MPH / MSPH 2021: Applied, Accepted, Waitlisted, Rejected, Attending

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epihopeful627 said:
Also didn't get in to Harvard... this one really hurts.

This may be a dumb/pathetic question, but has anyone successfully asked a school why they didn't get in? Not in those exact words, obviously. I have been messaging with an Admissions person in the past and would be curious to learn what about my application didn't quite fit. Lucky to have gotten into some great options, but since I am likely deferring for a year, I'm now heavily considering reapplying to Harvard next year.
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If you don't mind me asking, when did you get the HSPH notification? Was the same time as others did? I am wondering the decisions are still coming, or that's it for the day.
 
furbi1998 said:
Has anyone recently heard from BU? I applied of 1/14, and my application was marked as complete and sent to review like the first week of February. And I got the standard, 5-6 week timeline. It is week 4 for me, but I’m really losing hope :/ I just wanna knoooooow
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i applied 1/14 as well and it seems like we have been on the same timeline because my application was also marked complete the first week of feb, i am also super anxious to know... its been a long time. i saw on here that people were assuming that they got really backlogged right before the priority date and thats why its taking so long but my fingers are crossed for the both of us
 
epihopeful627 said:
Also didn't get in to Harvard... this one really hurts.

This may be a dumb/pathetic question, but has anyone successfully asked a school why they didn't get in? Not in those exact words, obviously. I have been messaging with an Admissions person in the past and would be curious to learn what about my application didn't quite fit. Lucky to have gotten into some great options, but since I am likely deferring for a year, I'm now heavily considering reapplying to Harvard next year.
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I mean...is there any point in asking?
Sometimes you gotta treat school rejection like someone who unmatched you on a dating app. No closure, just say boy byyyeeeeeee and move on lol
 
hi i know this is so random but i applied for the mchc/rise-up program (public health internship) for the summer before starting my mph in the fall and just had my interview and it was going ok until i took such a long pause where the interviewer had to ask me if i was still there... i want to *** i am hardcore cringing

also very sorry about all the rejections. remember it doesn't define you and you are all lovely people ! you will all do great things !
 
furbi1998 said:
Has anyone recently heard from BU? I applied of 1/14, and my application was marked as complete and sent to review like the first week of February. And I got the standard, 5-6 week timeline. It is week 4 for me, but I’m really losing hope :/ I just wanna knoooooow
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yes. I haven't heard anything I applied in November. they told me "early march at the latest" I just want them to reject me so I can stop waiting for a response. It seems like every non-rolling school is only giving out rejections at this point but..... I hope I am wrong but I agreed I am frustrated with them. You could probs email them again?
 
ariengo said:
That is my current dilemma. I could choose the top program and go into 75k-100k worth of debt or go to my state school at a quarter of the cost. For the salary outcome I’m really questioning if choosing the better ranked and more recognized program is worth it.
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For me, nope, it is not.
 
abibee said:
Rejected from UNC 🙁 This one really stung, and now I am starting to question the validity of my application. I was waitlisted at BU and that and UNC were my top, Yale a close second. Still have not heard from Yale but this makes me way way less hopeful.
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Ah so sorry about your UNC rejected. What was your concentration? Did you put down a second concentration when you applied?
 
caarr0t said:
hi i know this is so random but i applied for the mchc/rise-up program (public health internship) for the summer before starting my mph in the fall and just had my interview and it was going ok until i took such a long pause where the interviewer had to ask me if i was still there... i want to *** i am hardcore cringing

also very sorry about all the rejections. remember it doesn't define you and you are all lovely people ! you will all do great things !
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I had my interview today for a different program. Hopefully it went well.
 
epihopeful627 said:
Also didn't get in to Harvard... this one really hurts.

