to Kirsteen

[Guest gonzo23]

Sorry to have to display this on the board...

 

But Kirsteen, I had some questions for you. Maybe if I could get your email address it would help (unless you don't mind just answering online here).

 

I am thinking that it would be healthy to look into other fields while I continue my pursuits to medical school so that I can spend my time effectively after I graduate from undergrad. I am considering epidemiology (and I think you are doing a master's in it?).

 

Wanted to get some info. on your choice, how you've liked it, what career options it would open up... etc.

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hi there,

 

First, you might want to have a browse through (or search) the McGill or Ottawa fora as an extensive thread on epi. appears in one of them, dating back to this past spring. There are a few of us epi-ites hanging about here and that thread contains some valuable information concerning the programs at Toronto, McGill and Ottawa.

 

If you're interested in epi. and have some room in your course schedule, then I'd recommend trying some courses in the field. That's what I did. I knew that I enjoyed research, but did not know which type turned my crank. In my final B.Sc. year, not only did I have a full-year research course based in a molecular lab, but I also took two epidemiology-type courses, newly offered by UofT (under the auspices of the University College Health Studies Program) as well as a graduate course in the field. The epi. courses helped uncover the attributes of this type of research, which led to the choice of epi. over molecular biology. This is a highly personal choice, so explore your own options and leanings.

 

If you decide that epidemiology is for you, then there are a couple of different routes to completing a Master's degree in it. For one, you could opt for a thesis-based M.Sc. (which is what I'm doing), or a practicum-based M.H.Sc. At UofT, these two programs will soon be fused, but there are other schools that still offer both. The difference between these programs is that the M.H.Sc. contains one or two terms of applied epidemiology work in lieu of a thesis, and it is generally considered to be a professional, terminal degree, i.e., you ordinarily would not proceed to a PhD upon its completion (although exceptions are made).

 

So what does a graduate epi. program entail? Well, essentially, you learn the tools of epidemiology: study design, analysis and interpretation. Most of these tools, at least initially, are heavily numbers-based, i.e., lots of ratios to calculate and heaps of statistics to learn. Upon grasping the basics, you can then branch out and apply and/or expand these skills to projects of your liking. Epi. projects span countless fields of research: clinical (patient-based); tobacco; health and the workplace; communicable disease; cancer; pharmacoepi; health outcomes... You name it, you can do an epi-type study in it.

 

On medicine and epidemiology, it is an area of research that dovetails beautifully with medicine--indeed, by definition, it is the branch of medical science concerned with the study of health in human populations. So generally, epidemiologists examine the population or group-level forces that influence health. To wit, if you take a look at many of the job/research opportunities offered to medical students in the summers between the first two years of medical school, many are of an epidemiological nature, i.e., searching for patterns within certain patient populations, as opposed to spinning cell pellets. Those trained in epidemiology can hit these summer projects running since these are exactly the types of initiatives that we're trained to tackle. (However, ask the majority of us to run some Northerns from scratch, and we'd be toast. )

 

Finally, on epi. careers, there currently seems to be plenty of paid work available. Many research centres are screaming for epidemiologists at the moment, and the same is true for the pharmaceutical industry. (I recently turned down two job offers to do some really interesting epi. work, from one of Canada's biggest pharmaceutical firms. (Darned thesis is crimping my style! )) Given David Naylor's recent public display of affection for public health funding, I would assume that the demand for epidemiologists will continue.

 

I think I've loosely addressed all of your points, but if you'd like any other bits of info, or would like to chat privately, feel free to send me a private message. I'd be happy to help.

 

Cheers and good luck,

Kirsteen

[Guest mitchie41]

What are the are the requirements generally to get into an epidemiology masters program?

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hi there,

 

Now that I'm in one, I haven't been looking. However, I do know that entry to the UofT program may be changing, as soon as the new program is released, i.e., it's still up in the air as to whether the thesis-based M.Sc. will be offered next year. When I entered though, I believe you officially need a B+ average (although an A- is realistic) as well as some experience. The ratio of matriculants to applicants has been anywhere from 1:4 to 1:7 in the past years.

 

If you don't already have a professional health degree, e.g., BSc.N., etc., then keep an eye on these pages:

 

Dept. of Public Health Sciences

 

If you do have a professional health degree, then the clinical epidemiology M.Sc. offered by the Dept. of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation may be up your alley:

 

HPME

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen