PhD in Public Health (Biostatistics)

Program Overview
Curriculum

About the Program

The Rutgers School of Public Health and Rutgers School of Graduate Studies' rigorous PhD in Public Health degree is designed to support public health professionals seeking a research-based graduate program, offering advanced study across five concentration areas.

Biostatistics
Epidemiology (specialized pharmacoepidemiology courses available)
Environmental and Occupational Health
Social and Behavioral Health Sciences
Health Systems and Policy

This webpage provides details on the PhD in Public Health (Biostatistics). General PhD in Public Health information can be found here.

Competencies

Each concentration identifies competencies for each degree offered. These competencies reflect the full range of knowledge, skills, and other attributes that a student will acquire as a result of completing the requirements for a particular degree.

Upon graduation, a student completing the PhD in Public Health curriculum in Biostatistics will be able to:

PhD-BIST1: Apply new and existing probability and statistical models to address biomedical, clinical, or public health research problems;
PhD-BIST2: Use statistical computer packages to organize, analyze, and report collected data; and
PhD-BIST3: Communicate the results of statistical studies both orally and in writing to senior statisticians and other investigators.

Ready to take the next step?

Curriculum for Students Enrolled Fall 2020 and After

Students seeking the PhD in Public Health-Biostatistics degree must complete a minimum of 72 credits of academic work with a minimum GPA of least 3.2 overall and a 3.2 in the set of required courses specified by the concentration; earn no more than nine (9) credits bearing grades less than B; and complete the degree requirements within seven years. Courses are three credit hours unless otherwise noted and semester when each course is typically offered is noted parentheses. Students should review the Forward Schedule for long-term course planning and the Course Schedule for each semester to determine when, where, and how a course is offered.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSIONS

Master's degree in a related field
Courses in multivariable calculus and linear algebra
Working knowledge of a programming language

PREREQUISITES

Prerequisites do not count toward the 72-credit PhD curriculum. MPH from an accredited school or program meets prerequisite requirements. PHCO 0502 and PHCO 0504 must be completed before Year 1, Fall semester (e.g., online summer before) if student does not have graduate-level coursework in these two areas.

PHCO 0502 - Principles and Methods of Epidemiology (or equivalent)
PHCO 0504 - Introduction to Biostatistics [Prerequisite: Quantitative Skills Assessment]¹(or equivalent)

PHD IN PUBLIC HEALTH CORE COURSES (9 credits)

PHCO 0512 - Public Health Foundations (Spring) If a student holds an MPH from a CEPH-accredited school or program of public health, course is waived, but not the credits.
ENOH 0701 - Public Health Research Ethics (Spring-Even Years)
HBSP 0700 - Advances in Public Health Theories (Fall-Odd Years)

REQUIRED CONCENTRATION COURSES (18 credits)

Students should review the Course Descriptions in the School Catalog for specific information about prerequisites required for required courses and recommended electives.

BIST 0700 - Advanced Theory of Biostatistics I (Fall) [or 16:960:652 within Department of Statistics, Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences]
BIST 0701 - Advanced Theory of Biostatistics II (Spring) [or 16:960:652 within Department of Statistics, Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences]
BIST 0720 - Advanced Biostatistical Computing (Spring-Odd Years)
BIST 0725 - Generalized Linear Models (Spring-Even Years)
BIST 0727 - Survival Analysis (Spring)
BIST 0750 - Longitudinal Data Analysis (Fall)

RECOMMENDED ELECTIVE COURSES (21 credits)

BIST 0610 - Advanced Regression Methods for Public Health Studies (Spring)
BIST 0660 - Clinical Trials: Design and Analysis of Medical Experiment (Spring)
BIST 0663 - Statistical Learning in Biomedical Studies
BIST 0688 - Statistical Methods in Genetics
BIST 0690 - Advanced Topics in Biostatistics
BIST 0721 - Advanced Bayesian Inference (Fall)
EPID 0656 - Intermediate Epidemiologic Research Methods (Fall/Spring)
EPID 7653 - Advanced Epidemiologic Research Methods (Spring)