This may be a dumb/pathetic question, but has anyone successfully asked a school why they didn't get in? Not in those exact words, obviously. I have been messaging with an Admissions person in the past and would be curious to learn what about my application didn't quite fit. Lucky to have gotten into some great options, but since I am likely deferring for a year, I'm now heavily considering reapplying to Harvard next year.
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Hey! Not a dumb/pathetic question at all. I could see myself wanting closure/clarity as well if I were in your position (which I may very likely be when I hear back from HSPH finally). Many, if not all of us, wrote from our heart in our SOP. From what I've gathered here, public health isn't just a career for many of us; it's also a commitment to our personal values/morals. If I was just evaluated based on my academics, fine. But when we feel like we are being rejected for our passions, yikes, that hurts a lot deeper!

You may not get the answer/satisfaction that you are hoping for from the school's reply but maybe drafting the email will help you come to terms with it. Why not write it, sit with it for a few days, and see if you still want to send it. If you do, then I say go for it. Control what you can 🙂

Congrats on the INCREDIBLE Yale scholarship, my friend! I'm hopeful for your future, EpiHopeful627!
 
ssyw said:
Hey! Not a dumb/pathetic question at all. I could see myself wanting closure/clarity as well if I were in your position (which I may very likely be when I hear back from HSPH finally). Many, if not all of us, wrote from our heart in our SOP. From what I've gathered here, public health isn't just a career for many of us; it's also a commitment to our personal values/morals. If I was just evaluated based on my academics, fine. But when we feel like we are being rejected for our passions, yikes, that hurts a lot deeper!

You may not get the answer/satisfaction that you are hoping for from the school's reply but maybe drafting the email will help you come to terms with it. Why not write it, sit with it for a few days, and see if you still want to send it. If you do, then I say go for it. Control what you can 🙂

Congrats on the INCREDIBLE Yale scholarship, my friend! I'm hopeful for your future, EpiHopeful627!
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Wow, thank you so much! This is one of the kindest things anyone has said to me - I so appreciate it! Gonna keep reading this when I feel down. Thank you soooooo much ❤️
 
epihopeful627 said:
Wow, thank you so much! This is one of the kindest things anyone has said to me - I so appreciate it! Gonna keep reading this when I feel down. Thank you soooooo much ❤️
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You got into amazing schools with $60k scholarship! Who goes around getting $60k easy?

Yeah it sucks you didn't get into Harvard, but I don't feel bad for you at all-- and you shouldn't either. Take the time you need to be bummed out then get back up on that horse.

Good ol' Berkeley probably made you super competitive huh LOL leave that Cal mindset behind, friend. I'm speaking from personal experience 😉
 
KaramazovB said:
You got into amazing schools with $60k scholarship! Who goes around getting $60k easy?

Yeah it sucks you didn't get into Harvard, but I don't feel bad for you at all-- and you shouldn't either. Take the time you need to be bummed out then get back up on that horse.

Good ol' Berkeley probably made you super competitive huh LOL leave that Cal mindset behind, friend. I'm speaking from personal experience 😉
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Ah thank you too! It was actually 50k lol but still, I really appreciate your kindness!

And yes totally, Berkeley has made me suuuuper competitive, you're absolutely right. Going to try to celebrate the wins!
 
Probably my last post for a while after hearing back from Harvard today but just wanted to relay a few thoughts...
When I applied for undergrad I was rejected by all the schools that I applied to for graduate school (one of the reasons why I applied to so many lol, definitely won't do it anymore). I went into a relatively new program in my school, did poorly over the first two years, but ended up really excelling after learning to love my field (bioengineering) and getting to collab with researchers. One reason I went into the small program -- despite not being the most 'prestigious' -- is that I wanted a tight knit community where I could work with researchers.

Now that I've gotten into the grad schools that previously rejected me (with one exception, ahem, and trust me I really wanted to go to that one) I realized that yes the 'name' does carry weight, but more important is what you make out of it. My unsolicited advice is to pick a program where you really see yourself collabing with your peers and other profs, and a place that you think you can make a contribution to the community! Ultimately, if you go on to do a PhD or MD or a job, you'll be judged less by the school you went to but by the awesome things you've done!!
 
I think my time on this forum is coming to an end as well. Still waiting on UIC, but will be rejecting it anyway. Just wanted to say thank you all for being here during my short time here. I’m first-gen and my twin sister is taking a gap year, so I felt like I had no one to talk about the waiting game with and the fear I had about not getting in. To people in the future who may look at this, it’s not impossible to get in straight from undergrad. Last year during quarantine, I was frantically writing on the public health subreddit asking if I should take a gap year because at the time I had no internship experience and was unsuccessful for a while finding one for the fall. I was convinced I wouldn’t stack up to my peers and I’d have to settle for disability advocacy work which is a common field for many of my friends. Perseverance pays off, I promise. Good luck to each of you as you make your decisions!
 
epihopeful627 said:
Also didn't get in to Harvard... this one really hurts.

This may be a dumb/pathetic question, but has anyone successfully asked a school why they didn't get in? Not in those exact words, obviously. I have been messaging with an Admissions person in the past and would be curious to learn what about my application didn't quite fit. Lucky to have gotten into some great options, but since I am likely deferring for a year, I'm now heavily considering reapplying to Harvard next year.
Click to expand...

You could ask them if you want to try applying again next year. It will help you to know what needs to be worked on. Many programs' directors would tell you that it is often an easy fix if you really want to give it a shot next year.

But the universe has responded. HSPH rejected you. On the same day you got a scholarship from Yale. Yale is welcoming you with open arms.
 
lmarph said:
I think if you're considering applying again next year it would definitely be worth asking!
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I mean I guess but are we forgetting this is Harvard?? They literally reject tons of people with top tier stats every year. People with multiple degrees, perfect GRE scores, published papers, perfect GPAs. There's not much you can do about it. Yeah maybe you can go and spend a year trying to make your application stronger but I haven't seen a lot of cases where people get in the 2nd time around. Unpopular opinion but there isn't anything remarkably special about Harvard for public health, besides the name and the elitism that comes with it. People apply there for the wrong reasons. All the other top schools, or even lower tier schools, can still help you reach your career goals and give you what you need. Yes, name holds some weight but an MPH is what you make of it.
 
lillia1n1501 said:
Are there any Emory accepted international student that got any scholarship or funding here? Since all of the scholarships had been given out, I don't think I have a chance to receive any finical aids.😢 Really struggling to decide whether having 140k in debt to pursue a MPH worth it...Does anyone here think writing a letter to the admissions asking for extra finical assistance would help?

Edit: 140k is the maximum cost. I had estimated the total cost(rent, insurance...)will be around 120k-140k. Still a lot though lol
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The $140K estimate sounds a bit on the high side. I think you could definitely cut down on some cost if you plan to have a roommate and find a place on the free Emory shuttle routes!

From what I've heard, they are still sending out some aid (you could potentially get REAL, which is a work-study program overseen by Rollins). Don't forget that you can also get a part time job too after the 1st semester to help. If debt is the most important thing to you, then the $140K is a steep price for an MPH, but that might depend on what you want to do. If you really want to live and work in the US after, maybe it is worth it if potential jobs for your concentration is above a certain threshold. Definitely reach out to the financial aid office and ask if they can consider you for more and ask what their process is if students with scholarships decline their offers/if you can be considered for more!
 
oatmilkluvr said:
Do y'all think your dream school is worth going 60k into debt when you could go somewhere else and take out only half in loans?
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It depends on what you want to do. If not having too much debt is one of the most important factors for you, then consider the other school. That school will still be recognized in that region if you would consider employment in the area after graduating.
 
Rejected from Harvard this morning for SM80 in Epi - all good since I think it wasn't a good fit overall. Still never heard back from BU, but I committed to Columbia yesterday! Glad this process is over - thank you to everyone who has been supportive and helpful throughout this forum. Wishing everyone the best as they decide which program to attend!

I believe someone mentioned there was a GroupMe for Columbia Epi - could I please be added?
 
sero_tonin said:
Just got into Hopkins for HPM!!

