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DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (PhD) IN HEALTH SYSTEMS

Required and Elective Courses, 2023-2024

Required and Elective Courses

All students in the PhD in the Health Systems Program must take the required courses listed below. All required courses must be taken for a letter grade except for courses only offered for pass/fail grading. Below you'll find the lists of required and elective courses.

Any application to waive courses must be made in writing (with an approval from the advisor) to the coordinator at least 1 term prior to the start of the course. Even if waivers are granted, students are responsible for course content on comprehensive exams.

Required Courses 2023-24

Course No. 

Course Title

Term

Credits

General Degree Requirements

550.860

Academic and Research Ethics at BSPH 

1

0

220.605  

Doctoral Seminar in International Health I

1

3

220.842

Doctoral Independent Goals Analysis (IGA)

1

1

552.608

Biologic, Genetic, and Infectious Bases of Human Disease

1, 2, 3

0.5

221.602

Applications to Managing Health Services Organizations in LMICs

1, 3

3

220.606

Doctoral Seminar in International Health II

2

3

220.600

International Travel Preparation, Safety, and Wellness (only take once)  

2, 3, 4

1

221.646

Health Systems in LMICs

2

3

221.620

Applying Summary Measures of Population Health to Improve Health Systems (must take on-campus offering)

2, 4

3

221.638

Health Systems Research and Evaluation in Developing Countries

3

4

Epidemiology Requirement

340.751

Epidemiologic Methods I

1

5

340.752

Epidemiologic Methods II

2

5

Biostatistics Requirement (choose one option)

Option 1

140.621

Statistical Methods in Public Health I

1

4

140.622

Statistical Methods in Public Health II

2

4

140.623

Statistical Methods in Public Health III

3

4

140.624

Statistical Methods in Public Health IV

4

4

Option 2

 

140.651

Methods in Biostatistics I

1

4

140.652

Methods in Biostatistics II

2

4

140.653

Methods in Biostatistics III

3

4

140.654

Methods in Biostatistics IV

4

4

Ethics Requirement (choose one of the following)

550.600

Living Science Ethics Responsible Conduct of Research

1, 4

2

306.665

Research Ethics and Integrity: US and International Issues

3

3

Additionally, students are required to complete the CITI Training Module

Health Systems Seminars

221.801

Health Systems Program Seminar I

1

1

221.802

Health Systems Program Seminar II

2

1

221.861

Doctoral Seminar in Health Systems I (Year 1)

3

1

221.862

Doctoral Seminar in Health Systems II (Year 1)

4

1

221.863

Doctoral Seminar in Health Systems III (Year 2)

1

1

221.864

Doctoral Seminar in Health Systems IV (Year 2)

2

1

Elective Courses 2023-24

Fifteen (15) additional credits are required for the PhD program from the following list of elective courses, if not already selected to satisfy another requirement. The courses must cover at least 2 of the 3 blocks detailed below. These courses must be taken for a letter grade with the exception of courses only offered pass/fail grading.

Course No. Course Title Term  Credits
Health Systems Planning and Management
221.722 Quality Assurance Management Methods for Developing Countries 1 4
312.617 Fundamentals of Financial Accounting 1 3
312.603 Fundamentals of Budgeting and Financial Management 1-4 3
221.637 Health Information Systems (online only)   2 4
312.604 Quantitative Tools for Managers 2,3,4 3

410.622

Strategic Leadership Principles and Tools for Health System Transformation in Developing Countries 

2

4

221.608

Managing NGOs in the Health Sector

3

3

221.610

Pharmaceuticals Management for Under-Served Populations

3

3

312.633

Health Management Information Systems

3

3

221.652

Financing Health Systems for Universal Health Care

3

3

312.621

Strategic Planning

3

3

608.771

Non-Governmental Organizations and the Administration of Global Health Programs

4

3

International Health Topics

180.611

The Global Environment, Climate Change, and Public Health

1

4

180.620

Introduction to Food Systems and Public Health

1

4

221.613

Introduction to Humanitarian Emergencies

1

2

221.621

Gender and Health: Foundational Theories and Applications

1

3

221.639

Health Care in Humanitarian Emergencies

1, 2

3

550.610

Using Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) to Improve Public Health

1

1

221.612

Confronting the Burden of Injuries: A Global Perspective

2

3

221.627

Issues in the Reduction of Maternal and Neonatal Mortality in LMICs

2

4

221.637

Health Information Systems

2

3

221.701

Applications to Gender Analysis Within Health Research and Interventions 

2

2

221.712

Leadership and Management in Humanitarian Health

2

2

224.689

Health Behavior Change at the Individual, Household, and Community Levels

2

4

180.607

Climate Change and Public Health

3

3

182.626

Issues for Water and Sanitation in Tropical Environmental Health

3

2

221.635

Advances in Community-Oriented Primary Health Care

3

4

221.623

Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene in Humanitarian Emergencies

