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Health Policy and Management Theses and Dissertations

Theses/dissertations from 2017 2017.

Healthcare Costs of Injured Youth: The Need for Prevention, Policy, and Proper Triage , Jessica Lynn Ryan

Physical Therapy Utilization and Length of Stay among Patients with Low Back Pain in Florida Hospitals , Kyle A. Watterson

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

Predictors of the Incidence and Charges for Lumbar Spinal Fusion Surgery in Florida Hospitals During 2010 , Anna Ialynychev

Theses/Dissertations from 2010 2010

Analysis of Two Strategies for Structuring Medicare Reimbursement to Maximize Profitability in Acute Care General Hospitals , James D. Barrington

Theses/Dissertations from 2009 2009

Predicting the Medical Management Requirements of Large Scale Mass Casualty Events Using Computer Simulation , Scott A. Zuerlein

Theses/Dissertations from 2008 2008

The Association between the Measles, Mumps, and Rubella Vaccine and the Development of Autism: A Meta-Analysis , Rashad Carlton

The Influence of Specialized Cancer Hospitals in Florida on Mortality, Length of Stay, and Charges of Care , Patricia L. Spencer

Theses/Dissertations from 2005 2005

Racial Disparities in Breast Cancer Surgical Treatment and Radiation Therapy Use , Tracey Lynn Koehlmoos

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Home > USC Columbia > Public Health, Arnold School of > SPH_HEALTH_SERVICES_POLICY_MANAGEMENT > Health Services Policy and Management Theses and Dissertations

Health Services Policy and Management Theses and Dissertations

Theses/dissertations from 2024 2024.

The Role of Telehealth and Obstetrics Capacity on Maternal Health Care: a Mixed Methods Approach , Shanikque L. Barksdale

Association Between Direct Access Laws and Physical Therapy Use and the Effect of Change in Physical Therapy Use On Subsequent Healthcare Spending, Utilization, and Opioid Use , Dakshu Jindal

Theses/Dissertations from 2023 2023

The Intersectionality of Rurality and Race on COVID-19 Vaccination Among Adults in the United States , Shiba Simon Bailey

Examining the Associations of the Kidney Allocation System With Patient Sensitivity, Wait Time to Transplant, and Donor Distance , Shamika Danielle Jones

Female Infertility and Maternal and Infant Outcomes in South Carolina – The Role of Insurance Type , Chelsea Mencio Norregaard

Beyond Vaccination Coverage: A Critical Look At Zero-Dose Children in Sub-Saharan Africa , Chamberline Ekene Ozigbu

Complementary and Integrative Health (CIH) And Opioid Use Among Adults With Chronic Noncancer Pain in the US , Yi-Wen Shih

Correlates of Immunization Timeliness in Three South Asian Countries: Secondary Analysis of Demographic and Health Surveys , Tanzir Ahmed Shuvo

Patient Experiences and Disparities in Telehealth HIV Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Study Results From the Southern United States , Valerie Yelverton

Theses/Dissertations from 2022 2022

Association of Prior Periodontal Disease With Cancer – Exploring Epidemiologic Evidence of Periodontal Exudate-Exposed Site Cancer Risk Versus Remote Gastrointestinal Sites , Asma Alzahrani

Gonorrhea: Core Areas and State Policies , Jessica Purser

Subject Cognitive Decline in Informal Caregivers , Eunika Simons

Identifying Racial Differences in Colorectal Polyp Profile at Screening Colonoscopy Using Traditional Regression and Machine Learning Approaches , Yuqi Wu

Theses/Dissertations from 2021 2021

Examining the Cost and Quality Relationship in Medicare , Alexandria Fleming Delage

Evaluating the Health Impact of CenteringPregnancy Program Versus Traditional Prenatal Care in Midland Obstetric Clinics and Validating Selected Item On Birth Certificate , Oluwatosin A. Momodu

Hear My Voice: Qualitative Studies to Explore What Empowers Patients to Talk With Their Doctor and Participate in Making Health Care Decisions , Alicia Marie Oostdyk

A Cost Effectiveness Analysis Of The Nutritious Eating With Soul Study , Mary Jones Wilson

Theses/Dissertations from 2020 2020

Magnet Recognition (Mr) and Hospital Quality Outcomes in the U.S.A– Analysis Based on 2017 Hospital Data , Abdulmalik Alhammad

Effect of Lifestyle, Medical School Culture and Income on Medical Students' Decision to Pursue a Primary Care Career in Saudi Arabia , Ahmed Abdullah Alhussain

Package Warning Labels for Communicating Relative Risks of Cigarettes, Heated Tobacco Products, and E-Cigarettes , Yoo Jin Cho

Correlates of Maternal Health Service Use and Women’s Experiences Using Antenatal Care in Ghana: A Mixed-Methods Study , Anna Cofie

Examining Parental Perceptions and Decisions to Uptake Child Influenza Immunizations: Assessing Pandemic and Policy Impacts on Vaccination Rates Following the H1N1 Pandemic, and the ACIP LAIV Preferential Recommendation Revocation , Amir H. Mehrabi

The Impact of Financial Incentives on Urban-Rural Disparities in Dental Supply: Evidence From Thailand , Rakchanok Noochpoung

Effectiveness and Experience of an Integrated Maternal Mental Healthcare Intervention in Private Clinics and Public Health Facilities in Pakistan , Syeda Somyyah Owais

Aging With HIV in the United States: Trends and Impact of Hospital Stays on Inpatient Resource Utilization, and Costs of Care, 2003-2015 , Khairul Alam Siddiqi

Maternal Preventive Dental Services Utilization: The Role of Preconception Oral Health Counseling in and the Association With Birth Outcomes: Evidence From South Carolina Prams , Monique Johnette Williams

Effectiveness Among Community Health Center Governing Boards: An Assessment of the Different Governing Board Members’ Perspectives , Brandi L. Wright

Theses/Dissertations from 2019 2019

Factors Associated with Advance Care Plans and End-Of-Life Care Choices Among Elderly Americans: An Analysis of Health and Retirement Study Data , Agha Ajmal

The Association of Reimbursement Methods With the Tendency of Primary Care Physicians to Apply the American Diabetic Association’s Recommendations and Make Referrals to Specialists Among Ambulatory Care Patients in Us Outpatient Settings. , Abdullah Alharbi

Examining Women’s Perceptions of Maternity Care in Public and Private Sectors of National Guard Hospitals in Saudi Arabia: A Qualitative Study , Hanin M. Almahmoud

Effect of Severe Economic Recession on the Psychological Distress: Evidence of Modifying Effect of Risky Behaviors and Insurance Status , Lumi Bakos

Clinically Integrated Networks: The ‘Magic Pill’ for Improving the Quality of Health Care? , Kaitlyn Ann Crosby

Did Medicaid Expansion Under the Affordable Care Act Reduce the Likelihood That People Report Employment Status Changes Due to Health, U.S., 2009-2017 , Songyuan Deng

The Relationship Between the Electronic Health Record Patient Portal and Shared Decision Making , Gloria Esoimeme

HIV Care Location: An Evaluation of Single Versus Multi Facility Utilization of HIV/Aids Care Services and Patient Health Outcomes and Clinical Indicators in South Carolina , Melanie Gwynn

The Intergenerational Effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences on Children’s Emergency Department Utilization and Depression and Anxiety in South Carolina , Eboni E. Haynes

Assessing the Impact of South Carolina’s Medicaid Adult Dental Policy on Dental Emergency Department Visits , Victor Kirksey

The Association of Rural Hospital Closures with In-Hospital and 30-Day Post Hospital Discharge Mortality from Emergency Care Sensitive Conditions , Melinda A. Merrell

Health Insurance Program for the Poor, Out-Of-Pocket Costs, and Catastrophic Health Expenditures in India , Shyamkumar Sriram

The Prescribing Patterns of Gabapentin and Pregabalin in a Medicaid Population Amid the Opioid Epidemic , Sarah Sullivan

The Association of Health Insurance and Prescription Drug Coverage on Cost-Related Non-Adherence and Hospitalization Across Age-Related Groups of Individuals With COPD , Shamika Martin Walls

Theses/Dissertations from 2018 2018

Investigating Drug-Related Violence in Indian Country: The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina , Asa Alena Revels

The Impact Of The Medicaid Coverage Expansion And The Removal Of Cost-Sharing Under The Affordable Care Act On Mammography And Pap Tests , Abeer Alharbi

Introduction Of Innovative Medical Practices In Mayo Clinic: Effect Of The Interventions On Patient Outcomes , Duaa I. Aljabri

How Do Health System Employees with Established Musculoskeletal Complaints Decide on Their Treatment Pathway? A Qualitative Approach , Noor Alshareef

Patient Characteristics, Discharge Disposition, and Hospital Factors Associated with All cause 30-day Hospital Readmission for Total Joint Arthroplasty in 2014 , Hamad Yahya Alzamanan

Factors Affecting Patient Satisfaction With Healthcare System Of Turkey , Serdar Aydin

The Association of Hospital Practices to Breastfeeding Behaviors in South Carolina: Analysis of 2013-2015 Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) Data , Larisa Donnette Bruner

Association Of Insurance And Provider Type With Patients’ Perceived Cost And Ease Of Access To Healthcare Services Among Medicare Beneficiaries Diagnosed With Diabetes , Metria Harris

Residential Mobility And Enrollment Churn In A Medicaid Population , John E. Stewart

Theses/Dissertations from 2017 2017

Association of Freestanding Dialysis Facility Size, Quality Incentive Program Scores and Patient Survival , Fozia Ajmal

Racism Across The American South: The Association Between Racism On Twitter, Rurality, & Black Mortality , Jarrod Bullard

Association of Provider Communication and Inpatient Hospital Readmissions , Jeremy Dean Faulkenburg

Economic Burden of Tuberculosis among Bangladeshi Population and Economic Evaluation of the Current Approaches of Tuberculosis Control in Bangladesh , Mohammad Rifat Haider

The Association between Clinical Recognition of Depression and Unplanned Hospital Readmission among Older Adults , Karen M. Jones

Association between Job Satisfaction and Pay: The Case of the Wage Payment System of Dental Clinics in Korea , Eui Jeong Kim

Feasibility of Introducing Investor-Owned Hospitals in Korea , HongSeok Seo

A Study on Satisfaction of Dental Implant Patients , Jung Su O

Depressive Symptoms Association With Health Outcomes And Treatment In Older Americans With Diabetes , Lashonda Jovon Williams

Internet Speed and the Effect on Health Information Technology Adoption , Matthew W. Yuen

Theses/Dissertations from 2016 2016

Contextualizing Multilayered Sexual Subjectivities of Heterosexual Black Female Undergraduate Students at a Predominantly White Institution in the South , Amarachi Rossana Anakaraonye

Molecular Cues Of Pattern-Recognition-Receptor Pathways In Redox-Toxicity-Driven Environmental NAFLD , Suvarthi Das

Effectiveness Of Community-Based EIBI Treatment: A Longitudinal Analysis Of Adaptive Behavior And Language Outcomes , John Kuntz

Low-Intensity Physical Activity And Cardiometabolic Risk Factors Among Older Adults With Multiple Chronic Conditions , Yueyao Li

Smoking-Related Stigma: A Public Health Tool Or A Damaging Force ? , Paula A. Lozano

Novel Methods for Analyzing Longitudinal Data with Measurement Error in the Time Variable , Caroline Munindi Mulatya

Practice Characteristics That Matter In the Provision of Health Education Services By Primary Care Physicians , George Paul Newby Jr.

