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

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ssschoo114 said:
This is a more financial based question. Since public health is a super varied field as far as compensation, how are you guys feeling about taking out significant loans? It’s a really scary thing to think about because it’s not the stable career financially in comparison to clinical healthcare professions etc.
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It really depends on the concentration you pick. I've heard from numerous people that Epi, Biostats, and EH concentrations are worth the investment.

I am not saying all are bad but thats what ive heard.
 
Is it to ap
moviemix said:
I just checked SOPHAS and Columbia has a general MPH that’s accepting apps until June, Emory is accepting apps till July, and GWU is accepting until March. There are so many more who are still accepting, but I wanted to make show that top programs are as well so it’s not like you’ll have to settle if you apply now.

It’s definitely not too late as long as you HUSTLE! Get in the application and transcript by the deadlines at least, schools will be more lenient about your recommendations but also try to get them in as soon as possible. Start asking your recommenders now because it’d be kind of unfair to be like “can you write my recommendation, it’s due in two weeks— thanks” you know? You want to give them some time.

But if this is what you want, go for it! Go all out. This year is perfect since they’re not requiring GREs. Good luck and feel free to reach out if I can help or something!
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hi thank you so much for the reply!! And thank you to everyone else that replied as well, not sure how to tag everyone.

would it be pointless to apply to programs where the priority deadline has already passed like Emory? Do they traditionally accept many applicants that submit past that date?

Also, would it be worth it to take the GRE even though they aren’t requiring it? I would prioritize and submit the rest of my app first of course, but I think I could probably do really well if it’s worth it at all.
 
You just need to plan it out.

I am going to be working as a lifeguard this summer to earn some extra cash. Once I get to NYU I plan on working on campus the entire time I'm there. Borrow only what you need to. Also, look for outside scholarships that can help offset the cost.

The United States Public Health Service offers loan repayment options. This is one option. The military also offers loan repayment options for grad students.
 
Spartacous1 said:
You just need to plan it out.

I am going to be working as a lifeguard this summer to earn some extra cash. Once I get to NYU I plan on working on campus the entire time I'm there. Borrow only what you need to. Also, look for outside scholarships that can help offset the cost.

The United States Public Health Service offers loan repayment options. This is one option. The military also offers loan repayment options for grad students.
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Have you considered going to a public university instead? Some of them are ranked higher than NYU. You think the NYU name is worth the cost?
 
Mlm1986 said:
Have you considered going to a public university instead? Some of them are ranked higher than NYU. You think the NYU name is worth the cost?
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Yes I do. A lot of employers have biases and go off the name of the school itself. NYU is known throughout the world as a good school. While their PH is new, I expect it to quickly climb the ranks of top PH schools. I have some of my GI Bill left so I should be able to afford it.

For example: I've heard people say they got into Yale and Emory's MPH program. They chose Emory because it was higher ranked. Some employers might say wow you turned down an Ivy?

This is just an example.

Personally, I think I should have little trouble obtaining a job after graduation with an MPH in Epi from NYU.

Networking, Networking, and Networking.
 
PriFromThePNW said:
Hi everyone, I finally officially joined — I’d like to start by saying congratulations to everyone on their acceptance and best of luck and good vibes to those still waiting! I’m in at Columbia, Emory, BU, and Dartmouth, still waiting to hear back on Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Yale, And Brown. Should I assume on the ones I’m still waiting for that they’re waitlists or rejections? I applied to Harvard and JH on 11/26, Yale 12/15, and Brown 1/6.
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Hold out hope for Brown! I just received my notice this morning and I applied a month before you!
 