Does anyone know if financial aid/merit/scholarships comes with the admissions email or only later on?
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Sorry just wanted to bump my question to anyone who received financial aid from Hopkins - was it in the admissions letter, or was it separate? Thank you!
 
crashfan said:
what a joke. Yale offered 20k scholarship. definitely not a need based scholarship, like it mentions on their website, when I was poor enough to get free undergrad.
Knew it was too good to be true.
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Totally understand your pain and you have every right to feel bummed about your offer but I really want to use this post as an opportunity to remind us that we are all going through it. Grad school is expensive and it will keep becoming even more expensive. Any scholarship offer is truly a blessing and this thread is a blessing by keeping us in the loop with everyone's statuses. But I would really like to encourage us to remain humble, graceful and grateful through this process. Aid offers are certainly not a joke and we should try our hardest to keep a positive attitude through this process by building each other up. These are my own two cents. For those of you out there patiently waiting, your time will come 🤞 🍀
 
SnowInVenice said:
Only if you think your dream school is worth the debt. I went to a mid-ranked (for PH) school in-state for undergrad with limited faculty in my research area (tropical/vector-borne/zoonotic infectious disease epidemiology). UW, where I'll be going, on the other hand, is highly-ranked and has considerably more research in my field than my in-state school. To me, the higher price is worth it because I don't want to stay stagnated by staying in-state even though it's considerably cheaper. I am justifying the higher cost because I expect to get an RA/GA position to cover tuition and will be trying to establish residency after my first year (I intend to live in Seattle). If you went to an already great school for your field for undergrad, it may not be worth it.
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This is where I am at. State flagship school for undergrad, 3.6 GPA. Not bad but not outstanding. So Brown makes the cut even though I'll be down an additional 60k 😞
 
zubear said:
Were there any acceptances from HSPH today?
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Finally!!!

1614895561934.png


Wait....never mind...at least no more trial offer.
 
SnowInVenice said:
Only if you think your dream school is worth the debt. I went to a mid-ranked (for PH) school in-state for undergrad with limited faculty in my research area (tropical/vector-borne/zoonotic infectious disease epidemiology). UW, where I'll be going, on the other hand, is highly-ranked and has considerably more research in my field than my in-state school. To me, the higher price is worth it because I don't want to stay stagnated by staying in-state even though it's considerably cheaper. I am justifying the higher cost because I expect to get an RA/GA position to cover tuition and will be trying to establish residency after my first year (I intend to live in Seattle). If you went to an already great school for your field for undergrad, it may not be worth it.
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just wanted to chime in here, establishing residency for UW is HARD. i attempted as an undergrad and it wasn’t doable as you need to have worked 40/hrs a week consecutively for 12 months, establish residency, a bank, etc. you may already have a plan so good luck and congrats!!!!
 
furbi1998 said:
Has anyone recently heard from BU? I applied of 1/14, and my application was marked as complete and sent to review like the first week of February. And I got the standard, 5-6 week timeline. It is week 4 for me, but I’m really losing hope :/ I just wanna knoooooow
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My application was sent for review end of January and I haven’t heard back either.
 
chocfullokat said:
The $140K estimate sounds a bit on the high side. I think you could definitely cut down on some cost if you plan to have a roommate and find a place on the free Emory shuttle routes!

From what I've heard, they are still sending out some aid (you could potentially get REAL, which is a work-study program overseen by Rollins). Don't forget that you can also get a part time job too after the 1st semester to help. If debt is the most important thing to you, then the $140K is a steep price for an MPH, but that might depend on what you want to do. If you really want to live and work in the US after, maybe it is worth it if potential jobs for your concentration is above a certain threshold. Definitely reach out to the financial aid office and ask if they can consider you for more and ask what their process is if students with scholarships decline their offers/if you can be considered for more!
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Agreed. I calculated the average costs they have on their website, and with a car pass and no insurance (because I have other) it was 119,000.
 
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