Demand And Supply Factors Affecting Maternal Healthcare Utilization Pattern In Nigeria , Dumbiri Joy Powell

Healthcare Utilization And Expenditure Patterns Among Older Adults With Functional And Medical Decline , Ashley Shields Robertson

Frequency of Colonoscopy Surveillance in Average-Risk Adults Relative to Guideline Recommendations , Meng-Han Tsai

Examining The Relationship Among Patient-Centered Communication, Patient Engagement, And Patient’s Perception Of Quality Of Care In The General U.S. Adult Population , Jumee Wang

The Undiagnosed Patient and The Diagnostic Odyssey: Current Genetic Counseling Practices and Perspectives , Amelia Cordell Wardyn

Job Satisfaction And Intent To Quit Outcomes Among Home Health Aides In Home Health Care Industry Of The United States: A Multilevel Study , Seokwon Yoon

Theses/Dissertations from 2015 2015

Relationship Between Job Satisfaction Among Frontline Staff and Patient Satisfaction: Evidence from Community Health Centers in South Carolina , Ashley Lynn Barnes

Association between Electronic Prescribing among Ambulatory Care Providers and Adverse Drug Event Hospitalizations in Older Adults , Grishma Patel Bhavsar

Spatial Analysis and Correlates of Waterpipe Tobacco Smoking among College Students in the United States , Frederick Richard Kates

Community-Level Factors Associated with Health-Related Quality of Life Among Older Adults , Yu-Hsiu Lin

Examination of the Association of Receipt of Opioid Therapy and Lung Cancer Patient Survival Rates among South Carolina Medicaid Recipients , Jametta Sade Magwood

Patient And Provider Characteristics And Practice Patterns of Primary Care Physicians Of Weight-Related Counseling , Kolby T. Redd

Dental Insurance as a Mitigating Factor in Reducing the Risk of Mortality Among Working-Age Adults with Dental Caries and Periodontitis , Naveed Sadiq

Longitudinal Study of the Effectiveness of the South Carolina Medicaid Policy for the Application of Fluoride Varnish for Children Age Three and Under , Christine N. Veschusio

Theses/Dissertations from 2014 2014

Impact of Multi-Hospital System Organizational Structure on Financial Performance and Quality of Care in Rural Hospitals , George Raul Audi

Two Studies of Family-Centered Care Family-Centered Care and Shared Decision Making: Are they the same Construct? and The Association of Family-Centered Care and Shared Decision Making with Receipt of all Needed Prescription Drugs and Emergency Department Visits in Children with Asthma , Barbara Lee Brumbaugh

Women’s HIV Prevention Study (Whips): A Proposal to Pilot Test an HIV Intervention for Older African American Women Living with HIV , Charsey Cherry

Analysis of Risk Factors Contributing to Home–Based Direct Care Workers (DCWS) Occupational Injury in Long–Term Care , Hanadi Y. Hamadi

Mental Disorders, Mental Health Problems, and Treatment Among Army Recruiters and Recruiting Candidates, 2011-2013: An Examination of Current Rates in the Recruiting Population , Chadwick Karl Knight

Theses/Dissertations from 2013 2013

Examining the Role of Electronic Medical Record Generated Provider Reminders On Provider offering of Breast Cancer Screening Services , Charles Beverley, Jr.

An Assessment of Injury Presentation to Determine Elder Abuse Prevalence in South Carolina , Brittani L. Harmon

The Relationship Between Electronic Health Record Implementation and Outcomes of Care For Three Cardiovascular Procedures , Deshia Ann Leonhirth

Assessment of the Effectiveness of an Innovative Screening Colonoscopy Protocol in Producing High Quality Performance and Outcomes by Trained Primary Care Physicians , Yi Jhen Li

Relationship Between the Experience of Perceived and Physician Diagnosed Arthritis and the Presence of DSM-IV Criteria-based Major Depression (MDD) Among Older , Ryan Neil Schmidt

Differential Effects of the Great Recession on Minority Populations , Samuel Towne

Theses/Dissertations from 2012 2012

Assessing Risk Factors, Cost And Mortality Due to Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP) Using National Inpatient Sample Data , Hasan A. Areabi

Factors Associated With Local Public Health Agency Participation In Obesity Prevention, 2008 , Jeff Hatala

Weathering the Storm Faithfully: African American Women's and Clergy's Perspectives about Natural Disasters and the Role of the Baptist Church In Disaster Preparedness , TaQuesa McClain

A Profile of Diabetes-related Below Knee Amputations Using Nation-wide Patient Discharge Data: Patient, Provider, And Insurance Characteristics , Flora Elisa Melvin

Is Optimum Time to Coronary Artery bypass Surgery Associated With Hospital Teaching Status and Payer Source? A Comparison of Outcomes and Costs Among Non St Segment Elevated Myocardial Infarction Patients and St Segment Elevated Myocardial Infarction Patients , Lamont Andre' Melvin

Association Between Clinical Decision Support System Use and Health Care Disparities in the Treatment and Outcomes of Acute Myocardial Infarction and Pneumonia , Jordan Paul Mitchell

Use of Endoscopic Third Ventriculostomy (ETV) In Treatment of Pediatric Obstructive Hydrocephalus; A Multi-Level Retrospective Analysis of the United States Pediatric Population. , Irene Nancy Okech

Healthcare Cost Implications of Medicaid Managed Care , Margarita Morales Pate

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Concentration in Bioethics and Health Policy

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About the Concentration in Bioethics and Health Policy

The concentration in Bioethics and Health Policy is designed for students who want bioethics to be the distinguishing focus of their career in public health. This program differs from other bioethics doctoral programs in two important ways: first, it focuses on bioethics and it relates to moral questions in public health and health policy rather than in clinical decision-making or bedside dilemmas; and, second, it provides rigorous training in quantitative and qualitative empirical research methods.

Original doctoral research conducted by students in the bioethics program involves analyzing primary or secondary empirical data about specific areas of public health, health policy, or health research, and examining the ethical implications of the issue or study results. By the end of their training, students are prepared to provide not only normative recommendations regarding ethics and public health policy, but also are equipped to function as independent researchers, conducting empirical research related to bioethics, public health and health policy.

Students enrolled in the Bioethics and Health Policy concentration participate in a variety of educational opportunities in bioethics and health policy, including lectures and seminars sponsored by the Berman Institute of Bioethics , the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions and collaborations with the Kennedy Institute of Ethics, Georgetown University. Students take courses within the Department of Health Policy and Management and the Bloomberg School, as well as the Johns Hopkins Krieger School of Arts and Sciences and Georgetown University.

What Can You Do With a Graduate Degree In Bioethics And Health Policy?

The program prepares students for successful research careers as bioethicists. Former students have gone onto careers in academia, government, research-oriented non-profits, and the private sector. Visit the  Graduate Employment Outcomes Dashboard to learn about Bloomberg School graduates' employment status, sector, and salaries.

View a list of selected recent graduates and dissertation titles for the PhD Concentration in Bioethics and Health Policy.

Curriculum for the Concentration in Bioethics and Health Policy

Browse an overview of the requirements for this PhD program in the JHU Academic Catalogue  and explore all course offerings in the Bloomberg School  Course Directory .

Admissions Requirements

For general admissions requirements, please visit the How to Apply page.

Prior Graduate Degree

Not required, but highly recommended.

Prior Work Experience

Not required, but successful applicants generally have 2-3 years of full-time work experience in a related field.

Standardized Test Scores

Standardized test scores are  not required and not reviewed  for this program. If you have taken a standardized test such as the GRE, GMAT, or MCAT and want to submit your scores, please note that they will not be used as a metric during the application review.  Applications will be reviewed holistically based on all required application components.

Brendan Saloner, PhD,

evaluates policies to promote access to health care and a stronger safety net for underserved groups, particularly for people who use drugs.

Per the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the JHU PhD Union, the minimum guaranteed 2025-2026 academic year stipend is $50,000 for all PhD students with a 4% increase the following year. Tuition, fees, and medical benefits are provided, including health insurance premiums for PhD student’s children and spouses of international students, depending on visa type. The minimum stipend and tuition coverage is guaranteed for at least the first four years of a BSPH PhD program; specific amounts and the number of years supported, as well as work expectations related to that stipend will vary across departments and funding source. Please refer to the CBA to review specific benefits, compensation, and other terms.

Need-Based Relocation Grants Students who  are admitted to PhD programs at JHU   starting in Fall 2023 or beyond can apply to receive a need-based grant to offset the costs of relocating to be able to attend JHU.   These grants provide funding to a portion of incoming students who, without this money, may otherwise not be able to afford to relocate to JHU for their PhD program. This is not a merit-based grant. Applications will be evaluated solely based on financial need.  View more information about the need-based relocation grants for PhD students .

Questions about the program? We're happy to help. [email protected]

Stanford University

Stanford Health Policy is a joint effort of the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and the Stanford School of Medicine

PhD in Health Policy

To our prospective students and trainees:.

The Department of Health Policy recognizes that the Supreme Court issued a ruling in June 2023 about the consideration of certain types of demographic information as part of an admission review. All applications submitted during upcoming application cycles will be reviewed in conformance with that decision. 

The Department of Health Policy welcomes graduate applications from individuals with a broad range of life experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds who would contribute to our community of scholars. The review process is holistic and individualized, considering each applicant’s academic record and accomplishments, letters of recommendation, prior research experience, and admissions essays to understand how an applicant’s life experiences have shaped their past and potential contributions to their field and how they might enrich the learning community at Stanford.

The application for the 2025-2026 academic year is CLOSED.

PhD Program Informational Video

Stanford Health Policy offers a PhD program which promises to educate students who will be scholarly leaders in the field of health policy, and will be highly knowledgeable about the theoretical and empirical approaches that can be applied in the development of improvements in health policy and the health care system. The curriculum offers courses across a wide range of health policy areas including health economics, health insurance and government program operation, health financing, international health policy and economic development, cost-effectiveness analysis and the evaluation of new technologies, health law and ethics, health systems operations, relevant statistical and methodological approaches, and health policy issues related to public health concerns like obesity and chronic disease. In addition to taking a set of core courses, students are expected to complete coursework in one of three tracks:

1. Health Economics  -  including the economic behavior of individuals, providers, insurers, and governments and the methodologic training to measure how their actions affect health and medical care,

2.  Decision Sciences  -  with quantitative techniques to assess the effectiveness and value of medical treatments and for decision making about medical care and health policies at the individual and/or collective level,

3. Evaluative Methods  –  encompassing advanced statistical, computational, and other quantitative methodologies appropriate for application in areas of interest to students such as organizational behavior, law, ethics, and data science.

