Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Biostatistics

The PhD in biostatistics is an interdepartmental program housed within the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, and in partnership with the main campus Department of Mathematics. The core courses are biostatistics offerings from the Teaching Division of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, and statistics offerings within the Department of Mathematics.

Program years one and two include theoretical and applied classroom work in the core mathematical statistics and biostatistics courses, with additional electives in mathematics and/or computer science. The core courses incorporate classroom projects in theory and data analysis pertinent to biomedical data and introduce literate programming and reproducible research practices. Year two requires a set of biostatistics rotations under the tutorship of a faculty mentor, using example data drawn from collaborative projects in biomedical or public health sciences, each with required oral, written, and web-based presentations. The student will select, by the end of year two, a primary adviser from among participating program faculty. Additional training in the biomedical area of application will occur in years three and four. Throughout, the student will participate in presentations and discussions in a seminar series and journal club.

The PhD thesis, completed in years three to four and potentially five, will contain an original contribution of quality that would be acceptable for publication in the biostatistics literature, which extends the theory or methodology of biostatistics, or extends biostatistical methods to solve a critical problem in applied disciplines. A terminal master’s degree in biostatistical sciences is offered for students who fail to complete the PhD in a timely fashion. Students are eligible to obtain the MS degree under Plan II (Comprehensive Examination) if they pass the PhD written qualifying exam at the MS level and obtained forty-eight units of core courses (including MATH 281A-B-C and PHB 221–223) with a passing grade.