Public Health, Ph.D.
David Timberlake, Ph.D. Doctoral Director, Department of Population Health and Disease Prevention
Annie Ro, Ph.D. Doctoral Director, Department of Health, Society, and Behavior
The distinctive mission of the Ph.D. in Public Health is to train graduate students to conduct original research on the determinants of health status of populations, and the translation of such knowledge to improve strategies for preventing disease and disability. Graduates of the Ph.D. program will be prepared for independent and collaborative research careers, and to teach at advanced levels of instruction. Students enrolled in the Ph.D. in Public Health must concentrate in either Global Health or Disease Prevention.
Students enroll in the Ph.D. in Public Health in the fall quarter of each year. Applicants are encouraged to start the application process early by consulting with faculty members whose research activities align with the applicant’s interests and academic background. The deadline for receipt of all application materials is December 1. Applicants must choose one of the two available concentrations at the time of application: Disease Prevention, or Global Health.
Master’s level degrees in health-related disciplines are the preferred preparation for admission to the Ph.D. in Public Health. Applicants to the Ph.D. in Public Health who come with undergraduate degrees from other related majors might be required to take supplementary courses in addition to the preparatory module of the Ph.D. program.
Updated information about the GRE requirement can be found on our website. Applicants must meet the general admission requirements of the UCI Graduate Division and submit both the Application for Graduate Admission and the School of Public Health Application Service (SOPHAS) application in order to be considered for admission.
Each Ph.D. student must serve as a teaching assistant for at least two quarters during the graduate program. If English is not the student’s first language, the student must pass a campus-approved oral English proficiency exam prior to serving as a teaching assistant.
For more information on admissions, visit the Public Health website or contact phgo@uci.edu.
Concentration in Global Health
The focus of the Ph.D. research concentration in Global Health is to train excellence in research through engagement in hypothesis-driven projects to investigate the global context of disease burden and the improvement of population health status. The program will attract candidates who seek to analyze problems at the intersection of risk, vulnerability, and disease. Activities may include investigation of strategies to make research results that have already produced benefits in one country or region effective in underprivileged regions. The program trains students in integrative expertise essential for global health research with hypotheses in the nexus of content (risk analysis), context (vulnerability assessments), and process (translation of knowledge to reduce the burden of disease).
The specific learning objectives of the Concentration in Global Health are for graduates of the degree to:
- Demonstrate knowledge of the major theoretical underpinnings of advances in global health research.
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Explain the relationship between theory and research methods focused on understanding the association of risk, vulnerability, and outcome in global health.
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Compare and contrast the health status of different populations with respect to their burden of disease.
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Formulate research hypotheses in the intersection of risk factors, vulnerable populations, and burden of disease.
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Compose research proposals and conduct original research resulting in discoveries that contribute to improved understanding of risk factors and variations in disease burden in a population, and strategies to alleviate the burden at the global level.
Concentration in Disease Prevention
The focus of the Ph.D. concentration in Disease Prevention is to train excellence in research to discover insights into how human behavior, social constraints, and other contextual factors influence strategies to prevent disease in populations that are vulnerable to risk factors. The program emphasizes the ecological model of disease prevention, with research hypotheses emerging through multi-layered analysis of determinants of health status, including individual, interpersonal, organizational, community, and overarching policy. Students generate the hypotheses for their research in the nexus of risk factors, health behavior, and vulnerable populations.
The specific learning objectives of the Concentration in Disease Prevention are:
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Demonstrate knowledge of the major theoretical underpinnings of strategies for disease prevention.
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Explain the relationship between theory and research methods focused on understanding the association of risk, behavior, and vulnerability with respect to disease pathways.
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Analyze interrelationships among the determinants of illness and maladaptive health behaviors using theories of health behavior.
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Formulate research hypotheses in the intersection of health risk factors, health behavior, and health promotion and policies toward disease prevention.
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Compose research proposals and conduct original research resulting in discoveries that contribute to improved understanding of the role of behavior and health promotion strategies in mitigating the vulnerability to health risk factors in specific populations, with the goals of applying the knowledge to disease prevention.
Career Information
The Ph.D. in Public Health prepares graduates to initiate independent and collaborative research careers in academic institutions, to teach at advanced levels of instruction, and to lead research efforts at agencies dedicated to public health at all levels of organization. Graduates of the Ph.D. in Public Health will gain employment at research universities, government agencies, or private sector organizations including research institutes, hospitals, and public health foundations.
