I Choose You: Racial/Ethnic differences in decision-making factors for graduate study in Public Health

While diversity efforts in medical school admissions have been shown to improve the health of underserved populations, public health diversity has lagged behind. According to the U.S. ASPH 2006 data, 33.1% of graduates were minorities (American Indian/Alaskan Native 0.7%, Asian 13.4%, Black 11.6%, Hispanic 7.5%) compared with 60.6% of graduates being white. To identify the reasons diverse students choose schools and programs of public health, we recruited survey participants from the APHA-SA, the Black Young Professionals in Public Health Network (BYPPHNETWORK), and Society for Epidemiologic Research-Student Caucus (SER-SC) listservs through a mass email. Listserv members were also asked to forward the survey website to persons they felt were eligible. Both alumni and current students of schools and programs of public health in the U.S. were eligible for participation. Participants were asked to complete an adapted 28 item confidential online survey. One question addressed factors students considered when deciding on a school or program of public health. Answers included but were not limited to: diversity of faculty and student body, school size, and academic reputation. To date, 246 surveys have been submitted online. Currently, the sample is 33.3% Black/African American, 41% Caucasian, 8.13% Latino, 87.8% female, and 86.2% attended a CEPH accredited school or program. Survey data will be stratified and compared by race, gender, and CEPH accreditation. Results will provide insight into institutional characteristics that are important for students which can then be used by schools to determine ways to increase student diversity.