REQUIRED RESEARCH (24 credits)

RESH 0701 - Doctoral Colloquium I (0 credit) Taken in Fall and Spring in Year 1
RESH 0702 - Doctoral Colloquium II (0 credit) Taken in Fall and Spring in Year 2
RESH 0760 - Doctoral Research (20 credits)
RESH 0761 - Doctoral Research: Dissertation Proposal Seminar (3 credits) Taken in Spring in Year 2
1611-5556 - Ethical Scientific Conduct (1 credit) [Offered through School of Graduate Studies] Taken in Spring in Year 1

OTHER REQUIREMENTS (0 credits)

Pass Qualifying Exam (written and oral) Typically completed at the end of Year 2
RESH 0730 – PhD Seminar (0 credit) Attend PhD seminar once per month for Fall and Spring semesters, every year
Earn a Teaching Certificate from Rutgers Teaching Assistant Program (TAP) [0 credits] or complete HBSP 0725 - Effectively Teaching and Training Adults (3 credits)
Complete Ethical Scientific Conduct Refresher (0 credit) Taken in Year 5
Complete Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) online training on Human Subject Research Protections (For Students Enrolled Fall 2024 and After)

All PhD students are expected to engage in research activities with their Faculty Advisor.

Notes:

¹Only matriculated PhD in Public Health-Biostatistics students are waived from taking the Quantitative Skills Assessment.

Curriculum for Students Enrolled Fall 2018 to Fall 2019

Students seeking the PhD in Public Health -- Biostatistics degree must complete a minimum of 72 credits of academic work with a minimum GPA of least 3.2 overall and a 3.2 in the set of required courses specified by their department; earn no more than nine (9) credits bearing grades less than B; and complete the degree requirements within seven years. Courses are three credit hours unless otherwise noted and semester when each course is typically offered is noted parentheses. Students should review the Forward Schedule for long-term course planning and the Course Schedule for each semester to determine when, where, and how a course is offered.

PREREQUISITES

Master's degree in a related field
Good GPA and GRE (and TOEFL, if needed) scores

CORE COURSES (6 credits)

PHCO 0502 - Principles and Methods of Epidemiology
PHCO 0512 - Public Health Foundations

REQUIRED COURSES (21 credits)

BIST 0610 - Advanced Regression Methods for Public Health Studies
BIST 0700 - Advanced Theory of Biostatistics I (or 16:960:652 within Department of Statistics, Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences)
BIST 0701 - Advanced Theory of Biostatistics II (or 16:960:652 within Department of Statistics, Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences)
BIST 0720 - Advanced Biostatistical Computing
BIST 0725 - Generalized Linear Models
BIST 0727 - Survival Analysis
BIST 0750 - Longitudinal Data Analysis

RECOMMENDED ELECTIVE COURSES (21 credits)

BIST 0663 - Statistical Learning in Biomedical Studies
BIST 0660 - Clinical Trials: Design and Analysis of Medical Experiment
BIST 0688 - Statistical Methods in Genetics
BIST 0690 - Advanced Topics in Biostatistics
BIST 9654 - Applied Stochastic Processes
BIST 9655 - Nonparametric Statistics
BIST 9665 - Applied Time Series Analysis
BIST 9667 - Applied Multivariate Analysis
BIST 9687 - Interpretation of Data II
BIST 9688 - Data Mining
BIST 9691 - Advanced Design of Experiments
EPID 0653 - Advanced Epidemiologic Research Methods
EPID 0656 - Intermediate Epidemiologic Research Methods
EPID 0657 - Advanced Epidemiological Research Methods

REQUIRED RESEARCH (24 credits)

RESH 0760 (Section 000) - Doctoral Research: Dissertation Proposal Seminar (3 credits)
RESH 0760 - Doctoral Research (21 credits)

RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT (0 credits)

RESH 0730 – PhD Seminar (formerly RESH 0700 Doctoral Colloquium) PhD students should register for RESH 0730 each Fall and Spring semester they are enrolled at the School of Public Health.

All PhD students are expected to engage in research activities with their Faculty Advisor.