Goalie013 said:
Sorry to be so repetitive but has anyone received a rejection or waitlist from JHU MSPH program? I want to see if my wait is due to a rejection or not.
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i got a rejection from JHU msph in social behavioral interventions on Monday. but i don’t think the wait means anything because i saw some acceptances this week too, so it’s probably random. i hope you hear good news rlly soon! 🙂
 
crashfan said:
that ranking is peer-ranking. schools rank each other. I would disregard it since it isnt as methodical as the overall institution rankings they have instead.
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How do we figure out how schools rank each other? (i.e. is Emory or Columbia ranked higher?
 
crashfan said:
that ranking is peer-ranking. schools rank each other. I would disregard it since it isnt as methodical as the overall institution rankings they have instead.
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What is a better ranking of public health institutions/programs?
 
jimin_ said:
Spoke to someone about working at the UN - was basically told that an ivy name will make you more respected (quite annoying that that's the case bc it doesn't really allow me to look at my options without bias)
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It might but I will be honest with you and they really care about how well you fit the position that you have applied for. For example, if they as for a specific type of experience for x amount of years in the job opportunity you should fit that mold as close as possible to increase the chance of even receiving an invite to interview. If it's not experience, then it might be how well you fit the technical skills. Always when writing cover letters for them through their Inspira program make sure to answer any questions they might have had and explain your skills.

Many layers go into the hiring and recruiting process at the UN and it can take months. If you're under 32 best way to get in with a professional position is through YPP (which is a year long recruitment process starting in June)!
 
limpraisin said:
How do we figure out how schools rank each other? (i.e. is Emory or Columbia ranked higher?
Click to expand...
All the health rankings are based solely on the results of peer assessment surveys sent to deans, other administrators and/or faculty at accredited degree programs or schools in each discipline. All schools surveyed in a discipline were sent the same number of surveys.
Respondents rated the academic quality of programs on a scale of 1 (marginal) to 5 (outstanding). They were instructed to select "don't know" if they did not have enough knowledge to rate a program. Only fully accredited programs in good standing during the survey period are ranked. Those schools with the highest average scores appear in the rankings sorted in descending order based on their average peer assessment score.
 
dnaligase said:
Is it to ap

hi thank you so much for the reply!! And thank you to everyone else that replied as well, not sure how to tag everyone.

would it be pointless to apply to programs where the priority deadline has already passed like Emory? Do they traditionally accept many applicants that submit past that date?

Also, would it be worth it to take the GRE even though they aren’t requiring it? I would prioritize and submit the rest of my app first of course, but I think I could probably do really well if it’s worth it at all.
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No worries, glad I could help 🙂 Nope it’s not pointless to apply after the priority app at all! I applied after the priority for all the schools on my list except GWU I think (I can’t remember, but I think GWU had a “priority 1 deadline” and then a second priority deadline? Idk, it just rings a bell). But most notably, I applied to JHU after the priority, and on the day of their hard deadline and still got in.

From my experience, and reading the experiences of everyone on here, I think this year it truly isn’t necessary to take the GRE. Schools aren’t even basing scholarships on it right now. If you took it and did well, yea it’s help, but if you indicate that you plan on taking the GRE on your app, the school won’t start reviewing it until that GRE score comes in. Since most schools have already admitted a big chunk of people, I think you should prioritize getting in a complete application.

That decision is ultimately up to you though! Take what I say with a grain of salt lol, I’m not an admissions officer. But think about wether you want to pay for it, how much time you’d need to study for it to do well, and then also the processing time required after you take it by the testing company to get your score to the schools you apply to.
 
wiphey said:
What is a better ranking of public health institutions/programs?
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I would not know. I looked at the overall ranking of a school. So Ivies being top 20 and other schools following. It is hard for some schools that don't have an undergrad population though like UTHouston or the OHSU-PSU since that is a multi-school system. The reasons I looked at traditional rankings were in part due to the resources that top schools tend to have over lower ranked schools. Brown UPenn and Yale are not highly ranked in that peer-assessment list but they are still really good schools to attend. Cornell, for example, is not on that Public health ranking yet despite their researchers doing ground-breaking work in public health (mostly animals) and being accredited by CEPH.
 
