretty good. Broad opportunities across a variety of sectors--big data analysis is the future.
2.) Generally, name recognition is poor. But if you have good publications out there once you finish, it should be okay. If you want to be a traditional professor, there may be some barriers, though, as academic prestige does play a (minor) factor.
3.) You'll still pursue academic informatics. It'll still be a research goal. It could be a methods driven dissertation, it could be a specific dataset analysis, or it could be a combination.

If the school's overall name is good, I think it's worth pursuing unless you feel the need to go to an established program. 3-year turn around and fully funded? Sounds like a good option to me. If you have no interest in working with that professor, though, probably not a good option. But if it's a small tiny school with limited brand recognition, I'd also give other programs a shot--if only out of curiosity and opportunities.

 

[Qazwsx16]

I really appreciate your response Stories, very insightful!

It is at a Tier 1, public university who's public health program is growing. CEPH accredited as of a few years back.

So I currently work for the state government and am currently putting in years into a public pension. If I leave my job then I lose out on everything I put into that pension (Yeah, they have some strict policies that prevent people from leaving). By being employed by the University as faculty or as a worker, that would technically go into the same pension. Now this might be an odd question, but is it inappropriate to ask the director if my funding would allow me to continue my pension? I tried to sneakily ask them how the program was funded, and they simply said "the University". I don't want them to think I'm doing it for the money, but I am doing it for my future.

My other option is to wait until next Fall until they allow part-time students, but I would lose out on all funding.

In terms of working with the Health Informatics Professor, I've worked with him in the past and it was a wonderful experience! Everyone who I've talked to about Ph.D. programs always told me to go where the professor is. I don't believe he is the best in health informatics, but from my understanding he is great at what he does. If I was planning on going back into the work force after my Ph.D. would working with a professor like that be appropriate or should I not consider it?

And my last question, for the application they want a Personal Statement that includes my research interests. From your experience, does that entail specifically a research topic, or would a broad interest of health informatics suffice?

 

[Stories]

I really appreciate your response Stories, very insightful!

It is at a Tier 1, public university who's public health program is growing. CEPH accredited as of a few years back.

So I currently work for the state government and am currently putting in years into a public pension. If I leave my job then I lose out on everything I put into that pension (Yeah, they have some strict policies that prevent people from leaving). By being employed by the University as faculty or as a worker, that would technically go into the same pension. Now this might be an odd question, but is it inappropriate to ask the director if my funding would allow me to continue my pension? I tried to sneakily ask them how the program was funded, and they simply said "the University". I don't want them to think I'm doing it for the money, but I am doing it for my future.

My other option is to wait until next Fall until they allow part-time students, but I would lose out on all funding.

In terms of working with the Health Informatics Professor, I've worked with him in the past and it was a wonderful experience! Everyone who I've talked to about Ph.D. programs always told me to go where the professor is. I don't believe he is the best in health informatics, but from my understanding he is great at what he does. If I was planning on going back into the work force after my Ph.D. would working with a professor like that be appropriate or should I not consider it?

And my last question, for the application they want a Personal Statement that includes my research interests. From your experience, does that entail specifically a research topic, or would a broad interest of health informatics suffice?

I think it's okay to ask if you can continue to contribute as a 'public employee'. I think this definition will differ by state and university system, though. My spouse's pension is university system specific and not related to the state pension, as far as I know. So keep that in mind. If the amount you've contributed isn't a lot, it might not be too big of a loss. But I'm also not a financial planner, and only you can decide for you what's the right financial decision.

I think if you think you're a very competitive applicant, you shouldn't settle for "any professor". But if you're just exploring and unsure, it's certainly a good option. Guaranteed spots rarely come around. Also consider the opportunity cost of going elsewhere. You may finish sooner, getting you into the work place sooner. Alternatively, going to a higher recognized program might get you to a job in an out-of-state location you've always wanted. So some things to consider.

You should be as broad and as specific as you know about. Don't get too specific to limit yourself, but demonstrate that you have an understanding of the state of research and where novel research is needed.

 

[Qazwsx16]

I think it's okay to ask if you can continue to contribute as a 'public employee'. I think this definition will differ by state and university system, though. My spouse's pension is university system specific and not related to the state pension, as far as I know. So keep that in mind. If the amount you've contributed isn't a lot, it might not be too big of a loss. But I'm also not a financial planner, and only you can decide for you what's the right financial decision.

I think if you think you're a very competitive applicant, you shouldn't settle for "any professor". But if you're just exploring and unsure, it's certainly a good option. Guaranteed spots rarely come around. Also consider the opportunity cost of going elsewhere. You may finish sooner, getting you into the work place sooner. Alternatively, going to a higher recognized program might get you to a job in an out-of-state location you've always wanted. So some things to consider.

