PhD in Epidemiology Curriculum

PhD in Epidemiology curriculum

To complete this degree, you will take a combination of required epidemiology core courses, methods courses, elective courses, a doctoral minor, doctoral research seminars, and guided dissertation research that together total 90 credits.

If applicants to the epidemiology PhD program have recently completed an MPH program in epidemiology or a related area and therefore already have solid academic preparation in epidemiology and biostatistics, they may not need to take select foundation courses, which would reduce their required curriculum credits.

Individuals accepted into the program who do not have the foundation courses in epidemiology and biostatistics will be required to take the full 90-credit curriculum.

Take all nine courses for a total of 27 credits.

  • PBHL-B 552 Fundamentals of Data Management (using SAS) (3 credits)
  • PBHL-B 571 Biostat Method I: Linear Model in Public Health (3 credits)
  • PBHL-B 572 Biostat Method II: Categorical Data Analysis (3 credits)
  • PBHL-B 582 Introduction to Clinical Trials (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 517 Fundamentals of Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 601 Advanced Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 606 Grant Writing for Public Health (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 635 Foundations of Public Health Informatics (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 715 Design and Implementation of Observational Studies (3 credits)

Choose five courses for a total of 15 credits.

  • PBHL-B 573 Biostat Method III: Applied Survival Data Analysis (3 credits)
  • PBHL-B 574 Biostat Method IV: Applied Longitudinal Data Analysis (3 credits)
  • PBHL-B 583 Applied Multivariate Analysis in Public Health (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 645 Information Exchange for Population Health (3 credits)
  • MGEN-G 788 (INFO-I 590) Intro to the Next Generation Sequencing Technology (3 credits)
  • INFO-B 636 Next Generation Genomic Data Analysis (3 credits)

*Students may take methods and substantive electives offered by other IU Indianapolis departments with advisor approval.

Choose four courses for a total of 12 credits.

  • PBHL-E 647 Introduction to Population Health Analytics (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 609 Infectious Disease Epidemiology
  • PBHL-E 666 Overview of Precision Health (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 618 Global Cancer Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 675 Fundamentals of Injury Epidemiology
  • PBHL-E 765 Nutritional Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 750 Doctoral Topics in Epidemiology variable 1-3
  • PBHL-E 751 Doctoral Readings in Epidemiology variable 1-3
  • PBHL-E 752 Doctoral Level Directed Research (3 credits)
  • PBHL-B 586 Technical Reporting and Scientific Writing (1 credit)

*Students may take methods and substantive electives offered by other IU Indianapolis departments with advisor approval.

Students must complete a PhD minor in an area related to a health and life science. The minor in most cases is comprised of four graduate-level courses (12 credit hours) in the chosen area and must comply with the minor requirements of the respective department/unit.

Students will enroll in three doctoral research seminars. Each seminar is one credit, for a total of three credits. (PBHL-E 775)

  • PBHL-E 799 Dissertation Proposal (4 credits)
  • PBHL-E 800 Epidemiology Doctoral Dissertation Research (17 credits)

Core courses

Take all 10 courses for a total of 30 credits.

  • PBHL-B 552 Fundamentals of Data Management (using SAS) (3 credits)
  • PBHL-B 571 Biostat Method I: Linear Model in Public Health (4 credits)
  • PBHL-B 572 Biostat Method II: Categorical Data Analysis (4 credits)
  • PBHL-E 517 Fundamentals of Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 601 Advanced Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 606 Grant Writing for Public Health (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 629 Introduction to Genetic Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 635 Foundations of Public Health Informatics (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 715 Design and Implementation of Observational Studies (3 credits)
  • PBHL-B 586 Technical Reporting and Scientific Writing (1 credits)

Methods

Choose three courses for a total of 9 credits.