Academic advising by our faculty is a critical component of our graduate students' education.

All matriculating students will be assigned a faculty advisor from the group of  CORE FACULTY  to help them design their academic program. Students will remain with this advisor until the time that they have developed other arrangements for advising.

Advisors will meet with students within the first quarter of each year to discuss students' Individual Development Plan(s) (IDPs).  Additionally, students will meet with their advisor(s) on a regular basis throughout each year to discuss course selection, progress through the program, development of research projects, and career plans.

Academic progress and student completion of program requirements and milestones are monitored by the program staff and directors and discussed at quarterly meetings of all PhD advisors. Students are expected to identify a group of normally 3 thesis advisors before or, at the latest, shortly after the time that they advance to candidacy for the degree. This group will consist of one primary and, at least, two secondary advisors, who may or may not be the same as the initially assigned faculty advisor. The Director of Graduate Studies and the Executive Committee will monitor advising arrangements to ensure that students receive adequate supervision.

For further information on advising in the program, please see the PhD Handbook.

Though circumstances may be different from one student to another, we anticipate being able to provide and/or help students obtain financial support for the first four years of the program. Individuals who are not citizens or permanent residents of the US may apply. However, due to funding restrictions we are limited in our ability to admit applicants who are not citizens or permanent residents and who do not have funding through the Knight-Hennessy Scholars program or substantial funding from another non-Stanford source.  Students who are non-citizens or non-permanent residents are strongly encouraged to apply for such funding. 

For information about the Knight-Hennessy Program, please see:  https://knight-hennessy.stanford.edu/  ( please note the Knight-Hennessy Program has earlier deadlines than the PhD program )

PhD Application Process Explained

You can watch the recording of the PhD Pre-application Information Session.

The Stanford University School of Medicine and the Health Policy Program are committed to fostering a diverse community in which all individuals are welcomed, respected, and supported to achieve their full potential. While race and ethnicity are commonly cited in relation to diversity, we recognize that there are many different aspects to identity, including culture socioeconomic and educational background, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, physical ability, life experiences, hobbies, and interests. We value diversity because we believe that interaction with people with unique backgrounds and life experiences allows us to reach a greater level of innovation in health policies, health policy research, education and clinical care.

Stanford Health Policy is committed to doing our part to contribute to a more equitable and just society. We hope prospective students from diverse backgrounds consider joining our program to help us continue to make important contributions in health policy to address these and many other problems of our day. Additionally, as a program linked with the Stanford Biosciences Programs, we support the  Biosciences Commitment to Justice and Action  and, where appropriate, will connect and participate in the activities offered in the statement.

The program works with multiple groups and offices across campus to facilitate student access, support, and connectivity. These include, but are not limited to:

Stanford Biosciences:  https://oge.stanford.edu/inclusion/  

Stanford Office of the Vice Provost for Graduate Education:  https://vpge.stanford.edu/diversity-initiatives/overview

Stanford Office of Accessible Education:  https://oae.stanford.edu

Stanford Graduate Life Office:  https://glo.stanford.edu

Stanford Student Affairs:  https://studentaffairs.stanford.edu

• Health Policy
• Introduction

Harvard Griffin GSAS strives to provide students with timely, accurate, and clear information. If you need help understanding a specific policy, please contact the office that administers that policy.

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Questions about these requirements? See the contact info at the bottom of the page. 

The PhD in health policy, awarded by the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, is administered by the Committee on Higher Degrees in Health Policy, representing six Harvard University faculties: Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Medical School, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard Business School, and Harvard Law School.

The PhD program has the following requirements:

• two years (generally) of coursework, including a yearlong core course
• concentration in one academic discipline (decision sciences, economics, management, methods for policy research, or political analysis) and specialization at the dissertation stage in one policy area (global health, health care services, mental health, or public health)
• three one-term courses, chosen from three concentrations outside a student’s field of concentration. The statistics requirement (noted below) may be used to satisfy one of the three requirements except for students concentrating in methods for policy research
• two one-term courses in statistics
• a weekly research seminar starting in the third year
• written general and concentration examinations following the two years of coursework; the general examination contains an oral component
• a dissertation prospectus and oral examination
• a dissertation based on original research and a dissertation defense.

Note: If a grade of B- or better is not obtained in a course offering a letter-grade option, the student will not receive program credit for that course.

Concentrations

PhD students in health policy choose a concentration and meet specific curriculum requirements in one of five disciplines:

Decision Sciences 

(Professors Jane Kim and Ankur Pandya, co-chairs)

Decision sciences are the collection of quantitative techniques that are used for decision-making at the individual and collective level. They include decision analysis, risk analysis, cost-benefit and cost-effectiveness analysis, decision modeling, and behavioral decision theory, as well as parts of operations research, microeconomics, statistical inference, management control, cognitive and social psychology, and computer science. The concentration in decision sciences prepares students for research careers that involve the application of these methods to health problems. Examples of research topics in health decision sciences include cost-effectiveness analysis of medical technologies and pharmaceuticals; optimal screening policies for cancer and other chronic diseases; measurement and evaluation of health outcomes, including quality of life; policy simulation modeling of diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis, cancer, and asthma; and optimal resource allocation for biomedical research.

(Professors Ellen Meara, Leila Agha, and Mark Shepard, co-chairs)

The concentration in economics focuses on the economic behavior of individuals; providers; insurers; and international, federal, state, and local governments and actors as their actions affect health and medical care. In addition to examining the literature on health economics, the training emphasizes microeconomic theory, econometrics, and interactions with other disciplines including clinical medicine.

Methods for Policy Research 

(Professors Mary Beth Landrum and J. Michael McWilliams, co-chairs)

Training in the MPR concentration will position students to conduct rigorous policy-relevant research. The concentration includes intensive methodological training that draws from several quantitative fields including statistics, econometrics, and epidemiology, and also offers opportunities to learn qualitative methods. Students in the MPR concentration will also develop proficiency in experimental and quasi-experimental research designs. The MPR concentration does not require training in a specific discipline of social science, but students are allowed to use two of their distributional requirements to acquire some disciplinary training (e.g., in economics or sociology), and many students pursue additional coursework in a substantive area of interest or advanced levels of statistics. By virtue of this training, MPR students develop a multidisciplinary toolkit that borrows from the strengths of different quantitative sciences and supports novel applications to health-related questions. Graduates are able to communicate and collaborate effectively with statisticians, economists, epidemiologists, and clinician-investigators as they lead their independent work.  The concentration’s broad methodological training flexibly supports scholarship on a wide range of topics, including common areas of interest in health services research related to health care access, quality, costs, and disparities, but also questions focused on clinical decision-making, behavior (e.g., of patients, physicians, or organizations), social determinants of health, and social programs with implications for health.

Management 

(Professors Amy Edmondson and Robert S. Huckman, co-chairs)

The management track prepares students to do research on the organizational, managerial, and strategic issues facing health care providers, payers, and other players in the health care market. Students in this track will learn how theories and concepts from fields such as technology and operations management, organizational behavior, organizational economics, and competitive strategy can be applied to—and further developed for understanding—health care organizations. Students in this track should have a strong interest in pursuing research on such issues as the design and improvement of health care delivery processes, approaches for improving health care quality and productivity, the development and adoption of new medical technologies, financial incentives in health care, the new role of patients as consumers in health care, the appropriate ownership and organizational structure of hospitals and other health care providers, and the management of professional health care staff. We expect students completing this track to find jobs in academic and research institutions that have an interest in the impact of management on health care. These institutions would include business schools, medical schools, schools of public health, and schools of public policy. 

Political Analysis

(Professor Benjamin Sommers, chair)

This concentration is intended for students who wish to do research on the relationship between politics and health policy. Students will study theories of political participation, legislative organization, interest group formation, and political communication. Applied topics of study include public opinion, political ideology, public health law, and the media; the interplay between executive, legislative, and judicial branches; and the role of federalism, including state and local government, in influencing health policy outcomes. The research methodologies utilized in this track include quantitative statistical methods appropriate for large-scale databases, survey methods, and qualitative or mixed methods. Graduates of this concentration typically pursue careers in teaching, conduct research on the politics of health care, and/or become involved with government, professional, and consumer groups on research projects related to the politics of public policy in the public health and health services fields. 

Language Requirements

There is no language requirement.

Policy on Incomplete Grades

No grade of Incomplete can be used to satisfy any departmental requirements.

Human Subjects

All PhD students in health policy must receive human subjects training during their first year in the program (before they embark on research during their first summer in the program) in connection with the core course. This training must be updated as required by the University.

Once a student has accepted an offer of admission to the PhD program in health policy, they are assigned an advisor. After the first year, students have the option to select their own advisors. During the third year of the program, a student forms a dissertation committee, which replaces the student’s faculty advisor. (However, frequently, the student invites the second-year advisor to serve on the dissertation committee.) In addition to convening the dissertation committee for the dissertation proposal orals and final defense, a student is encouraged to meet with their entire committee several other times as well as individually with members of the committee on a regular basis. In the third year and above, all students are required to register for the research seminar and present once per academic year. Students are encouraged to invite their advisors to attend these presentations.

The program office requests an annual progress report that is shared with the advisor, the concentration chair, the program chair(s), and the director of graduate studies. The program office monitors Incompletes.

Thus, at all times when enrolled in the program, a student has one or more faculty advisors. Generally speaking, students in this program form strong bonds with their advisors.

Master of Arts (AM)

This program does not award an AM. However, it does award a terminal master’s degree in circumstances that warrant it by vote of the Committee on Higher Degrees in Health Policy. If students leave the program or are withdrawn after passing the general and concentration examinations and completing all their course requirements with a grade of B- or better, they are eligible for a terminal master’s degree.

With the exception of the decision sciences and management tracks of the program, teaching is not a requirement of this program, but at least one Harvard teaching experience is strongly encouraged. In the decision sciences track, students are expected to have at least five Chan School credits (equivalent to one full term) of experience as teaching fellows in the core decision sciences courses. In the management track, students are required to complete a teaching engagement of one full academic term that includes at least 8 hours of front-of-class teaching experience and at least 16 hours of teaching preparation time.

General and Concentration Examinations

Generally, students take a full load of classes (four term-long courses, or the equivalent, per term) for each of their first two years in the program. At the end of the two years, general examinations are administered over the course of a week. The week starts with a one-hour in-class examination followed by a two-day take-home examination in which students must demonstrate that they have a master’s level understanding of the concentrations. It is followed the next week by an oral examination. This examination is the same for all students (i.e., is not concentration specific). Students are strongly encouraged to take the general examination at the end of their second year in the program or at the completion of their coursework. If students would like to take it at the end of their first year in the program, they must petition the program. Only students with prior relevant master’s degrees can petition. Once permission is granted, the student must declare by the end of first term that they will indeed take the generals at the end of their first year. If a student fails either part of the generals, the student is given one opportunity the following year to retake the part or parts not passed. Students also take an examination in their concentration, usually at the end of their second year in the program. Students should complete all concentration course requirements prior to taking a concentration examination. Any exceptions must be approved by the student’s concentration chair(s).