crashfan said:
All the health rankings are based solely on the results of peer assessment surveys sent to deans, other administrators and/or faculty at accredited degree programs or schools in each discipline. All schools surveyed in a discipline were sent the same number of surveys.
Respondents rated the academic quality of programs on a scale of 1 (marginal) to 5 (outstanding). They were instructed to select "don't know" if they did not have enough knowledge to rate a program. Only fully accredited programs in good standing during the survey period are ranked. Those schools with the highest average scores appear in the rankings sorted in descending order based on their average peer assessment score.
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I still don't get how Yale could be ranked so low. Do other public health people not like them? 🤔 Or is the education itself is not reputable amongst the public health schools somehow?
Why do the peers think Yale sph is not a higher ranking?
 
ssschoo114 said:
This is a more financial based question. Since public health is a super varied field as far as compensation, how are you guys feeling about taking out significant loans? It’s a really scary thing to think about because it’s not the stable career financially in comparison to clinical healthcare professions etc.
Click to expand...
I have the same reservations as you when it comes to loans. Currently deciding between JHU (aka 100k in loans) vs state school (aka 15-20k). I don't know if the JHU name and program strength is enough to justify the loans I'd have to take for the salary I'd come out with. And it wouldn't be like medicine, nursing or pharmacy where you can pretty much find a job right away
 
OnePotatoTwoBobs said:
I still don't get how Yale could be ranked so low. Do other public health people not like them? 🤔 Or is the education itself is not reputable amongst the public health schools somehow?
Why do the peers think Yale sph is not a higher ranking?
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It could be because Yale is a smaller public health school than Columbia, Michigan, UNC, UCB, John Hopkins, etc. Public health people might give them a lower rating purely because they do not know anyone from the school, rather than it being a judgment on the educational opportunities offered there.
 
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crashfan said:
I would not know. I looked at the overall ranking of a school. So Ivies being top 20 and other schools following. It is hard for some schools that don't have an undergrad population though like UTHouston or the OHSU-PSU since that is a multi-school system. The reasons I looked at traditional rankings were in part due to the resources that top schools tend to have over lower ranked schools. Brown UPenn and Yale are not highly ranked in that peer-assessment list but they are still really good schools to attend. Cornell, for example, is not on that Public health ranking yet despite their researchers doing ground-breaking work in public health (mostly animals) and being accredited by CEPH.
Click to expand...
I feel like based on US news Johns Hopkins is consistently ranked pretty high but it isn't an ivy. Is it still considered number one in the public health world or do the ivies look better simply because they are ivies?
 
Spartacous1 said:
It really depends on the concentration you pick. I've heard from numerous people that Epi, Biostats, and EH concentrations are worth the investment.

I am not saying all are bad but thats what ive heard.
Click to expand...
What is EH? Also what have they said about health policy
 
jm20bk06 said:
It might but I will be honest with you and they really care about how well you fit the position that you have applied for. For example, if they as for a specific type of experience for x amount of years in the job opportunity you should fit that mold as close as possible to increase the chance of even receiving an invite to interview. If it's not experience, then it might be how well you fit the technical skills. Always when writing cover letters for them through their Inspira program make sure to answer any questions they might have had and explain your skills.

Many layers go into the hiring and recruiting process at the UN and it can take months. If you're under 32 best way to get in with a professional position is through YPP (which is a year long recruitment process starting in June)!
Click to expand...
this is very helpful! and she meant the ivy thing more apparent as you move up if you move up into salaried positions (are you at the UN? Can I PM you?) Yeah i think i understand much more after my other conversation and will make sure that i meet qualifications for an opening in order to get picked up for the next step.
 
dae09 said:
I feel like based on US news Johns Hopkins is consistently ranked pretty high but it isn't an ivy. Is it still considered number one in the public health world or do the ivies look better simply because they are ivies?
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yeah i meant more like top 20 schools being top 20 public health schools if they have a MPH program. there are only 8 ivies.
 
The public health school rankings are kind of wack tbh. It’s hard to assess a school of PH overall. How can Social and Behavioral Sciences (a true social science), Epi (very lab science), Biostats (quantitative analytics), Health Policy (public affairs, econ, and qualitative analytics), and Healthcare Management (finance and business) be lumped into one ranking, determining the overall “quality” of a program? They can’t, really. PH is too interdisciplinary and pulls resources from too many other departments within a university.

My best advice is to look into rankings for specific fields at schools like the economics department, medical school, biological sciences department, business school, law school, etc. That might help put the program you’re interested in specifically into perspective, taking the PH peer rankings, which are also subject to bias based on sheer output of programs, with a grain of salt.
 
jimin_ said:
this is very helpful! and she meant the ivy thing more apparent as you move up if you move up into salaried positions (are you at the UN? Can I PM you?) Yeah i think i understand much more after my other conversation and will make sure that i meet qualifications for an opening in order to get picked up for the next step.
Click to expand...
Eh true I think that they look at school names to some extent but with my knowledge it was mostly the experience portion that was looked at, especially as many applicants are from around the world.
I just spent a few months last year as an intern for the UN and assisted with admin work that comes with recruitment - no role in the official decision making process but I have a sense for what goes on which is helpful as I'd like to get back in at the UN or one of its agencies after I complete my MPH. You can PM me if you'd like!
It was a great experience and honestly if anyone is interested in work like that of the UN, I would say try to intern first just to get a sense of what the environment is like because it looks great from the outside but may not be the right fit for everyone
 
Hi guys! I’m seeing a lot of people who are worried that no news is bad news (e.g., rejection, waitlist). I hear ya— still waiting for most of mine to get back to me as well.

During yesterday’s Q&A, Yale’s Director of Admissions described a portion of their application review process. An application is sent to the first reader, and they essentially give it a yes or no before it moves on to a second reader. Sometimes it takes longer because a third reader has to serve as a tiebreaker. I’m sure each school/department does things differently, but the process should be similar to others too.

I felt better learning that, so I hope this helps ease some anxiety. No news should be *good* news! Don’t lose hope and never forget that you all did amazing things to get to this point. We got this, crew! ️
 
Hello everyone! Those of you who interviewed with Dartmouth, how long after your interview did you hear back?
 
reformedpremed said:
The public health school rankings are kind of wack tbh. It’s hard to assess a school of PH overall. How can Social and Behavioral Sciences (a true social science), Epi (very lab science), Biostats (quantitative analytics), Health Policy (public affairs, econ, and qualitative analytics), and Healthcare Management (finance and business) be lumped into one ranking, determining the overall “quality” of a program? They can’t, really. PH is too interdisciplinary and pulls resources from too many other departments within a university.

My best advice is to look into rankings for specific fields at schools like the economics department, medical school, biological sciences department, business school, law school, etc. That might help put the program you’re interested in specifically into perspective, taking the PH peer rankings, which are also subject to bias based on sheer output of programs, with a grain of salt.
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It seems like most of the rankings for graduate programs are based solely on peer review while others just factor it in. A lot of the rankings also heavily weigh research output.
I think it’s always important to look at the methodology for any college or program rankings and see if it makes sense and/or those factors are important to you. Obviously reputation matters to an extent but if you want to know about factors like quality of instruction, it might be best to talk to current students and alumni and get a wide survey of their thoughts about their classes and professors.
 
westonsided said:
It seems like most of the rankings for graduate programs are based solely on peer review while others just factor it in. A lot of the rankings also heavily weigh research output.
I think it’s always important to look at the methodology for any college or program rankings and see if it makes sense and/or those factors are important to you. Obviously reputation matters to an extent but if you want to know about factors like quality of instruction, it might be best to talk to current students and alumni and get a wide survey of their thoughts about their classes and professors.
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Oh I completely agree! Getting specific insights from professors, students, and PH professionals has informed my thoughts on programs more than anything. I’m also a person that has no issue reaching out to anyone and everyone to set up Zoom calls, though. I was just saying that for an at-a-glance perspective, the PH school rankings may have less gravity for someone‘s precise niche than weighing in all of the rankings for resources throughout the university that support that program. But yes, absolutely talk to professors and students to hear a perspective catered to your own interests. Great point.
 
In at Brown!!! Hoping for financial aid - the acceptance letter didn't make any mention of it.

