London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

Read Part 1

After my decision was made and I got my acceptance to the school, my original worries about LSHTM being a small and specialised university still lingered. 

I valued getting an interdisciplinary education and having a social life to balance the demands of my degree and wasn’t sure if the school would live up to my expectations. Then, during welcome week, entering the school for the first time as a student felt like entering a bubble, in the best way possible. I overheard conversations at lunch discussing global health problems, and got excited thinking that this was my field, which was previously niche at my undergraduate university. 

Then I realised that the students and academics discussing these topics took an entirely different approach to the topic, due to their own background and degrees. Whilst the school is exclusive to health education, the backgrounds of students and staff are so diverse that I still got an interdisciplinary education, but this time, tailored towards my interest in health. The vast array of interests, research and backgrounds represented at the school was amazing when it came to finding a summer project topic and dataset. Some other MSc Epidemiology students and I were analysing data from a survey conducted in Zimbabwe as part of a larger research study, with each of us using a different exposure variable.

Social life to balance the intensive side

A benefit of LSHTM being a part of the University of London and our proximity to other constituent universities, such as UCL or SOAS, is the opportunity to switch up who you talk to and socialise with. The University of London has many student societies, alongside LSHTM clubs, such as the art club, which allows you to expand your social life so much more than at one singular university. These social opportunities are in addition to MSc programme-specific socials that are organised throughout the year (and funded by the School!). Our year started with an Epi bowling social with our programme directors during welcome week. We also went to Oxford to learn about their research and opportunities to get involved, with other degrees hosting potlucks or Christmas dinners, a school-wide boat party, and we are now ending the year with an Epi laser tag and pizza event.

A year later: was going straight into my master's the right call?

Looking back to the beginning of my degree, I am somewhat surprised by how effective the school was at teaching us the amount of content that they did. Part of this effective teaching involved, slightly stereotypically, engaging everyone, utilising their experience, and taking the opportunity to learn from each other. Now being at the end stages of my degree, I am grateful I chose to come to the school straight from my undergraduate degree and, despite the job market being rough, feel able to confidently market myself and my skills gained through my master's compared to before my degree.

Final pieces of advice

If, after reading this blog, you are still on the fence about whether to apply, or if you have any worries that I haven’t addressed, my main piece of advice is: contact a student ambassador. We are real students, with real experiences; we understand the highs (and lows) of studying for a master’s degree, studying in London, and applying for further studies. If you are about to start your degree soon, congratulations! And if you have any final thoughts or questions, again, contact us. Everyone was once in the same position you are in now, so whatever is going on, you’re likely not alone with your questions. Finally, take a leap of faith; you will never know if it is the right thing for you if you don’t try!

• Read Shereen's experience and the transferable skills she gained from workshops and services at LSHTM.
• Discover MSc Epidemiology.
• Elbethel’s story: 4 things that make the learning experience at LSHTM special