Dissertation Prospectus and Orals

The purpose of the dissertation prospectus and its oral examination is to provide a formal occasion for the student to receive feedback on, and gain approval of, their dissertation topic(s). This should be done early enough to incorporate significant changes in direction based on faculty input, but it should reflect a fairly advanced stage of study design for at least part of the dissertation. Throughout this process, the student is expected to keep in close contact with their dissertation committee.

Generally, dissertations in the PhD in health policy program consist of three papers or three chapters within a monograph. Thus, the prospectus (also known as a proposal; the words are used interchangeably in what follows) should describe the research to be conducted in each paper (expectations are described in more detail below). Sometimes, however, a student may want to obtain results from two of the papers before finalizing the issue to be investigated in the third paper and describing the research that will occur in the third paper. In recognition of this possibility, the PhD in health policy program provides two options for the dissertation proposal and oral exam. One option is to propose all three papers and defend them at the same time; the other option is to propose two papers, defend them, and then within six months propose a third paper and defend it in a second oral examination. A student choosing the second option will receive a “conditional pass” until the proposal for the third paper has been successfully defended; the term “conditional” will not be interpreted as implying inadequacy in any way.

Within one year of passing the qualifying examination, a student is expected to have formed a dissertation committee. Further, each student is strongly encouraged to submit a written proposal for at least two of the dissertation papers (or monograph chapters) and pass an oral examination on their dissertation proposal before September of their fourth year. The PhD program expects that any student choosing to defend a proposal for only two papers initially will successfully defend a proposal for the third paper or chapter no later than the beginning of the spring term of their fourth year.

All students must successfully defend their dissertation proposals by the end of the fourth year in the program to maintain satisfactory progress. Also, if a student does not pass the dissertation proposal orals by the end of the third year, they must meet with the proposed committee by June 30 of that year to discuss the student’s progress to date. The committee will then be asked to sign a form indicating that the student is making satisfactory progress toward completing the dissertation proposal. If a student has not set a date for the dissertation proposal orals by January of their fourth year, the program must notify the student and the chair of the student’s dissertation committee. There is no limit to the number of times a student may repeat a dissertation proposal oral examination, but, ordinarily, failure to obtain acceptance of a dissertation proposal by the end of the fourth year would be considered evidence of unsatisfactory progress.

To monitor and spur progress on the dissertation, a weekly research seminar is required of all students, beginning in the third year. At the seminar, the students present their dissertation work at all stages, starting with the proposal stage.

Students are strongly discouraged from leaving the Boston area before they have passed their dissertation proposal oral defense. Those contemplating leaving must discuss it with the executive committee. In addition, the program encourages students to remain in residence throughout the dissertation stage. A student living outside the Boston area must, like all students in the PhD program, meet with their dissertation committee at least twice each academic year (preferably one meeting per term).

Expectations for a Dissertation Prospectus

• The student should identify three parts for the dissertation. Normally, these will be three papers or three chapters within a monograph. In assessing each of the three parts, the committee should judge that each, if successfully carried out, will lead to a publishable paper.
• The target length of a dissertation prospectus for all three papers combined should be between 25 and 35 pages. This expected length is meant simply as a guide; some topics will deserve more detailed or longer descriptions. As a rule, however, students should consider the prospectus a  proposal —a compendium of completed papers is not acceptable. The point of the prospectus is to provide a well-documented and detailed proposal of research to be conducted for each of the dissertation papers (or monograph).
• Research Questions.  What are the research questions that the student is answering? The student will usually need a few paragraphs of introductory material to set up their questions.
• Background and Significance.  Why are answers to these questions important? What policy might depend upon the answers? What is the context for the issues?
• Literature Review and Preliminary Findings.  At a minimum, this section should review the main literature in the area(s) in which the student is working and summarize its findings (or at least those of relevance to what they are doing). In particular, the literature review should note how and why prior research in the topic area does not answer the questions the student wishes to address. Perhaps the data used by earlier researchers were not satisfactory or detailed enough; perhaps the theoretical model or framework underlying earlier work missed a key point; or perhaps statistical estimation methods have advanced since earlier research was conducted and now it is possible to answer a question that has motivated research on the topic for some time. The literature review should be perceived as part of “setting up the problem” that the paper is intended to address. Since literature reviews can often exceed five pages, students should feel free to provide the extended literature review as an appendix. Also, if more than one of the proposed dissertation papers focuses on different aspects of the same underlying literature, an appendix with a review of the relevant literature for both (or all three) papers is recommended. The review for any one paper in the prospectus should be kept to a few pages.
• Methods and Research Design.  Most of what the student writes should be in this section. This is the section where the student indicates how the proposed paper can successfully overcome or address whatever problems have been identified as causing earlier research to have provided insufficient models or evidence on the issue. The student should be addressing the following types of questions in this section: What theory or conceptual framework is the student using or proposing to develop? What data will the student analyze? What do they propose to estimate? (It often helps to write down the equation the student wishes to estimate.) How will the student estimate what they are proposing? Which statistical, econometric, or modeling methods does the student plan to use? Will the data have enough power to enable the student to be reasonably confident about the answer to the questions they are trying to answer? What are the remaining key uncertainties and what does the student see as the main obstacles to carrying out the research? Students should show preliminary results of estimating models or the start on a theoretical model in this section. Especially when using new data or a new estimation technique, it is incumbent on the student to show that they are likely to be able to successfully complete the research for the proposed paper. If the student has not yet obtained the data, the student should at least establish that the proposed study is feasible (i.e., there is adequate power; important constructs are included in data; etc.).
• In the case of the first paper, a draft manuscript possibly of a preliminary or partially completed version is often attached as an appendix. The student should give evidence that they have gotten their “hands dirty” and is immersed in the conduct of this study.
• The suggested page length for the dissertation prospectus—25 to 35 pages total if all three papers are being proposed—could be divided as follows. The descriptions for two papers should be particularly well developed; each should be described in 10 to 12 or more pages. (Frequently, two papers are variations on an underlying topic or may take advantage of the same data set. In this case, the description of one paper could be 15 pages long and the second could be 10, with references to the description of the data in the first paper’s description.) The description of the third paper may be shorter because the student expects to more fully develop an idea as the results from the other two papers become available. Nonetheless, the description should be at least 5 pages and preferably closer to 10 pages in length. As noted above in “Dissertation Prospectus and Orals,” a student also can choose to defend the proposal for the third paper within six months of defending the first two papers. If a student chooses this second option, the proposal for the third paper should be described in some detail—at least 8 to 10 pages. It is acceptable to present alternative possibilities for the third paper if the student is concerned that one idea may not work (perhaps because data may not become available in time). These page lengths are merely a suggestion and should not be viewed as the “rule.”

Overall, the point of the prospectus is to provide the faculty on the dissertation committee with sufficient detail of the proposed papers (or monograph) for them to protect the student from embarking on a research project that will not lead to a finished, publishable paper. Thus, the suggested page length and the sections to be included in the description for each paper are meant as a guide. Students also should be mindful that completed papers for the prospectus stage are strongly discouraged. Providing evidence that data or statistical methods will enable the successful completion of a paper is not to be interpreted as a suggestion that the paper should be all but finished before the prospectus is defended. The prospectus is also intended as an expression of agreement between the committee and the student that if the student carries out the work as specified, the committee is likely to find the dissertation acceptable. It is, however, not a binding contract since research is unpredictable and problems may surface that prevent its successful completion as initially envisioned.

The Following Steps Must Occur prior to the Dissertation Proposal Orals:

• The student must appoint a dissertation committee, as described under the section on “Dissertation Committee” that follows.
• The student must ascertain from the members of the dissertation committee that they are prepared to schedule the dissertation proposal oral examination.
•  The student must arrange with the dissertation committee a mutually agreeable date, time, and location for the dissertation proposal orals and make this information known to the program director at least two weeks prior to the scheduled dissertation proposal orals. Two hours should be allowed including time for discussion, evaluation by the dissertation committee, and feedback to the student after the faculty evaluation.
• The student must submit to the dissertation committee, at least two weeks prior to the scheduled dissertation proposal orals, a written dissertation proposal as described above. The written proposal submitted two to three weeks in advance of the dissertation orals should not be the first time the dissertation committee has seen these ideas presented by the student. The entire dissertation committee should be consulted in advance to ensure approval in principle of the topic(s) and to ensure the suitability of the members of the dissertation committee.

The Dissertation Proposal Oral Examination

The program office will maintain copies of proposals, and these may be borrowed by students planning their proposal orals. It is the student’s responsibility to obtain a dissertation proposal form from the program office and to bring it to the chair of the dissertation committee. The student will be responsible for getting the signed form and a copy of the dissertation proposal to the program office after the proposal orals, for inclusion in the student’s folder.

At the dissertation proposal orals, the student will present the proposal in a 20- to 30-minute oral presentation, leaving most of the time for discussion. Persons invited to the dissertation proposal orals are: (1) the dissertation committee; (2) other faculty members from Harvard and elsewhere invited by the student to provide additional expertise in evaluating the research proposal; (3) members of the Committee on Higher Degrees in Health Policy; (4) the PhD program director; and (5) other students invited by the presenting student, possibly including one who has agreed to take notes. Discussion will be limited, however, to the presenting student, the dissertation committee, and invited faculty in categories 2 and 3 above.

At the conclusion, the dissertation committee meets in closed session to discuss the disposition of the proposal. No grade or ordinal evaluation is given. In evaluating the student’s performance at the orals, the dissertation committee will take into account the quality of the student’s oral presentation, the quality of the student’s responses to questions from the dissertation committee, and the written material prepared prior to the oral date. Possible results are pass or conditional pass (when two papers are successfully defended), which will be changed to a pass when the third paper is successfully defended within an additional six months. Note that a conditional pass also may be the result if the committee feels that a three-paper prospectus has one paper that is not sufficiently well developed; again, the conditional pass will be changed to a pass when the third paper is successfully defended within an additional six months. On the rare occasion when the dissertation committee feels that the prospectus is not ready for a defense, the committee will adjourn the oral examination and simply convene a meeting with the student.

Dissertation

Content of the dissertation.

Dissertations may be applications of analytical tools to health policy issues or they may be primarily theoretical. The dissertation should be written in a scholarly style, including thorough literature reviews, and it must include detailed descriptions of methods, data, and analyses.

The dissertation can take either of two formats: a three-paper format or a monograph format.

The first format consists of three publishable papers relating to health policy. The papers are typically related, either by their substantive content or by methodology, but this is not a requirement. It is recommended that at least two of the three papers be related, either by content or methodology, but this is left to the discretion of the student’s dissertation committee.

While being publishable is a necessary condition for the acceptability of the dissertation, the fact that a paper has been published in a peer-reviewed publication does not necessarily make it acceptable for the dissertation. Material such as literature reviews, or detailed description of analytic methods and data, which may be excluded from published versions due to page constraints, must be included in the dissertation, possibly as appendices or as separate background papers.