For those that got aid, did your letter mention that you had received aid? I thought I saw that here and now I am worried because I don't think my letter stated that
 
moviemix said:
No worries, glad I could help 🙂 Nope it’s not pointless to apply after the priority app at all! I applied after the priority for all the schools on my list except GWU I think (I can’t remember, but I think GWU had a “priority 1 deadline” and then a second priority deadline? Idk, it just rings a bell). But most notably, I applied to JHU after the priority, and on the day of their hard deadline and still got in.

From my experience, and reading the experiences of everyone on here, I think this year it truly isn’t necessary to take the GRE. Schools aren’t even basing scholarships on it right now. If you took it and did well, yea it’s help, but if you indicate that you plan on taking the GRE on your app, the school won’t start reviewing it until that GRE score comes in. Since most schools have already admitted a big chunk of people, I think you should prioritize getting in a complete application.

That decision is ultimately up to you though! Take what I say with a grain of salt lol, I’m not an admissions officer. But think about wether you want to pay for it, how much time you’d need to study for it to do well, and then also the processing time required after you take it by the testing company to get your score to the schools you apply to.
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Thank you!! really appreciate it the input. So if I’m understanding correctly once the priority deadline has passed they admit on a rolling basis? Or do they wait until everyone submits for the hard deadline and reevaluate again?
And based on my experiences and GPA do you think I have a decent shot at getting in to a good school? I know I’m so behind on everything 😭 wish I had this epiphany a few months ago
 
OnePotatoTwoBobs said:
Ok... Brown is about a "pass" for me. Although "The admissions committee is deeply impressed with the combination of your background and credentials," they gave me a next-to-nothing scholarship which doesn't really help much. :'(
Oh well................
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Still waiting for mine. Hope it comes soon. May I ask what they offered? I've been seeing 30-35% off tuition?
 
manatees97 said:
In at Brown!!! Hoping for financial aid - the acceptance letter didn't make any mention of it.

For those that got aid, did your letter mention that you had received aid? I thought I saw that here and now I am worried because I don't think my letter stated that
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Yeah mine mentioned! And I got a letter later saying I got 15% off.
 
dnaligase said:
Thank you!! really appreciate it the input. So if I’m understanding correctly once the priority deadline has passed they admit on a rolling basis? Or do they wait until everyone submits for the hard deadline and reevaluate again?
And based on my experiences and GPA do you think I have a decent shot at getting in to a good school? I know I’m so behind on everything 😭 wish I had this epiphany a few months ago
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I think it depends on the school but most are on a rolling basis. Brown is accepting applications until March 1 and I think BU is April 1. So you have time!!

Also just wanted to note that I jumped into the process of looking for schools last year around this time, and even though there were schools still accepting applications, I decided to wait for the next application cycle. This allowed me to thoroughly research programs, figure out what I wanted out of a school/program and strengthen my application.

There are pros and cons to both applying now and waiting for the next cycle to apply. You could very likely get into some great programs if you apply now! But you could also apply to programs that might be a better fit for you if you take your time 🙂
 
jm20bk06 said:
Eh true I think that they look at school names to some extent but with my knowledge it was mostly the experience portion that was looked at, especially as many applicants are from around the world.
I just spent a few months last year as an intern for the UN and assisted with admin work that comes with recruitment - no role in the official decision making process but I have a sense for what goes on which is helpful as I'd like to get back in at the UN or one of its agencies after I complete my MPH. You can PM me if you'd like!
It was a great experience and honestly if anyone is interested in work like that of the UN, I would say try to intern first just to get a sense of what the environment is like because it looks great from the outside but may not be the right fit for everyone
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thanks - will pm you! And yeah my goal is to intern to get a feel if it's a direction i want to go in
 
anyone know anything about changing depts at columbia?
 
jimin_ said:
anyone know anything about changing depts at columbia?
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Q:How do I change my degree or program?
A:For program changes, please email [email protected]. In your email please list the program you've been accepted to and the one you would now like to be considered for. Your application will need to be re-reviewed by the new department.
 
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