  • PBHL-B 573 Biostat Method III: Applied Survival Data Analysis (4 credits)
  • PBHL-B 574 Biostat Method IV: Applied Longitudinal Data Analysis (3 credits)
  • PBHL-B 582 Introduction to Clinical Trials (3 credits)
  • PBHL-B 583 Applied Multivariate Analysis in Public Health (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 645 Information Exchange for Population Health (1 credit)
  • PBHL-E 563 Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (3 credits)
  • MGEN-G 788 (INFO-I 590) Intro to the Next Generation Sequencing Technology (3 credits)
  • INFO-B 636 Next Generation Genomic Data Analysis (3 credits)

*Students may take methods and substantive electives offered by other IU Indianapolis departments with advisor approval.

Electives

Choose five courses for a total of 15 credits.

  • PBHL-A 617 Environmental Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 609 Infectious Disease (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 610 Global Chronic Disease Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 618 Global Cancer Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 675 Fundamentals of Injury Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 765 Nutritional Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 750 Doctoral Topics in Epidemiology variable 1-3
  • PBHL-E 751 Doctoral Readings in Epidemiology variable 1-3
  • PBHL-E 752 Doctoral Level Directed Research (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 770 Occupational Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • PBHL-E 780 Pharmaco-Epidemiology (3 credits)
  • SOC R 585 Aspects of Mental Health & Illness (3 credits)

Seminar

Complete 3 credits.

  • PBHL-E 775 Doctoral Research Seminars (1 credit)

Minor

Complete 12 credits.

  • Minor courses (3 credits)

Dissertation

Complete 21 credits.

  • PBHL-E 800 Epidemiology Doctoral Dissertation Research (1-12 credits)

Other degree requirements for the PhD in Epidemiology

Public health coursework
Epidemiology students without a graduate degree, certificate or coursework in public health will be required to complete online introductory modules on Environmental Health, Health Policy and Management, and Social and Behavioral Science to ensure that they have basic competencies in all five core public health areas. This is a requirement of the Council on Education in Public Health (CEPH), the school’s accrediting body.

PhD advisory committee
The department of epidemiology will set up an advisory committee for the student, typically in the first year after admission to the PhD program. The advisory committee usually includes at least two epidemiologists and one or two faculty members from another discipline. The advisory committee will approve the student’s program of study and counsel the student until he or she passes the qualifying examination. Each PhD student will also be assigned to an academic advisor from one of the full-time faculty members in the department of epidemiology.

Minor area
The student will select a minor from an academic unit other than the department of epidemiology. The PhD minor must be approved by the student’s advisory committee, and comply with requirements of the respective minor department or program. Examples of minors include: biostatistics, genetics, pharmacology, toxicology, health economics, environmental health, and health informatics.

Qualifying examinations
The qualifying examination will be based upon the student’s PhD coursework and will be taken after all courses have been completed. Students who fail the qualifying examination are normally allowed to retake it only once. The qualifying exam will be a written exam.

Students who have passed the qualifying examination must enroll each semester (excluding summer sessions) for dissertation credits. Once such students have accumulated 90 credit hours in completed coursework and dissertation credits, they must enroll for six hours of graduate credit (GRAD-G 901) each semester until the degree is completed. The fee for this course is $150. Students are permitted to enroll in G901 for a maximum of six semesters.

The department of epidemiology will monitor the student’s progress toward the PhD degree and will make recommendations to the University Graduate School regarding the nomination to candidacy, the appointment of a research committee, the defense of the dissertation, and the conferring of the PhD degree.

Dissertation
The dissertation will be written on an original topic of research and presented as one of the final requirements for the PhD degree. The student’s dissertation research committee will be comprised of members of the graduate faculty. The chair of the dissertation research committee must be a regular faculty member in the department of epidemiology and a full member of the graduate faculty.

The student will submit to the IU Indianapolis Graduate Office, acting for the University Graduate School, a two-page prospectus of the dissertation research and the membership of the research committee at least six months before the defense of the dissertation for their approval.

After the committee has reviewed the dissertation, the decision to schedule the defense will be made. The student will then present and defend the dissertation orally in a public forum before the committee. Following the dissertation defense, all deficiencies must be adequately addressed to obtain approval by the dissertation research committee.