Population Health, PhD
Analytics, Community, Data Science, Environmental Health Science, Epidemiology, Equity, Health Administration, Health Care, Healthcare, Policy, Public Health, Research, ethics, healthcare administration
Embark on a research career with a profound impact on the health of communities and populations. Tailor your academic experience to conduct research in close collaboration with the communities you aim to help.
The PhD in population health brings together multiple disciplines, illustrating the complex factors that affect the health and well-being of populations.
The program addresses the interaction between health systems and other sectors of society --- including the private sector, government, nonprofit and academia --- to affect the health outcomes of entire populations.
Students personalize their program of study by completing courses from one of four tracks:
- complex adaptive systems: teaches students about theory, principles, models and techniques used to analyze complex systems and data as applied to population health
- dissemination and implementation science: trains students to identify, translate and implement research that will enable rapid dissemination of evidence
- health equity: trains doctoral students to conduct empathetic research, incorporating the lived experience of populations vulnerable to health disparities into applied research
- health services research and policy: enables students to examine access to and use of health care services, costs, quality and safety of care, health care delivery models, organization, financing, and outcomes of health care
- urban environments for health: prepares students to meet challenges from an evidence-based and transdisciplinary environmental perspective
Required courses reinforce a strong repertoire of systems science, quantitative and qualitative research methods, ethics, epidemiology and biostatistics. The practicum offers an applied experience, and the dissertation requires novel research on population health.
- College/school:
College of Health Solutions
- Location: Downtown Phoenix
84 credit hours, a written comprehensive exam, an oral comprehensive exam, a prospectus and a dissertation - Complex Adaptive Systems Track, or
84 credit hours, a written comprehensive exam, an oral comprehensive exam, a prospectus and a dissertation - Dissemination and Implementation Science Track, or
84 credit hours, a written comprehensive exam, an oral comprehensive exam, a prospectus and a dissertation - Health Equity Track, or
84 credit hours, a written comprehensive exam, an oral comprehensive exam, a prospectus and a dissertation - Health Services Research and Policy Track, or
84 credit hours, a written comprehensive exam, an oral comprehensive exam, a prospectus and a dissertation - Urban Environments for Health Track
Required Core (15 credit hours) Track (15 credit hours) Electives (30 credit hours) Research (6 credit hours) Other Requirement (6 credit hours) Culminating Experience (12 credit hours) Additional Curriculum Information Students entering the doctoral program with a master's degree in a related discipline may count up to 30 credit hours from the master's degree toward the total credit hours, with program approval.
BMI 515 Applied Biostatistics in Medicine and Informatics (3)
EXW 645 Advanced Applied Methods and Data Analysis (3)
POP 605 Population Health Systems Science and Theory (3)
POP 633 Population Health Ethics (3)
POP 641 Qualitative Research Methods (3)
EXW 700 Research Methods (3)
EXW 701 Scientific Grant Writing (3)
POP 591 Seminar: Evaluating the Population Health Literature (3)
POP 780 Population Health Practicum (3)
POP 799 Dissertation (12)
Students select from tracks in complex adaptive systems, dissemination and implementation science, health equity, health services research and policy, or urban environments for health.
Applicants must fulfill the requirements of both the Graduate College and the College of Health Solutions.
Applicants are eligible to apply to the program if they have earned a bachelor's or a master's degree in any field from a regionally accredited institution. Preference is given to applicants who completed a data-based research thesis during their master's degree program.
Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in the last 60 hours of their first bachelor's degree program, or applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in an applicable master's degree program.
All applicants must submit:
- graduate admission application and application fee
- official transcripts
- personal statement
- resume or curriculum vitae
- three references (academic or professional)
- writing sample (6 to 10 pages)
- oral interview (via videoconference)
- proof of English proficiency
Additional Application Information
An applicant whose native language is not English must provide proof of English proficiency regardless of their current residency.
All applicants must have completed an undergraduate or graduate-level course in epidemiology (e.g., EXW 642, HEP 444, or NTR 557) and a graduate-level research statistics course (e.g., EXW 501 or NTR 502).
It is expected that students admitted to the program have documented academic training and a strong interest in public health, health care or population health. Thus, depending on the student's academic training, background, scholarly interests and focus area, they may be asked to take course deficiencies prior to or concurrently with graduate course enrollment.
The personal statement should indicate research or scholarly interest, primary program area, statement of career goals and the name of one or more potential faculty mentors. Applicants are strongly encouraged to contact one or more possible mentors to discuss their research interests prior to submitting their application.
Contact information for three references is required. References will be contacted via email to submit a letter of recommendation and respond to a series of questions about the applicant. References must be academic or professional sources who are familiar with the applicant's potential to be successful in the field of population health.
| Session | Modality | Deadline | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Session A/C | In Person | 12/01 | Priority |
Students are strongly encouraged to pursue postdoctoral research opportunities upon graduation.
Graduates of this interdisciplinary program are prepared to become:
- executives or analysts in private industry, such as health IT startups or medical device, biotechnology, health insurance or health care delivery organizations
- faculty at research-intensive universities in schools of population health, public health, medicine or health sciences
- leaders and directors of health in local, state and federal government agencies
- program directors and officers for global health organizations, such as the World Health Organization or the World Bank
- program directors and officers of local and national nongovernmental foundations such as the American Cancer Society or the American Diabetes Association
- research or policy analysts at federal health agencies, such as the National Institutes of Health or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Career examples include:
- entrepreneur
- epidemiologist
- global health professional
- health information manager or director
- health scientist
- population health analyst or manager
- postsecondary public health teacher
- professor
- public health consultant or policy advisor
- research scientist
College of Health Solutions
|
HLTHN 401
chsgrad@asu.edu
602-496-3300
3 year programs
These programs allow students to fast-track their studies after admission and earn a bachelor's degree in three years or fewer while participating in the same high-quality educational experience of a 4-year option. Students should talk to their academic advisor to get started.
Accelerated master's
These programs allow students to accelerate their studies to earn a bachelor's plus a master's degree in as few as five years (for some programs).
Each program has requirements students must meet to be eligible for consideration. Acceptance to the graduate program requires a separate application. Students typically receive approval to pursue the accelerated master’s during the junior year of their bachelor's degree program. Interested students can learn about eligibility requirements and how to apply.
