The mission of the Doctoral Program in Epidemiology and Biostatistics in the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences is to prepare students for an active, fulfilling, and lifelong research career, with the goal of improving human health.

?As part of their training students will develop the knowledge, skills, and competencies necessary to be leading researchers in areas that provide improved understanding of how to advance public health. Through challenging coursework and research opportunities, both independent and collaborative, students will develop a thorough understanding of the multiple determinants of population health outcomes, the individual and structural factors that may lead to disparities in those outcomes, and the way in which specific policies and interventions can influence the nature and impacts of population health determinants. A key aspect of the program is to train students to define important, unanswered questions and design appropriate strategies to solve our pressing health problems, locally, nationally and globally. In addition, the program in Epidemiology and Biostatistics is committed to developing the skills necessary for lifelong learning as we recognize this as being key to continued success.

The program is designed to train students to address critical research questions to advance human and population health utilizing a wide variety of research tools and trans-disciplinary collaborations. This is distinct from historical training in a single discipline (e.g., statistics or genetics) or expertise in a small number of technical skills. The educational mission of the PhD Program in Epidemiology & Biostatistics is to train students using an integrated approach that draws broadly from the population and quantitative health sciences.? These include?global, population, public, and community health, biostatistics, epidemiology, health behavior and prevention, genomic epidemiology, bioinformatics, and computational biology. This training provides the foundation for trainees to play integral roles in successfully solving our most pressing health problems.