PhD in Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases

The goals of doctoral training with a concentration in EMD are to provide a current theoretical and practical base of epidemiological and microbiological principles, to master research methods, and to apply these skills to investigations of the biology of infectious organisms of public health importance and the epidemiology of the diseases they cause. The approach is multidisciplinary. It includes ecological, clinical, cellular, immunologic and molecular aspects of infectious diseases, their causative agents, vertebrate hosts, and vectors. In addition, opportunities exist for Ph.D. training through interdepartmental programs in which YSPH faculty participate, such as the Microbiology and Immunobiology tracks of the Biomedical and Biological Studies program.

Applicants should have a bachelor's degree with a concentration in any of the biological sciences. Students with degrees in chemistry, physics, engineering or medicine are also encouraged to apply. Preparation in elementary calculus, elementary physics, inorganic and organic chemistry, statistics or advanced mathematics is desired. A master's degree is not required to apply for this program.

Although courses in epidemiology, microbiology and biostatistics are strongly recommended, there is no general required curriculum. A faculty adviser is assigned at the time the student matriculates. Each student plans, with the advice of the faculty adviser and the department representative to the Graduate Studies Executive Committee, a specific program that includes courses, seminars, laboratory rotations, and independent readings all tailored to the individual needs and career goals of the student. The plan is outlined as early as possible in the first semester of graduate study. A program of course work will most often include biostatistics, epidemiology, microbiology, as well as complementary courses offered in the basic biomedical sciences in other departments of the University. All students are required do three semester long laboratory rotations, each with a different principal investigator. After successful completion of the qualifying examination and submitting a prospectus, students are admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. From this point students work exclusively on their dissertation research, culminating in the presentation of a thesis to the Yale faculty for examination.

This program does not require General GRE test scores.

All courses are 1 unit unless otherwise noted.

The PhD degree requires a total of 10 course units. Course substitutions must be identified and approved by the student’s adviser and DGS.

PhD Required Courses (5 course units)

• Public Health Primer – 0 units
  
• PUBH 508 Foundations of Epidemiology and Public Health* OR CDE 516 Principles of Epidemiology II*
  
• PUBH 600 Research Ethics and Responsibilities - 0 unit
  
• CDE 617 Developing a Research Proposal
  
• EMD 670 Advanced Research Laboratories
  
• EMD 671 Advanced Research Laboratories
  
• EMD 672 Advanced Research Laboratories
  

* Students with prior graduate-level epidemiology courses may be exempt from coursework in epidemiology.

PhD Suggested Electives (5 course units)

A minimum of 5 electives is required. Suggested courses are listed below, but any graduate-level course may be chosen (subject to adviser approval).

• BIS 537 Statistical Methods for Causal Inference
• BIS 567- Bayesian Statistics EMD 531 Genomic Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases
• EHS/CDE 566 Causal Inference Methods in Public Health Research
• EMD 531 Genomic Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases
• EMD 533 Implementation Science
• EMD 538 Quantitative Methods for Infectious Disease Epidemiology
• EMD 539 Introduction to the Analysis and Interpretation of Public Health Surveillance
• EMD 546 – Vaccines and Vaccine-Preventable Disease
• EMD 550 – Epidemiology and Control of Vector-Borne Diseases
• EMD 553 Transmission Dynamic Models for Understanding Infectious Diseases
• EMD 567 Tackling the Big Three: Malaria, TB, & HIV in Resource-Limited Settings
• EMD 582 Political Epidemiology
• EHS 568 Introduction to GIS for Public Health
• HPM 570 Cost-Effectiveness Analysis and Decision-Making
• S&DS 5300 Data Exploration and Analysis
• S&DS 5380 Probability and Statistics
• S&DS 5630 – Multivariate Statistical Methods for the Social Sciences

• Conduct quantitative analyses of epidemiological data.
• Apply the research methodology of the student’s broader discipline to a specific research project within the student’s area of interest.
• Formulate an epidemiologic research question that addresses a gap in the literature.

• The Outbreak Dynamics of Emerging SARS-CoV-2 Variants in Human and Animal Populations
• Applications of Serologic Surveillance and Genetic Determinants of Malaria Immunity
• Investigating Tuberculosis Dynamics Using Surveillance Data and Statistical Modeling Studies in Three High Burden Settings
• The Impact and Cost-Effectiveness of Human Papillomavirus Vaccination Policies in the US Uniformed Armed Forces
• Examining Three Potential Drivers of the Increase in Legionnaires’ Disease Incidence: 1) Individual Susceptibility to Infection, 2) Environmental Influences on Infection, and 3) Population-Level Factors of Reported Incidence
• Synthesizing Epidemiological Evidence of Respiratory Syncytial Virus to Predict the Potential Effectiveness of Three RSV Prevention Strategies
• Identifying the Multilevel Factors Influencing Provider Recommendations for Adolescent Vaccines
• Repeat positive SARS-CoV-2 testing in nursing home residents and the detection and differentiation of hemozoin in human malaria species