You should be as broad and as specific as you know about. Don't get too specific to limit yourself, but demonstrate that you have an understanding of the state of research and where novel research is needed.

So in our state, basically any state, county, and education-related job is under the same pension plan. But I'll definitely take your advice and ask them.

I feel like I might sound arrogant, but I was the top of my MPH class and one of two former students they spoke with to apply to their new Ph.D. program. Their graduate director did say if I applied I would get a seat. So I would want to say I have a competitive application, but this might be also be due to our newer program that doesn't have as much fame and thus was less competitive during my MPH. Without getting too off topic, here is my other dilemma. My fiancee is finishing up her M.Ed., and although she already told me she was more than willing to move anywhere for my education/work, I know she loves being close to her family. So big part of me wants to stay here long-term.

One last question, although I know going the professor route after a Ph.D. is completely different than going into the work force, is the University and professor you worked to get your Ph.D. important to employers or is it more so the knowledge, products, and research you've developed? For example, would someone who received their Ph.D. from Harvard or JHU who developed the same products/research as someone who went to a public university be considered equal candidates?

Once again, thank you for the answers!

 

[mats7]

>For example, would someone who received their Ph.D. from Harvard or JHU who developed the same products/research as someone who went to a public university be considered equal candidates?

No. Especially if you want to publish or go into grant-writing or go into consulting or get a professorship. Harvard opens doors!

 

[Stories]

So in our state, basically any state, county, and education-related job is under the same pension plan. But I'll definitely take your advice and ask them.

I feel like I might sound arrogant, but I was the top of my MPH class and one of two former students they spoke with to apply to their new Ph.D. program. Their graduate director did say if I applied I would get a seat. So I would want to say I have a competitive application, but this might be also be due to our newer program that doesn't have as much fame and thus was less competitive during my MPH. Without getting too off topic, here is my other dilemma. My fiancee is finishing up her M.Ed., and although she already told me she was more than willing to move anywhere for my education/work, I know she loves being close to her family. So big part of me wants to stay here long-term.

One last question, although I know going the professor route after a Ph.D. is completely different than going into the work force, is the University and professor you worked to get your Ph.D. important to employers or is it more so the knowledge, products, and research you've developed? For example, would someone who received their Ph.D. from Harvard or JHU who developed the same products/research as someone who went to a public university be considered equal candidates?

Once again, thank you for the answers!

Often times, grad students, despite receiving a stipend, are not employees of the state, so they are not eligible for benefits of state employees like a pension. Definitely worth checking into.

For the famous programs (e.g. Harvard, UNC, Hopkins), even getting a MPH/MS from those schools, the PhD/ScD application process is fiercely competitive. So if your program doesn't have the same "brand" recognition, you'll face a bit of an upward battle. Doubly so if your program currently has limited track record with developing researchers. More than anything else, professors care about students who have the proper training to start conducting research with my adviser--often immediately (this was my case--I started writing/publishing before I even started my PhD program the semester before). So I would preach caution, just in case. You never know. If you've received acclaim at conferences and received awards or even have a grant(!) (e.g. F32), then you'll no problem getting into any program.

The application process of professor versus other scientific research positions isn't too different. Mostly it comes down to this:

1.) Were you productive in your past research positions? (e.g. pre-doc, post-doc)
2.) How well do you communicate? (e.g. presentations, published papers)
3.) Do you have a cohesive understanding of the area of research and do you have a research plan?

Neither candidate would get a look if neither of you have established records (i.e. limited published work). These days, a postdoc with publications is a must. You can definitely overcome a lesser recognized grad school with doing a postdoc with well respected faculty. Or if you publish papers/presentations using well recognized studies. Or if you publish papers in a big journal. Those are all factors that will be important in getting job opportunities. More important than where you go to school, though, is what did you actually accomplish? You can publish a huge paper even if you're not in school. But you won't have access to studies, data, or resources to be able to get you a publication in those big journals. A recognized program with big resources and track record helps to reduce some of those barriers.

 

[Qazwsx16]

I just want to say, I really appreciate all the feedback I received from the both of you. I spent the last month working on my Statement of Purpose and would love any feedback I could receive. If anyone has a moment (even to just quickly skim through it), I would really appreciate it! Please let me know!

 

[Qazwsx16]

I apologize for double posting, but my application is due Monday morning, so if anyone wanted to read my SoP, I would absolutely be grateful! I would love to read others' papers as well now that I have free time!