Principles and Methods of Epidemiology Core Courses
Statistical Methods Core Courses
Public Health Core Course
Professional Development
PhD students are required to sign up for 1 credit of EEH 650 in the fall and spring semesters of the third year of their program of study. PhD students are required to sign up for 0 credits in all other semesters in the program. (2 credits total)
PhD Dissertation Guidance
Credit hours total 36 for required core courses.
Epidemiology Electives Courses for PhD
Choose four of the following courses (3 credits unless otherwise noted):
Credit hours total 12 for required epidemiology elective courses.
Graduate Seminar
Ethics Course/Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) Training
All doctoral students must obtain formal training in the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR). All PhD students are required to take and pass the following online course:
Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) online course with a score of 80% or higher (0 credits)
Credits for required PhD courses = 46 credits
MSTP Seminar
Recommended Options to Fulfill the Balance of Remaining Credit Hours to Achieve 72
The remaining credits needed for the MD/PHD student to meet 72 credits are tailored to the trainee's particular interests and needs and are planned in consultation with the MS and PhD Graduate Director.
Possible courses that doctoral students are recommended to take to meet credit needs include:
PhD students can also choose to register for additional dissertation credits above the required 1 credit:
*Course is designed for advanced doctoral students.
Primary Data Collection Requirement
All PhD students are required to engage in primary data collection at some point during their program.
Teaching Assistantship Requirement
PhD students are required to have a Teaching Assistant (TA) experience for a minimum of 10 hours/week for one semester during their program.
Scientific Communications Requirement
PhD students must demonstrate experience in both written and oral communication of scientific research.
General/Analytic Preliminary Exam
PhD students are required to pass a general/analytic preliminary exam designed to assess whether the student has sufficient knowledge essential for conducting advanced epidemiology research toward a doctoral degree; it focuses on general epidemiologic methods, including data analysis and interpretation. The examination includes both written and oral components. Students are expected to sit for this exam at the end of their second year in the doctoral program.
Specialty Exam/Dissertation Proposal Defense
PhD students are required to design and undertake significant hypothesis-driven original independent epidemiological research equivalent to three publishable manuscripts within one or more overarching content area(s). This research will be conducted under the supervision of your major professor and a dissertation committee. After the written dissertation proposal is approved by all committee members, the student sits for a written specialty exam to determine whether the student has sufficient breadth and depth of knowledge in their specialty area to successfully complete their proposed project. PhD students are required to pass the written component of the specialty exam, after which they will have an open oral proposal defense (inclusive of the written specialty exam). This should be completed within one year after completion of the general/analytic prelim exam.
Dissertation Defense
Through the dissertation, you will design, implement, complete and report on significant and original, independent epidemiologic research. You will conduct your research under the supervision of your major professor and a dissertation committee.
Your dissertation research culminates in a dissertation defense required to be passed by all PhD students. You will present and formally defend your thesis to your major professor, your dissertation committee and the MS/PhD graduate director.
Additional details on these requirements are provided in the View the Epidemiology and Environmental Health Graduate Student Handbook.