On occasion, one or more of the papers may have been published prior to submission of the dissertation. However, none of the papers may have been published prior to the student’s matriculation into the program, and the majority of the work on the dissertation must be completed after matriculation.

The dissertation must include an overview summarizing the papers. It must also contain material that describes in non-technical terms the implications of the papers’ findings for the real world, as well as directions for future research that are suggested by the papers’ findings and/or limitations. This material may be incorporated into the individual papers (e.g., in discussion sections) or in a separate concluding section of the dissertation.

The second format option is a traditional monograph-style dissertation. Such a dissertation must either (a) contain at least three independently publishable units (which may be chapters) or (b) be suitable for subsequent publication in book form. The rules and recommendations described above for the three-paper format regarding prior publication, dissertation summary, and concluding sections apply to a traditional monograph-style dissertation as well.

The dissertation must be innovative in the sense that an existing method is being applied in a new way or to a new problem area, or in the sense that a methodology is extended or modified in a significant way. Primarily, theoretical dissertations must still include a substantial demonstration of their applicability to a real-world contemporary health policy issue, and this application should be the major focus of one or more papers or chapters.

Coauthorship

Coauthored dissertation papers or chapters are permitted. Order of authorship should follow the conventions of the field to which the paper is being submitted. The student should be first author for journals where first authorship indicates primary responsibility for the paper. Faculty members and students are cautioned that a faculty advisor should be a coauthor only if they contribute substantially to the development of the database or analytical methodology for the paper or chapter.

If, however, the faculty member is primarily responsible for both the data and method, then the paper probably does not qualify as independent work by the student. If the faculty member has developed the methodology in a previous research study, then it is expected that the student will apply the methodology independently to the problem under investigation.

Dissertation Committee

The student is responsible for selecting a dissertation committee consisting of a dissertation advisor and at least two additional faculty members. The dissertation committee must include at least two full-time faculty members at Harvard University and at least one member of the Committee on Higher Degrees (CHD) in Health Policy. The dissertation advisor chairs the dissertation committee and must be a full-time faculty member at Harvard University and will be a member of the CHD in Health Policy. Two other advisors on the committee shall be on-ladder faculty at Harvard University, with the following exceptions:

• Senior lecturers and other non-ladder faculty may serve on the dissertation committee as the third member when appropriate, as approved by the director of graduate studies or chair of the CHD in Health Policy. 
• Tenured emeriti faculty members (including research professors) may serve on the dissertation committee. They may co-chair with a current on-ladder faculty member but may not serve as the sole chair.  
• Non-Harvard faculty of equivalent appointment rank to on-ladder faculty at Harvard may serve as one of the non-chairing dissertation committee members. 
• They may continue to serve as a committee member if they have moved to another institution with an appointment rank equivalent to on-ladder at Harvard.   
• Or, if they are no longer serving as a committee member (by choice of the student, the student’s program, and/or the departing faculty member), the advisor must be replaced in accordance with the above guidelines. 
• If the departing faculty member will remain as chair, a co-chair must be designated. The co-chair may, in this instance, be the director of graduate studies. 

Additional members, including, for example, a scholar not on a university faculty, may be appointed to the committee as long as the core three-member committee as described above is attained. The membership of the dissertation committee must be approved by the executive committee of the CHD in Health Policy before the dissertation proposal oral examination is scheduled.

After passing the proposal oral examination, students are expected to meet with their dissertation committee at least twice each academic year (preferably one meeting per term). This is the case whether or not a student is in residence. One of the meetings must be with all the members of their dissertation committee physically present. The other meeting may be by teleconference if necessary. For documentation of these meetings, the program office will provide forms, which students will be expected to return to the program office.

The dissertation committee formally approves the dissertation by signing the Thesis Acceptance Certificate. The committee should work cohesively in supporting the student to produce their best work. The signatures of these faculty members on the Thesis Acceptance Certificate indicate formal acceptance of the student’s scholarly contribution to the field. 

Dissertation Defense

It is advisable to arrange a tentative date for the defense well in advance to resolve possible scheduling conflicts between dissertation advisors. However, a dissertation defense may not be scheduled until at least drafts of all three papers have been submitted to all members of a student’s dissertation committee. All defenses will have a public presentation component. It is the option of the dissertation committee to have the entire defense public or to close the examination part, followed by a public presentation open to faculty, students, and other interested parties—all of whom may ask questions. In both cases, a student must allow for time after the defense to work on revisions required by the committee. A draft copy of the dissertation must be submitted to each member of the dissertation committee at least two weeks prior to the defense, and the program office must be notified of the time for the defense at least two weeks prior as well. At this point, anyone on the Committee on Higher Degrees in Health Policy has the right to ask for a draft copy of the dissertation. The program office will provide the Harvard Griffin GSAS Thesis Acceptance Certificate for the dissertation committee members to sign at the defense.

The rules of Harvard Griffin GSAS regarding the format in which the dissertation will be submitted will apply. The PhD program in health policy requires submission of one bound copy of each dissertation to the program office. In addition, the student will need to submit an electronic copy of the dissertation abstract to the program office for inclusion on the program’s website.

Most students complete the entire PhD in approximately five years. All work for the PhD, including the dissertation, should be completed within eight years. Students whose work is not completed within this period will generally be asked to withdraw from the program, but will thereafter be allowed to apply for re-admission to re-register for the purpose of receiving the degree once the completed dissertation has been judged satisfactory by the dissertation committee. Exceptions to this rule will be granted only under extraordinary circumstances.

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Health Policy and Management, PhD

Bloomberg school of public health, phd program overview.

Program Director: Dr. Brendan Saloner

The Department of Health Policy and Management (HPM) offers a world-class doctoral program, featuring a vibrant faculty of exceptional scholars and teachers along with world-class research facilities. The program trains students to conduct original investigator-initiated research through a combination of coursework and research mentoring.The first year of the program lays the critical foundation necessary for later work in dissertation-level research.The PhD program in HPM is full-time, residentially based in Baltimore, Maryland. 

Students within the PhD program in HPM will complete a common core of coursework, meeting department-wide competencies.  Students also select one of four concentrations within which they will focus their dissertation work.  Each concentration has its own core coursework and competencies that students within that concentration will meet. 

HPM PhD Concentrations:

• The  Bioethics and Health Policy   concentration addresses the ethical issues relevant to public health policy, practice and research.
• The  Health Economics and Policy  concentration addresses the most pressing challenges in health and health care through innovative, rigorous, and interdisciplinary research in the field of health economics.  
• The Health Services Research and Policy concentration addresses the organization, financing and delivery of both curative and preventive services, and their impact on access, quality, outcomes and cost, particularly for the most vulnerable.
• The Health and Public Policy concentration addresses the development, implementation, analysis, and evaluation of public policies to prevent disease and injury, reduce inequalities, and promote the health and quality of life of populations.

PhD Program Year-by-Year Overview and Expectations

Below is a description of how students move through the program.  Expectations and typical milestones are noted for each year.  

PhD Program Requirements

Course location and modality is found on the BSPH website .

The PhD program in HPM trains students to conduct original investigator-initiated research through a combination of coursework and research mentoring. The curriculum includes a common core set of competencies and courses, including courses in health policy, epidemiology, economics, and biostatistics.  Students in the program choose one of four areas of concentration to focus their studies which have their own set of competencies and coursework.  All students enrolled in the PhD program meet the Introductory Public Health knowledge learning objectives through the required curriculum.

Departmental Core Competencies and Curriculum

Core Competencies:  Upon successful completion of the PhD program in HPM, students will have mastered the following core competencies; specifically, students by the end of the program will have the ability to:

• Analyze the nature, scope and determinants of major health policy problems by applying conceptual frameworks from key academic disciplines, formulating testable hypotheses, and identifying appropriate interventions based on an understanding of the existing evidence base.
• Critique the policymaking process, including the underlying roles of legislation, regulation, litigation, and advocacy; the differences between federal, state, and local policies; and the influence of academic research in the policy formulation and evaluation processes.
• Assess the organization and financing of public health and/or medical services and critique their impact on access and use, quality of care, costs, and outcomes.
• Apply appropriate rigorous empirical methods to the evaluation of health policy, including a well-rounded foundation of the methods and tools of public health.
• Communicate scientific findings effectively through written and oral methods to technical and lay audiences, demonstrating an ability to interpret study limitations and prior research.
• Conduct research in accordance with the highest ethical standards, scientific integrity, and interpersonal collegiality.

Core Curriculum: To meet these competencies, all PhD students in HPM are required to successfully complete the following core courses: 

Course meets one or more CEPH learning objectives

Once students have completed all required and elective coursework, they must maintain a full-time registration (12+ credits per term) for the duration of their program. Students who have not yet passed the School-wide oral exam should register for 12 credits of PH.300.840 Special Studies and Research in HPM  with their advisor to work on their thesis proposal. Once a student has passed the School-wide oral exam, they should register for PH.301.820 Thesis Research in Health Policy and Management .

Concentration in Bioethics and Health Policy  

Concentration Director:  Stephanie Morain, PhD, MPH

The PhD concentration in Bioethics and Health Policy differs from most other bioethics doctoral programs in two important ways: first, it focuses on bioethics as it relates to moral questions in public health and health policy (rather than, for example, in clinical decision-making or bedside dilemmas); and, second, it provides rigorous training in quantitative and qualitative empirical research methods and expects the analysis of data to be part of the dissertation. Students study and conduct independent empirical and normative research on ethical issues in public health practice, research, and policy such as ethics and emergency preparedness, domestic and international research ethics, genetic screening policy, ethics and obesity prevention, ethics and infectious diseases, HIV screening, social justice and resource allocation. Original doctoral research conducted by students in the bioethics program involves analyzing primary or secondary empirical data about specific areas of public health, health policy, or health research and examining the ethical implications of the issue or study results. 

Bioethics Concentration Competencies and Curriculum

Bioethics Concentration Competencies:  Upon successful completion of the PhD concentration in Bioethics and Health Policy, students will have mastered the following core competencies; specifically, students by the end of the program will have the ability to:

• Recognize ethical dimensions of problems in public health practice, research, and health policy, and identify which ethical principles or foundational ethical theories are at stake and potentially in tension.
• Analyze ethical problems in public health practice, research, and health policy, identify and communicate morally compelling lines of argument that may include: building on existing ethical frameworks, further specification of an existing framework or ethical principle; further specification of an ethical norm or formulating a novel ethical norm.
• Critically review and synthesize relevant literature from moral and political philosophy and public health ethics in analyzing moral problems in public health practice, research, and health policy.
• Identify when, why, and how empirical scholarship can make a contribution to bioethics and how data can be relevant to normative analysis.
• Construct ethical arguments for or against different kinds of public health programs and policies.

