Navigating PhD Applications, Part 1: Picking the Right Schools

It’s that time of the year—not exactly a seasonal sport, but application season for higher education. For those applying to PhD programs in health policy and public health, most schools close December 1, making the fall peak season for applications.

Getting your application in shape requires more than just completing forms and gathering transcripts. There's a lot that has to get done before you can apply—including the GREs (or IELTS if you are a non-native English speaker), requesting reference letters, writing your statement of purpose, and, in the case of health policy, contacting faculty mentors in prospective programs.

Here are some tips I learned when I was going through the process as well as on the faculty side seeing students apply for programs. While some of this advice is more recent from my experience as a faculty, some of this advice is about 20 years ago. It's tailored to those seeking studies in health policy, so take it all advice with a grain of salt and with all the standard disclaimers.

1. Diversify Risk

Similar to college applications, narrow down the list of schools you want to apply to, including a range of “reaches,” “cores,” and “baseline” universities. As universities increase in prestige and rankings, admission rates drop and competition rises. Therefore, don't apply only to top-tier programs—add some mid-tier and lower-tier options to diversify your risk.

2. Top-Tier University or Program?

Examine whether to apply for a top-tier university (which ranks well across many programs) versus a top-tier program (which may excel in a specific area but not necessarily in general). Top-tier universities tend to offer more resources in terms of faculty, courses, students, and alumni networks. However, smaller programs might provide a more specialized, supportive, and customized experience, especially if you have a specific topic or professor you want to work with. If you can get both, even better.

In some cases, if you don't have a master's degree yet, going for a master's degree in a higher ranked university can be a segue into a doctoral degree in the same university.

3. To Be or Not To Be... in the USA?

You might be considering applying to universities outside of the US. While I did all my studies in the US, I’ve met those who got their degrees in Europe and elsewhere, and the systems differ significantly. The US system often involves more coursework (and therefore more time) and supervisory committee work, whereas European systems can be more independent, assumes you've already done the coursework and thus can be faster, with the defense being more objective and evaluative. You'll want to check average time to graduation for any program you apply to.

If you prefer hands-on supervision, the US system might suit you better, but that doesn't mean you can't find it in Europe—it might just require more initiative on your part. In general, if you plan to work in a certain country, it might be easier to secure a job in that country. However, with excellent publications in top-tier journals, you'll be competitive anywhere in the world.

If you have a desire to be in a certain city, then unlike most other degrees, studying at that university does not make you more competitive for jobs at that university or in that city. Actually it can be a disadvantage. Universities try to bring in new ideas from outside. Thus, by definition hiring from internal candidates (i.e. candidates from the same university) is looked down upon in most top-tier universities, again with some exceptions.

4. Scroll Through Faculty Profiles Carefully

In general, I recommend learning as much as you can about the faculty in a department or program that you're interested in. More than the curriculum or glossy brochures, getting a sense of which faculty are in the program is the best way to see if the department is the right fit for you. Think of it like reading the specs of a new car that you might want to buy.

When I was selecting graduate programs to apply to, it helped me so much when one of my undergraduate mentors offered to look at the programs with me. If you have a trusted mentor that can guide you, you're very fortunate.

What exactly should you be looking for? Look at faculty profiles carefully. Look up their papers and see which journals and fields they are publishing in. Look at the courses they teach as that will give you a sense of how much they emphasize teaching (or not) as well as the curriculum they require. Look at the departmental gender and ethnicity mix. Look to see if there is a tenured female or minority faculty in the department as well as the mix of faculty ranks (is it very top heavy at the professor rank or are there many junior faculty at the assistant professor Rank). None of these are definite indicators of a good or bad program or even of whether they are the right fit, but it can sometimes shed light on the departmental faculty dynamics that are usually invisible to students.

As you scroll through the faculty list, take note of any faculty names whose research interests you. In my next article, I'll delve into the process of reaching out to prospective faculty mentors, providing guidance on when and how to initiate contact to enhance your application, so stay tuned!

Bottom Line

Choosing the right PhD programs to apply to is one of the first steps in the application season. But PhDs are a bit like buying a car than a product off the shelf. Every PhD program is unique and different. There's more customization than standardization across PhD programs. Even if you think you are choosing the same program or discipline, the programs will differ by faculty diversity, curriculum, student graduation rates, and other unobserved qualities. As you begin to apply, diversify your options and do your background research and due diligence.

#PhDApplications #HigherEducation #GraduateSchool #PhDLife #AcademicJourney #Research #HealthPolicy #PublicHealth #EducationStrategy