Curriculum

CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

The curriculum of this four-year program is designed to be interdisciplinary including core courses completed by all students, regardless of their chosen emphasis. Students apply directly into one of three emphases: Biostatistics, Clinical and Translational Epidemiology, or Health Systems Research.

CREDITS

Students who hold a relevant master’s degree take a minimum of 62 credits to earn a PhD in Population Health Sciences. Students who do not have a previous master’s degree take a minimum of 80 credits to earn a PhD in Population Health Sciences.

PREREQUISITES

Prerequisites will vary based on program emphasis and an applicant's educational background.

Before entering the Population Health Sciences PhD program, all applicants are required to have a graduate-level biostatistics course. Applicants are also strongly encouraged to take one semester of graduate-level epidemiology. In addition, applicants should be proficient in R statistical computing. It is also recommended that applicants have previous research experience.

CORE CURRICULUM

Population Health Sciences students will take the required core courses as described below.

Catalogue Number	Title	Credit Hours
PHS 7020	Insights from Secondary Data	3
PHS 7030	Applied Modern Causal Inference	3
PHS 7100	Epidemiology Theory & Methods	3
PHS 7310	Comparative Health Systems Seminar I	2
PHS 7370	Social Determinants & Health Inequities	3
MDCRC 6450	Grant Writing	3
PHS 7970	Dissertation (minimum)	14
Total Number of Credits		31

EMPHASES CURRICULUM

BIOSTATISTICS

Emphasis

CURRICULUM

YEAR 0 CURRICULUM - required for students without Masters Degree

CLINICAL & TRANSLATIONAL EPIDEMIOLOGY

Emphasis

CURRICULUM

HEALTH SYSTEMS RESEARCH

Emphasis

CURRICULUM

QUALIFYING EXAM

After completing their coursework (generally by the conclusion of the spring semester of their second year), students will take a qualifying examination to assess their knowledge within their specific discipline and of the tools of research required in PHS.