Bioethics Concentration Curriculum: Bioethics students are required to successfully complete the following concentration courses in addition to the department core.  In addition, students in Bioethics also complete coursework in moral philosophy, applied bioethics, and public health law. These requirements are satisfied, in part, through the Department of Philosophy of the Johns Hopkins University and Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University. Generally, coursework is completed in the first two years of the program. Students are required by the concentration to have a normative ethics chapter in their thesis in addition to the other chapters traditionally required. Students completing the manuscript option for the PhD will have one of their manuscripts focus on the normative aspects of their selected issue or results.

The timing and choice of some courses will be determined based on availability and individual needs.

Students in their first two years will participate each term in PH.306.861 Graduate Doctoral Seminar in Bioethics, a joint graduate student and postdoctoral fellows bioethics seminar at the Berman Institute of Bioethics. 

Students in the bioethics concentration are welcome to write either a traditional thesis or a manuscript thesis. Additional guidelines for the thesis for students enrolled in the Bioethics and Health Policy concentration can be obtained from the Bioethics concentration director.

Concentration in Health Economics and Policy

Concentration  Director:   Matthew Eisenberg, PhD, MPHIL   Health economics is a field of study that applies the theoretical concepts and empirical methods of economic analysis to various issues throughout the health sector, such as understanding underlying patient, provider, and insurer behaviors and evaluating healthcare interventions and policies. The PhD concentration in Health Economics and Policy prepares doctoral students to address the most pressing challenges in health and health care through innovative, rigorous, and interdisciplinary research in the field of health economics.  The curriculum stresses a solid grounding in applied modern microeconomic theory, economic evaluation, quantitative methods, and econometrics applications, including PhD-level courses from the Department of Economics in the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences (KSAS). Incoming students must have prior training in linear algebra, multivariable calculus, and real analysis in preparation for the economics courses at KSAS.   

Health Economics and Policy Concentration Competencies and Curriculum

Health Economics and Policy Concentration Competencies:  Upon successful completion of the PhD concentration in Health Economics and Policy, students will have mastered the following core competencies; specifically, students by the end of the program will have the ability to:

• Apply key concepts in microeconomic theory, including how the behavior of individual households and firms affects the market supply and demand of goods and services and how market failures arise under certain circumstances.
• Analyze key theoretical concepts in health economics, including the underlying determinants of health, patient demand for healthcare services, and the organization and financing of healthcare services, with an emphasis on critiquing the effects of alternative forms of financing and organizing healthcare services on cost, quality, access, and overall public health.
• Apply key concepts in applied econometrics, including sophisticated empirical models for healthcare utilization, expenditures, and health outcomes.
• Apply key concepts in applied econometrics, including various rigorous empirical approaches that emphasize causal inferences for policy analysis.
• Conduct original research in the field of health economics, ranging from conception of innovative ideas through study design, selection and application of appropriate analytic methods and data; interpretation of results; and both written and oral dissemination of findings.

Health Economics and Policy Concentration Curriculum:  The curriculum offers a broad exposure to the health economics literature and public health disciplines and stresses the policy implications of these fields of research. Student research generally focuses on econometric analyses of hypotheses generated by economic theory or quantitative evaluation of the effectiveness of various interventions.

Core Mathematics for Economics meets for 2 weeks in Summer Term and once weekly in Term 1

KSAS courses follow a semester schedule, and overlap multiple BSPH terms. 

Students must complete the first-year KSAS Microeconomic Theory Workshop wih a minimum grade of "B."

Concentration in Health Services Research & Policy 

Concentration Director:   Albert Wu, MD, MPH The PhD concentration in Health Services Research and Policy prepares students for innovative and rigorous quantitative and qualitative research and evaluation in health services delivery. The curriculum includes exposure to a wide variety of research methods, content areas, and datasets. It also offers the opportunity for in-depth study in areas such as public health informatics, organizational theory, quality of care and patient-centered outcomes research, hospital and physician payment incentives, managed care,  pharmacoeconomics  and economic evaluation, gerontology, and health care disparities. There are many research opportunities within the Department and elsewhere within the University and Health System. The Baltimore-Washington area is the home to the largest concentration of public and private health services research and health care policy analysis organizations in the world. Formal and informal relationships with these agencies, including research practicums, thesis collaborations, and internships are encouraged and facilitated.  

Health Services Research and Policy Concentration Competencies and Curriculum

Health Services Research and Policy Concentration Competencies:  Upon successful completion of the PhD concentration in Health Services Research and Policy, students will have mastered the following core competencies; specifically, students by the end of the program will have the ability to:

• Characterize and illustrate key concepts and developments in the field of health services research, including issues relating to care quality and safety, access, cost, and the role and effects of alternative forms of organizing and financing services. 
• Integrate and critique theoretical and empirical literature in the formulation of an original and significant health services research and policy research question with a clear and testable hypothesis.
• Evaluate the strengths and weakness of experimental, quasi-experimental and observational study designs and formulate the most appropriate design for a specified research question.
• Identify, evaluate, and determine the most suitable data source for a specified research question (data sources may include existing data sources or the development of a primary data collection protocol utilizing quantitative or qualitative methods). 
• Select and implement appropriate analytic techniques from advanced epidemiological, statistical, economic, and qualitative or survey methods to examine a specified research question. 

Health Services Research and Policy Concentration Curriculum:  The curriculum stresses the development of skills in research and analysis methods, as well as content knowledge. In addition to careers in academia, this concentration prepares students for leadership careers as health services researchers and health care policy analysts working in public or private agencies or organizations. Issues of relevance to the U.S. are emphasized. All students in the concentration are exposed to a broad array of methods and content. It is expected that all students will select at least one methods sub-area (e.g., econometrics, advanced statistical methods, informatics, or qualitative analysis) and develop expertise in one or more content areas.

Students are expected to participate in the graduate seminar for the first three years of the program and as much as their schedule allows in year 4.

Concentration in Health and Public Policy 

Concentration Director:   Johnathon P. Ehsani, PhD, MPH   Finding solutions to public health problems through the development, analysis, implementation, and evaluation of health policies is the focus of the PhD concentration in Health and Public Policy. Faculty and students consider a broad array of public health policies that affect health and safety. These include policies pertaining to food, alcohol, tobacco, firearms, inequality, housing, injury, transportation, and the environment. Students examine challenging public health problems and learn how political, social, economic, ethical, and legal factors affect health and how health policy can address these problems. Students acquire skills that enable them to conduct rigorous research to inform policy solutions, effectively translate their scholarly work to policy and practice, and emerge as leaders in public health policy.  

Through coursework, research, and practice, students in Health and Public Policy gain an understanding of the relationship between health and policy. Within this concentration, students may focus their elective and dissertation studies in one of the following areas: environmental and occupational health policy, injury prevention and control, social policy and health, and the practice of prevention; other specialty areas may be developed in consultation with each student's advisor and concentration director.

Health and Public Policy Concentration Competencies and Curriculum

Health and Public Policy Concentration Competencies:  Upon successful completion of the PhD concentration in Health and Public Policy, students will have mastered the following core competencies; specifically, students by the end of the program will have the ability to:

• Identify, describe, and analyze a public health problem, and recommend an appropriate policy solution to address it (e.g., legislative, regulatory, judicial, organizational).
• Examine and explain the steps of the policymaking process, including problem setting, formulation, implementation, analysis, and evaluation.
• Critically compare and apply theories of the policy process to the study of public health problems.
• Characterize the major institutions, sectors, and stakeholders involved in the policymaking processes at the global, federal, state, and local levels.
• Effectively translate and communicate public health policy research, in both oral and written forms, to policymakers, key stakeholders, and the public.

Health and Public Policy Concentration Curriculum:  Note, the timing and choice of some courses will be determined based on availability and individual needs.

Students are expected to participate in the graduate seminar during their first three years of the program, and are strongly encouraged to participate as much as their schedule allows in year 4.

Students in Health and Public Policy may choose specialized areas identified to help students focus their electives in such a way as to best provide the background needed for their dissertation work. Those interested in taking additional graduate-level coursework in policy or research methods for the social sciences as part of their electives requirement should consider courses offered at the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences (KSAS) and at the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).

Environmental and Occupational Health Policy Factors in the human environment that affect health require a multidisciplinary approach for evaluation. Courses from the Departments of Epidemiology, Environmental Health and Engineering, and Health Policy and Management are integrated to provide a foundation for the application of science to occupational and environmental policy. Evaluation, development and refinement of policies at local, state, federal and international levels are emphasized.

Social policy and health examines how social policies influence public health and/or the relationship between healthcare policy and other social policies.

Practice of Prevention The practice of prevention examines specific public health problems such as AIDS, tobacco, obesity, and violence and develops strategies for addressing problems through traditional and innovative policies.

HPM PhD Program Policies  

Full-time registration, ta educational experience , change of academic adviser/supervisor, satisfactory academic progress, pass/fail option, course waivers, university phd policies, bsph academic policies, union representation, university residency & course distribution requirements, qualifying exam, research project requirement  , phd pre-orals progress report, individual development plan (idp), departmental preliminary oral exam, school-wide preliminary oral exam , irb approval, thesis research documentation form, hpm student dissertation grant proposal submission process , thesis advisory committee, post-orals progress report, process to request an extension to the school-wide oral exam, thesis guidelines, thesis approval, thesis readers and final examination committee , final public seminar and closed oral final defense, online submission of thesis to sheridan library, extension request for completion of degree requirements, general program policies.

The Department is firmly committed to full-time PhD doctoral education. The Department requires full-time registration for the duration of each student's program. In year 1, students should register for a minimum of 16 credits per term. This will fulfill the School's residency requirement of four consecutive terms of 16 credits each. The Department discourages PhD students from registering for more than 18 credits in any one academic term unless required by their concentration. Any decision to register for more than 18 credits should be carefully considered and discussed with the student's adviser prior to registering.

In years 2 and beyond, students should register for required or elective coursework, or special studies or thesis research credits that total at minimum 12 credits each term. 

Developing knowledge and skills that are essential for delivering training or educational experiences in academic or professional settings is a critical component of a doctoral education. In part, to develop these critical skills, HPM PhD students are required to serve as full-time teaching assistants (TAs) in 6 HPM departmental courses while enrolled in the PhD program.  In addition, students register for a teaching assessment course, where they discuss their experiences and develop their teaching philosophy. 

Beyond the 6 courses required by the department as part of each student's academic program, additional TA work is required, per departmental policy, in order to receive the PhD stipend. 

All students are assigned a faculty adviser at the time of admission to the program. Advisers play an important role in the student's academic life. The adviser is expected to keep abreast of school and departmental degree requirements so that they can counsel advisees on courses and the proper progression towards the degree. Registration, add/drop, pass/fail agreements and many other School forms require the signature of the student's adviser. In addition, any special requests or petitions that a student submits to any of the administrative offices of the School will require the endorsement of the student's adviser as well as that of the Department chair.

EXPECTATIONS, RIGHTS, AND RESPONSIBILITIES Students can expect their adviser to work with them in defining educational goals, coursework, and independent studies that will assist in achieving their goals. In addition, the adviser periodically will review academic progress with the student, including assessing the student's strengths and weaknesses. Advisers provide advice while students must make the final choices consistent with the guidelines and policies of the Department, School, and University.