General Admission Requirements
Students enroll in the Ph.D. in Public Health in the fall quarter of each year. Applicants are encouraged to start the application process early by consulting with faculty members whose research activities align with the applicant’s interests and academic background. The deadline for receipt of all application materials is December 1. Applicants must choose one of the two available concentrations at the time of application. Master’s level degrees in health-related disciplines are the preferred preparation for admission to the Ph.D. in Public Health. Applicants to the Ph.D. in Public Health who come with undergraduate degrees from other related majors might be required to take supplementary courses in addition to the preparatory module of the Ph.D. program.
All applicants must have an overall grade point average of B (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) or better and take the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) general test. Applicants must meet the general admission requirements of the UCI Graduate Division and submit both the Application for Graduate Admission and the School of Public Health Application Service (SOPHAS) application in order to be considered for admission.
Each Ph.D. student must serve as a teaching assistant for at least two quarters during the graduate program. If English is not the student’s first language, the student must pass a campus-approved oral English proficiency exam prior to serving as a teaching assistant.
For more information on admissions, visit the Public Health website or contact phgo@uci.edu.
Program Requirements
A main feature of the Ph.D. in Public Health is the situation of dissertation research in an ecological framework that considers multi-level analysis of public health questions. We integrate this feature in the two concentrations, each with knowledge modules and creative activity that must be satisfied in partial fulfillment of the degree requirements. All Ph.D. students are required to complete a minimum of 84 quarter-units according to the following modules:
Preparatory Module | |
PUBHLTH 200 | Foundations of Public Health |
PUBHLTH 206B | Intermediate Epidemiology |
PUBHLTH 207A | Probability and Statistics in Public Health |
PUBHLTH 207B | Analysis of Public Health Data Using Statistical Software |
PUBHLTH 283 | Geographic Information Systems for Public Health |
PUBHLTH 287 | Qualitative Research Methods in Public Health |
PUBHLTH 292 | Ethics and Responsible Conduct of Research in Public Health |
PUBHLTH 294 | Research Communication in Public Health |
PUBHLTH 297 | Research Design and Proposal Writing |
PUBHLTH 298 | Directed Studies in Public Health |
Concentration Module: Disease Prevention | |
PUBHLTH 208 | Advances in Social Epidemiology |
PUBHLTH 244 | Health Behavior Theory |
PUBHLTH 245 | Health Promotion Planning |
PUBHLTH 246 | Social Research Methods |
Concentration Module: Global Health | |
PUBHLTH 213 | Epidemiology in Global Health |
PUBHLTH 280 | Global Burden of Disease |
PUBHLTH 286 | Advanced Geographic Information Systems and Spatial Epidemiology |
PUBHLTH 289 | Special Topics in Global Health and Disease Prevention |
Elective Module: Risk Factors and Vulnerable Populations | |
Select four courses from the following: | |
BATS 210A | Introduction to Clinical Epidemiology |
BATS 253 | Disparities in Health and Health Care |
CHC/LAT 210A | Cultural and Historial Precedents for Latinos and Medical Care |
CHC/LAT 210B | Cultural and Historical Precedents for Latinos and Medical Care |
CHC/LAT 211A | Latinos/Latinas and Medical Care: Contemporary Issues |
CHC/LAT 211B | Latinos/Latinas and Medical Care: Contemporary Issues |
CRM/LAW C219 | Hate Crime |
EHS 203 | Psychosocial Occupational Epidemiology |
EHS 294 | Occupational Health Psychology |
EPIDEM 201 | Cancer Epidemiology |
EPIDEM 202 | Genetic Epidemiology |
EPIDEM 205 | Environmental Epidemiology |
EPIDEM 215 | Introduction to Statistical Genetics |
EPIDEM 232 | Chronic Disease Epidemiology & Prevention |
EPIDEM 244 | Toxic Chemicals in Environment |
EARTHSS 200 | Global Physical Climatology |
MOL BIO 205 | Molecular Virology |
MOL BIO 218 | Clinical Cancer |
PSCI P258 | Health Psychology |
PSCI P273 | Biobehavioral Aspects of Health and Illness |
PUBHLTH 208 | Advances in Social Epidemiology 2 |
PUBHLTH 209 | Methods of Demographic Analysis |
PUBHLTH 213 | Epidemiology in Global Health 1 |
PUBHLTH 206C | Advanced Epidemiologic Methods |
PUBHLTH 222 | Health Policy and Management |
PUBHLTH 223 | Risk Communication |