3

2

221.635

Global Advances in Community-Oriented Primary Health Care 

3

4

221.643

Armed Conflict and Health 

3

2

221.688

Social and Behavioral Foundations of Primary Health Care 

3

4

222.665  

Planning for Food Systems and Public Health 

3

3

223.621

Design and Implementation of Global Digital Health Interventions I

3

3

224.694

Mental Health Intervention Programming in LMICs 

3

3

380.750

Migration and Health: Concepts, Rates, and Relationships 

3

3

185.600

One Health Tools to Promote and Evaluate Healthy and Sustainable Communities 

4

3

221.605

History of International Health and Development 

4

2

221.611

Food Security and Nutrition in Humanitarian Emergencies 

4

2

221.616

Ethics of Public Health Practice in Developing Countries

4

2

221.624

Urban Health in Developing Countries 

4

3

221.642

Mental Health Aspects of Disaster: Public Health Preparedness and Response 

4

2

223.622

Design and Implementation of Global Digital Health Interventions II

4

3

223.626

Special Topics in Global Digital Health

4

1

221.661

Project Development for Primary Health Care in Developing Countries

4

4

221.624

Urban Health in Developing Countries

4

3

410.610

Health and Homelessness

4

3

Health Policy

 

 

300.600

Introduction to Health Policy

1

4

221.614

International Political Science for Public Health Practitioners

2

2

300.712

Formulating Policy: Strategies and Systems of Policymaking in the 21st Century

2

3

301.645

Health Advocacy 

2, 4

3

308.610

The Political Economy of Social Inequalities and Consequence 

2, 4

3

223.687

Vaccine Policy Issues

3

3

221.650

Health Policy Analysis in LMICs

3

3

300.713

Research and Evaluation Methods for Health Policy

3

3

300.652

Politics of Health Policy

4

4

380.771

Understanding and Changing International Reproductive Health Policy

4

 

Research / Analytical Methods Electives

Fifteen (15) additional credits are required from the following list of courses. The courses selected must cover at least two of the five categories below. These courses must be taken for a letter grade, with the exception of courses only offered pass/fail. Please note that all course numbers are hyperlinked to redirect to the BSPH Course Directory system.

Course No. Course Title Term Credits
Quantitative Methods
140.646 Essentials of Probability and Statistical Inference I: Probability 1 4
140.655 Analysis of Longitudinal Data  1 4

330.657

Statistics for Psychosocial Research: Measurement

1

4

340.728

Advanced Methods for Design and Analysis of Cohort Studies

1

4

140.647

Essentials of Probability and Statistical Inference II: Statistical Inference

2

4

140.656

Multilevel and Longitudinal Models Data Analysis Workshop

2

4

340.606

Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis

3

6

340.753

Epidemiologic Methods III

3

5

340.715

Problems in the Design of Epidemiologic Studies: Proposal Development and Critique

4

5

340.696

Spatial Analysis I: ArcGIS 

1

3

340.697

Spatial Analysis II: Spatial Data Technologies 

2

2

140.698

Spatial Analysis III: Spatial Statistics 

3

4

140.699

Spatial Analysis IV: Spatial Design and Applications 

4

3

Health Systems Research and Evaluation

309.716

Advanced Methods in Health Services Research: Research Design 

1

4

380.611

Fundamentals of Program Evaluation 

1, 3

4

221.645

Large-Scale Effectiveness Evaluations of Health Programs

2, 4

4

221.654

Systems Thinking in Public Health: Applications of Key Methods 

2

3

309.712

Assessing Health Status and Patient Outcomes

2

3

340.717

Health Survey Research Methods

2

4

550.601

Implementation Research and Practice 

2

3

140.664

Causal Inference in Medicine and Public Health 

3, 4

4

223.664

Design and Conduct of Community Trials

3

4

309.616

Introduction to Methods for Health Services Research and Evaluation I 

3

2

340.606

Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis 

3

6

380.711

Issues in Survey Research

3

3

410.635

Applications of Innovative Methods in Local and Global Health Equity Research 

3

4

223.632

Methods for Planning and Implementing Evaluations of Large-Scale Programs in LMICs 

4

4

309.617

Introduction to Methods for Health Services Research and Evaluation II 

4

2

340.667

Health Equity Research Methods to Address Social Determinants of Health

4

4

380.612

Applications in Program Monitoring and Evaluation 

4

4

380.712

Methods of Analysis of Large Population Surveys

4

3

Qualitative Methods

224.690

Qualitative Research Theory and Methods

1, 3

3

224.691

Qualitative Data Analysis

2, 4

3

410.631

Introduction to Community-Based Participatory Research: Principles and Methods

2

3

410.710

Concepts in Qualitative Research for Social and Behavioral Sciences

2

3

224.692

Formative Research for Behavioral and Community Interventions

3, 4

4

Methods in Specific Topics

221.641

Measurement Methods in Humanitarian Emergencies

2

2

222.647

Nutrition Epidemiology

3

3

380.750

Migration and Health: Concepts, Rates, and Relationships

3

3

221.644

Econometric Methods for Evaluation of Health Programs

4

4

Health Economics

221.619

Introduction to Global Health Economics

1

3

313.601

Economic Evaluation I

1

3

313.602

Economic Evaluation II

2

3

313.603

Economic Evaluation III

3

3

313.643

Health Economics

2

3

221.617

Behavioral Economics in Health Decisions 

3

2

221.651

Econometrics I 

3

4

221.652

Financing Health Systems for Universal Health Care

3

3

221.662

Health, Equity, and Economic Development

3

3

313.641

Introduction to Health Economics

3

3

313.644

Intermediate Health Economics

3

3

221.663

Globalization and Health: A Framework for Analysis

4

3

Note: The Health Systems Program also offers a Health Economics “specialization,” which tracks with schoolwide standards set out by the interdepartmental PhD Program in Health Economics. For further information on these courses, see the Health Systems PhD Concentration Director.