Students are responsible for scheduling regular meetings with their advisers, in-person or virtually, to discuss goals, progress, problems, and next steps. If an adviser does not know the answer to specific questions or issues, the adviser will refer the student to knowledgeable sources. Advisers are expected to make a regular time available for student-adviser meetings or have a clearly stated process by which students can schedule a time to meet individually. Students have the right to change advisers and individual faculty members have the right to accept or not to accept any specific student as an advisee. The first step in the process of changing advisers is to consult the program director.

Should a student want or need to change their academic advisor/supervisor, a written request should be submitted to the HPM PhD program director Dr. Brendan Saloner for review by department leadership.

Satisfactory academic progress is measured by the following as they relate to one another:

• To maintain satisfactory academic performance and good academic standing, all doctoral students must maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.00 and grades of A, B, or P (pass) in all courses required by the School or by the student’s department/concentration
• Written documentation of successful completion of all Bloomberg School and departmental  degree requirements  within the established time limitations
• Confirmation of satisfactory performance by the student’s department and/or adviser as required. Each term, the progress of students is reviewed, and those students not making satisfactory progress in terms of the cumulative grade point average and completion of requirements within established deadlines are identified for all academic departments. Students may not graduate unless in good academic standing. Additional policies regarding continuation in a program while not in good academic standing are left to individual programs.
• A D is not considered a passing grade for HPM PhD students. 
• IMPORTANT : Students receiving federal loans and federal work-study funding must adhere to the  Federal Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy   posted on the Financial Aid Office website.

Any course required to meet the PhD departmental core or concentration requirement must be taken for a letter grade unless the course is only offered on a pass/fail basis (graduate seminars for example). 

In rare cases, students may request a waiver or substitution of a required program course.  Any request must be submitted in writing according to the guidelines outlined below at least one week prior to the start of the academic term and be approved in writing by the student's Program Director.

Examples of when a substitution might be appropriate:

• A student has successfully completed a  graduate level  course with a grade of "A" or "B" that covered the same content areas as the required course. (The completed graduate-level course syllabus must be submitted with the request.)
• A course or series of courses fulfills a general area of the required curriculum, such as biostatistics or epidemiology, but the student wishes to take a different course or series that is equally or more advanced than the normal requirement and that better aligns with their overall academic and career goals.

Course substitutions must abide by the following principles:

• A strong rationale must be made for how the substitution will benefit the student's overall academic and career goals.
• The resulting curriculum meets the requirements of the learning competencies of the student's program. 

Procedure for making a substitution request: 

• The request for substitution must be submitted to the student's Program Director in writing at least one week before the substituted course is to be offered.
• A brief rationale for the substitution must be provided in writing.
• A completed course-by-course curriculum plan for the degree must accompany the request.
• Approval or denial will be provided by the Program Director within one week of being received. Decisions on course substitutions may not be appealed. As such, students should be prepared to complete the required curriculum if the request is denied.
• Waiver or substitution decisions are communicated to the HPM Office of Academic Affairs for documentation.

Waivers for CEPH Competency Courses:

Students who have graduated with a degree from an accredited School of Public Health since 2020 have fulfilled the CEPH Learning Objectives. There is a waiver process in place and students will not be required to repeat these objectives through the Cells to Society offerings.   Students should contact the HPM Office of Academic Affairs prior to matriculation for further information on the waiver process.

• PhD Mentoring Policies and Resources
• PhD Professional Development Policies and Resources
• University Requirements for PhD
• Academic Leave of Absence (LOA) Policy
• Academic Ethics Code
• Student Grievance Policy
• All PhD student employee directory information will be sent to the Union unless restricted. Supplemental information will require a FERPA consent form available on SIS self-service.
• Union Representatives are current PhD Student Employees who are elected/selected to help their fellow PhD Student Employees navigate work-related disciplines, grievances, and other procedural/policy issues. Contact TRU-JHU with questions about your division’s specific Union Representatives.

TRU-JHU Contact Information

• Website: https://trujhu.org/
• Phone: (443) 281-9462
• Address: TRU-UE Local 197, PO Box 41149, Baltimore, MD 21203
• Email: [email protected]

Year 1 Expectations

The total number of course credits to be earned depends upon individual concentration requirements. But, to meet the university residency requirement, students must complete a minimum of 64 credits of didactic courses in four consecutive terms. When general and program-specific requirements total less than 64, the difference may be made up in electives. Thesis Research (820 series) may not be included in the count, but special studies earning credit that is part of a concentration requirement only (840 series) are admissible.

The School's Policy and Procedure Memorandum (PPM) overseeing all PhD programs require that at least 18 credits of formal coursework must be completed outside the student's primary department. Among these 18 credit units, no fewer than three courses must be completed in two or more departments of the Bloomberg School of Public Health. The remaining outside credit units may be earned in any department or division of the University.

PhD students who have completed a master's program at the Bloomberg School of Public Health may apply 12 credits from that program toward this School requirement provided the student matriculates into the PhD within one academic year of completing their master's degree. Students must request this application of credits in a formal letter. Contact the HPM Office of Academic Affairs for further information.

PhD students are eligible for the departmental qualifying exam upon successful completion of the first year required courses while maintaining the minimum GPA requirement. All students matriculating in September are expected to sit for the exam at the end of the first year. The exam is offered every June. The Academic Policy and Admissions Committee (APAC), and the PhD Exam Committee will consider exceptions on a case-by-case basis. The HPM PhD Qualifying Exam Guidelines can be found on the HPM doctoral portal page (portal login required).

Year 2 Expectations

PhD students are required to engage in at least two research projects to understand different research approaches. Students are encouraged to work within the department, but are free to pursue opportunities of interest throughout the School, University, or off-campus. The two projects may be related to a single study or two separate studies.  One research project can be accomplished through off-campus work, as long as the advisor has approved the work.   The research project requirement can involve participation in any of the following aspects of research, including, but not limited to elements of research design (literature review and development of the conceptual framework of a study); community development and liaison activities; community needs assessment and its related social, epidemiological, behavioral, or political diagnosis; development and piloting of health interventions or materials; quantitative or qualitative data collection; data analysis and interpretation; policy analysis; literature reviews; manuscript preparation; grant preparation; and any other form of research approved by the advisor.     The research project requirement must be met prior to scheduling the Departmental Preliminary Oral Exam. The Department, through submission of the Research Project Requirement Form to the HPM Office of Academic Affairs, will monitor completion of this requirement. The form is available on the HPM doctoral portal page (portal login required).

The Department is committed to assisting students to make steady and timely progress through the PhD program. To facilitate this process, all PhD students are required to submit regular progress reports to the HPM Office of Academic Affairs. Students who have passed the written qualifying exam, but have not yet passed their School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam, must submit a progress report on December 1 and June 1 each year until they have passed their School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam. The report must be reviewed, discussed, and approved by the student’s adviser prior to submission. 

The Individual Development Plan (IDP) is a mechanism for self-reflection as well as a communication and planning tool for the student and their faculty advisor and mentor(s).  The goal of the IDP is to support the student's successful performance in the program and in attaining readiness for their intended future career.  To this end, the IDP creates a structure for the student to: 

• assess current skills, interests, and strengths;
• make a plan for developing skills to meet academic and professional goals; and
• communicate and collaborate with supervisors, advisors, potential employers, and mentors about evolving goals and related skills. 

Rising HPM 2nd year PhD students will receive instructions on preparing the IDP after successful completion of the 1st year qualifying exam. Students are required to complete the self assessment and the IDP and meet and discuss with their advisor prior to submission of their first progress report due in the fall of the 2nd year. Third and fourth year students will revisit their IDP and discuss with their advisor each year at the submission of their yearly progress report. 

Year 3 Expectations

The Departmental Preliminary Oral Exam takes place before the School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam. The Departmental Exam may not take place until after the successful completion of the departmental qualifying exam. The format of the exam is similar to the School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam and is intended to determine if the student is academically prepared to pass the School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam and carry out independent research.

The exam requires the student to prepare a thesis proposal that will be examined by the faculty exam committee. The HPM Departmental Preliminary Oral Exam committee consists of a minimum of three faculty members; one must be the student's advisor. A fourth alternative committee member should be identified and may choose to participate in the exam. Guidelines for the Departmental Preliminary Oral Exam can be found on the Department's portal page (portal login required).

The School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam takes place after the student has successfully completed the departmental qualifying exam and the Departmental Preliminary Oral Exam. The purpose of this examination is to determine whether the student has both the ability and knowledge to undertake significant research in their general area of interest.

The examiners will be concerned with the student's capacity for logical thinking, breadth of knowledge in relevant areas, and ability to develop and conduct research leading to a completed thesis. While the specific proposal serves as a vehicle for determining the student's general knowledge and research capacity, this examination is not intended to be a defense of a specific proposal. The student will be expected to defend the public health significance of the proposal as well as the methodologies used to evaluate the problem.

The exam should be taken at the earliest possible time, before significant engagement in thesis research, and may not take place until after the Departmental Oral Exam has been successfully passed. If the student fails the Preliminary Oral Exam and is permitted reexamination, they must be reexamined within one year.

The Institutional Review Board (IRB) supports students in applying ethical principles in their research interactions with humans and/or their data, regardless of whether IRB review is required. 

All HPM PhD research must undergo IRB review and students must receive approval or an approved exemption within three months of passing the School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam. Students should consult the  IRB website  and specifically review the Student Primer and FAQ that are posted on that page.

PhD students are required to submit the "Thesis Research Documentation Form"  within three months  of passing the School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam. This form requires the signature of the HPM Academic Office in addition to the student and advisor prior to submission. Forms should be submitted to the HPM Office of Academic Affairs which will forward the completed form to the appropriate school office. Forms submitted directly to the school office without a departmental signature will not be accepted.

Dissertation funding opportunities that originate from sources outside the School usually require the submission of a formal grant proposal. HPM works closely with students in submitting these proposals and managing the award if and when it is awarded.

Anyone considering submitting a dissertation grant proposal must contact the Department's Grants and Contracts Manager who will work with them on the application process. All applications/proposals that are submitted to external funding agencies must be reviewed and approved by the Office of Research Administration (ORA). The department requires that all application materials be submitted a  minimum of 8 business days before the grant due date.  Students should seek guidance from the Grants and Contracts Analyst for specific due dates.

Once a grant has been submitted, the student must be available by email or phone at least 72 hours after submission in case any questions arise.

Within three months of passing the School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam, every doctoral student must identify a thesis advisory committee. This committee, consisting of the student's advisor and at least two other faculty members from either inside or outside the Department, will meet with the student at minimum once a year until the student has graduated to evaluate the student's work and progress.

Each student is required to submit a written summary report to the advisory committee prior to the committee's meeting. This approved summary report will be submitted to the Department each June with the annual progress report. A sample of the summary report can be found on the Department's portal page (portal login required). 