PUBHLTH 242 | Theories of Health Communication |
PUBHLTH 244 | Health Behavior Theory 2 |
PUBHLTH 245 | Health Promotion Planning 2 |
PUBHLTH 246 | Social Research Methods 2 |
PUBHLTH 247 | Program Evaluation |
PUBHLTH 248 | Fundamentals of Maternal and Child Health - Programs, Problems, and Policy |
PUBHLTH 250 | Health Status and Care Disparities |
PUBHLTH 259 | Special Topics in Social and Behavioral Health Sciences |
PUBHLTH 264 | Introduction to Environmental Health Science |
PUBHLTH 269 | Air Pollution, Climate, and Health |
PUBHLTH 277A | Target Organ Toxicology I |
PUBHLTH 277B | Target Organ Toxicology II |
PUBHLTH 279 | Special Topics in Environmental & Occupational Health |
PUBHLTH 280 | Global Burden of Disease 1 |
PUBHLTH 281 | Infectious Disease Epidemiology |
PUBHLTH 286 | Advanced Geographic Information Systems and Spatial Epidemiology 1 |
PUBHLTH 289 | Special Topics in Global Health and Disease Prevention 1 |
PUBHLTH 290 | Special Topics in Public Health ((Global Health Law and Policy, Obesity Epidemiology, Theory Driven Data Analysis)) |
SOCIOL 230A | Race and Ethnicity |
SOCIOL 239 | Special Topics: Social Inequality |
SOCIOL 269 | Special Topics: Social Demography |
SOCIOL 289 | Special Topics |
Research Module | |
1. Establish a dissertation committee of faculty members. | |
2. Submit a research proposal and advance to Ph.D. candidacy by defending the proposal. | |
3. At least three quarters of PUBHLTH 296 under the supervision of the Chair of the dissertation committee. |
1 | Counts as a cluster course for Disease Prevention students only. |
2 | Counts as a cluster course for Global Health students only. |
The qualifying examination consists of two parts. The first part is submission of a written research proposal to a Candidacy Committee of five faculty members consisting of four members with formal appointments in Public Health, and an external member. The second part is a public presentation and oral defense of the student's dissertation research proposal before the same committee. Advancement to doctoral candidacy is contingent on passing both parts of the qualifying examination, as judged by the Candidacy Committee. The dissertation proposal must be at a level of quality such that its execution will advance knowledge and have the potential to yield original peer-reviewed publications.
Advancement to doctoral candidacy is contingent on passing the qualifying examination. We expect students to sit for the qualifying examination by the beginning of their third year in the program. Ph.D. completion requires submission of an acceptable dissertation and oral defense. The normative time to degree is six years, and the maximum time permitted is eight years.
Teaching Requirement
Students enrolled in the Ph.D. in Public Health are required to serve as Teaching Assistants in public health courses for two quarters during their graduate study. Teaching is an important component of graduate training, as it helps graduate students learn how to communicate effectively about their field of knowledge. In addition, teaching experience is valuable to those planning for a career in academia. Graduate students with comparable prior teaching experience (e.g., through postgraduate degrees earned at UC Irvine or other comparable institution) may request a waiver of the teaching requirement.
Program in Law and Graduate Studies (J.D./Ph.D./M.P.H.)
Highly qualified students interested in combining the study of law with graduate qualifications in Public Health are invited to undertake concurrent degree study under the auspices of UC Irvine's Program in Law and Graduate Studies (PLGS). Students in this program pursue a coordinated curriculum leading to a J.D. from the School of Law in conjunction with a Master's or Ph.D. in Public Health.
Additional information is available from the PLGS Program Director's Office at 949-824-9217, or by email at plgs@law.uci.edu. A full description of the program, with links to all relevant application information, can be found in the Law School section of the Catalogue.
The Ph.D. in Public Health prepares graduates to initiate independent and collaborative research careers in academic institutions, to teach at advanced levels of instruction, and to lead research efforts at agencies dedicated to public health at all levels of organization. Graduates of the Ph.D. in Public Health will gain employment at research universities, government agencies, or private sector organizations including research institutes, hospitals, and public health foundations.