The Department is committed to assisting students to make steady and timely progress through the PhD program. To facilitate this process, all PhD students are required to submit regular progress reports to the HPM Office of Academic Affairs. Once a student has passed their School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam, a yearly progress report is submitted to the HPM Office of Academic Affairs until the program is complete. The progress report is due each year on June 1st. The report must be reviewed and discussed with the student's adviser prior to submission.

The School's PPM governing the PhD program requires students to sit for the School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam prior to the start of their 4th year in the program. Failure to meet this deadline necessitates the submission of an extension request by the student to both the Department and the School before they are permitted to continue in the program.

An initial request for an extension of time to sit for the oral exams must be submitted at least two months prior to the start of the 4th year in the program and may not exceed two terms.

The request is first submitted to the HPM APAC Student Matters Subcommittee for review, and if approved, is forwarded to the Student Matters Subcommittee of the School's Committee on Academic Standards (CAS). All requests must include the following information or will not be considered:

• A letter of request, initiated and signed by the student, stating the rationale for the request.
• A supporting letter signed by the adviser.
• Timetable and plan developed by the student in collaboration with the student's adviser that provides specific milestones that will be met to prepare the student for the school-wide preliminary oral exam.
• A (student) copy of the current transcript.
• If the HPM APAC Student Matters Subcommittee approves the request, a supporting letter from the Department will be included in the request that is forwarded to the school for final approval.

If the extension is granted, the student and adviser, in cooperation with the HPM Office of Academic Affairs, must provide evidence of progress at intervals determined by the school subcommittee, not to exceed 90 days, toward satisfying the milestones specified in the plan for completion. Failure to meet the specified milestones according to the prescribed timetable for completion may result in further action. Requests for a second extension beyond that of the initial extension are taken very seriously by the Department and CAS and require extension documentation.

Year 4 Expectations

All PhD students must complete an original investigation presented in the form of a thesis. The thesis must be based on original research, worthy of publication, and acceptable to the Department and to a committee of faculty readers. During the student's application process, various research ideas may have been discussed with faculty members. However, each student's thesis proposal must be developed, reviewed, and found acceptable to Departmental faculty while enrolled as a doctoral student at the BSPH.

PhD students in HPM have two options for the format of the thesis:

• The traditional doctoral thesis consists of a statement of the problem and specific aims; a literature review; data and research methods; analyses and results; and a discussion of findings and their implications. The form these will take reflects the specific academic discipline or orientation guiding the student's research.
• The manuscript-oriented thesis is an alternative to the traditional thesis. The manuscript thesis consists of a total of three (or more) papers linked to the student's research topic.

The decision on which format to follow should be made at the time of the Departmental Preliminary Oral Exam. If, during the writing process, the student wishes to change formats, the student must seek approval for this change from their faculty adviser and thesis committee

The Department has developed the following guidelines to help a student determine which of these options is best for their particular research. Students should discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each option with their advisor before determining a strategy.

TRADITIONAL THESIS GUIDELINES

The traditional doctoral thesis generally consists of an abstract, five chapters, references, and any appendices.  The outline of chapters below is merely a guide. The page numbers are rough estimates, and the form of the chapters will vary, reflecting the academic discipline or orientation of the student's research.

• Abstract: The abstract is a short overall summary of the work. It lays out the purpose(s) and aims of the study, the methods, and the key results and implications. The abstract generally is 2-3 double-spaced pages.
• Chapter I: Introduction: Statement of the problem and specific aims. This chapter, which tends to be relatively short (5-6 double-spaced pages), provides an introduction to the thesis. It describes briefly why this work was undertaken, what background conditions or data suggested it was an important problem, and what, then, this project was intended to accomplish.
• Chapter 2: Literature Review. The literature review summarizes existing literature that informed the thesis research. It generally is organized topically. The literature review tends to be a fairly detailed review, particularly for those topics most directly related to the content and methods of the thesis. The literature review tends to be 30-60 pages in length. 
• Chapter 3: Methods. The content of the methods chapter varies tremendously with the methodological approach taken by the student for the thesis research. With traditional empirical studies, it will generally include the specific aims, research questions, and/or hypothesis; a description of the source of study data, a description of the study instrument and its development, if relevant; a description of secondary data obtained, if relevant; analytic methods, including data cleaning, creation of a data set, creation of variables and/or qualitative codes, types of analyses done; and human subjects issues. The methods chapter ranges from 20-40 pages. 
• Chapter 4: Results. The results chapter reports the main findings of the thesis. It often is organized by research questions or specific aims or hypotheses but need not necessarily follow this format. The results chapter ranges from 25-50 pages. 
• Chapter 5: Discussion of results and policy implications. The discussion chapter both summarizes key findings and discusses findings in light of existing literature and in light of their policy implications.  Also included generally is a description of the study's limitations and implications for future research. The discussion chapter is generally 25-50 pages. 
• References. A listing of all citations used for the thesis must be provided. The Department allows any standard format for references. 
• Appendices. Appendices can be used for many purposes. They can include study instruments, if relevant; they can include additional tables not included in the main body of the thesis; also to be included must be a copy of the student's CV. The traditional thesis should be able to 'stand alone' without appendices; however, such results should never be put in appendices that are key to the study's main findings. 

MANUSCRIPT-ORIENTED THESIS GUIDELINES

The manuscript thesis consists of the following:

• A total of three (or more) papers, linked to the student's thesis topic. One of these papers may be a literature review, providing a comprehensive critical review, if it is suitable for publication.
• A chapter that integrates and discusses the findings reported in the manuscripts. It should include a discussion of the conclusions of the research and should make recommendations for further studies.
• An appendix outlining in detail the study methods and any accompanying data tables necessary to understand the data. 

A manuscript-oriented thesis must also meet the following criteria:

• The PhD student must be the first author on the three manuscripts used to satisfy this requirement;
• No manuscript will be accepted as part of the thesis if it was submitted for publication before the student passes the School-wide Preliminary Oral Exam; and,
• Co-authors should be determined based on the  criteria  for authorship developed by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE)

ROLE OF FACULTY ADVISER WITH THE MANUSCRIPT THESIS The adviser's role is to facilitate successful completion of the doctoral thesis. The thesis must reflect the student's independent and original work. The adviser can and should provide ongoing and critical feedback, but the research must be that of the student. Even if the adviser (or another committee member) serves as a co-author on a manuscript, the manuscripts must be viewed first and foremost as fulfilling the student's needs in the thesis process, with publication as a secondary goal. Advisers or other committee members who are co-authors may not undertake the first draft of any portions of the manuscripts nor substantial rewrites. Whether an adviser will be a co-author on any manuscript should be decided early in the thesis writing process. 

PhD advisers must provide official approval of the final draft of a student's thesis prior to dissemination to the other members of the Final Oral Examination Committee. A signed Thesis Approval  Form  (portal login required) must accompany each copy of the thesis distributed. Students should provide the final copy of the thesis to the readers at least five weeks prior to the Final Oral Examination.

Paperwork  (portal login required) to establish the formal final examination committee is submitted by the Department to the Office of Records and Registration at least six weeks in advance of the final defense.  

A formal, public seminar and closed oral defense of the thesis before a committee of the faculty is one of the final steps for a PhD candidate. The public seminar and oral thesis defense are typically held on the same day with the public seminar being conducted first, followed immediately by the closed defense before the approved final exam committee.

The public seminar is scheduled for 1 hour;  HPM students schedule the closed final defense for 2 hours. Members of the Final Oral Examination Committee are required to attend both the seminar and the closed defense. Students are strongly encouraged to attend the public seminars of their fellow students whenever feasible.

The Final Oral Examination Committee judges all components of the thesis to be either: Acceptable, Acceptable with Revisions, or Unacceptable. This is the case for both a traditional thesis and a manuscript-oriented thesis. Students, with guidance from their advisor, will rework their thesis until all components are judged Acceptable.

Taking the Final Oral Examination and receiving an unconditional pass does not release the student from further responsibilities to complete the degree requirements. All students must stay continually registered until the degree requirements have been completed, including receipt of the thesis acceptance letters and electronic submission of the thesis to the Sheridan Library. Once everything has been submitted, the student will be reported to the Committee on Academic Standards and be considered complete.

• ETD Electronic  Submission
• Formatting  Instructions
• Sheridan Library contact: [email protected]
• Publication Embargo: Students are allowed to choose an embargo period of 0, 1, 2, 3, or 4 years during the ETD submission. This means that the Sheridan Library will withhold publication of the thesis for the period of time chosen. The Sheridan Library does make some details of the thesis public (student name, degree, thesis title, abstract) during the embargo period, but the actual thesis is hidden from view. 
• The Department of Health Policy and Management does not require submission of an electronic or paper copy of the final thesis document to the department. However, students must forward the thesis acceptance confirmation from the Sheridan Library to the HPM Office of Academic Affairs to certify completion of all program requirements. 

The School's PPM governing the PhD program requires students to defend their thesis within seven years of matriculation. Failure to meet this deadline necessitates the submission of an extension request by the student to both the Department and the School before they are permitted to continue in the program.

A request for an extension of time to complete the degree must be submitted at least two months prior to the conclusion of the 7th year in the program and may not exceed four terms.

The request is first submitted to the HPM APAC Student Matters Subcommittee for review and if approved, is forwarded to the Student Matters Subcommittee of the School's Committee on Academic Standards (CAS). All requests must include the following information or will not be considered:

• Timetable and plan developed by the student in collaboration with the student's adviser and members of the thesis advisory committee that provide specific milestones from completion; agreement to this plan should be indicated in writing by member(s) of the thesis advisory committee.

If the extension is granted, the student and advisor, in cooperation with the HPM Office of Academic Affairs, must provide evidence of progress at intervals determined by the school subcommittee, not to exceed 90 days, toward satisfying the milestones specified in the plan for completion. Failure to meet the specified milestones according to the prescribed timetable for completion may result in further action. Requests for a second extension beyond that of the initial extension are taken very seriously by the Department and CAS and require extension documentation.

PhD Program Learning Outcomes

Hpm phd departmental competencies, concentration in bioethics and health policy competencies, concentration in health economics and policy competencies, concentration in health and public policy competencies, concentration in health services research & policy competencies, ceph-defined introductory public health learning objectives.

Upon successful completion of the PhD program in Health Policy and Management, students in each of the four concentrations will have mastered the following core competencies; specifically, students by the end of the program will have the ability to:

Upon successful completion of the PhD concentration in Bioethics and Health Policy, students will have mastered the following core competencies; specifically, students by the end of the program will have the ability to:

Upon successful completion of the PhD concentration in Health Economics and Policy, students will have mastered the following core competencies; specifically, students by the end of the program will have the ability to:

Upon successful completion of the PhD concentration in Health and Public Policy, students will have mastered the following core competencies; specifically, students by the end of the program will have the ability to:

Upon successful completion of the PhD concentration in Health Services Research and Policy, students will have mastered the following core competencies; specifically, students by the end of the program will have the ability to:

According to the requirements of the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH), all BSPH degree students must be grounded in foundational public health knowledge. Please view the   list of specific CEPH requirements by degree type .