New Duke Masters in Population Health Science

Learn what the admissions team is looking for in applicants

Beginning fall 2019, the Department of Population Health Sciences offers a Master of Science in Population Health Sciences that provides a solid methodological and analytical foundation across broad population health sciences concepts, including basic study design, determinants of health, health disparities, implementation and evaluation, and policies and systems.

The program consists of coursework, collaborative research projects, and hands-on experience. Students take advanced classes in applied analytics methods, foundational courses in population health sciences, research methods, and study design along with four electives. Real-world experience comes from a year-long capstone project during which students complete an internship and write a master’s paper. The program requires professional development seminars on topics including leadership and professional adaptability, networking and communication techniques, having a professional presence, and US employer expectations. Broadly, we expect that students entering the MS in Population Health Sciences should have a background or strong interest in the social sciences, quantitative sciences, and health care.

The MS in Population Health Sciences is open to all individuals who demonstrate a passion for improving population health, an aptitude for learning high-level analytic research methods, and academic or professional achievements that show leadership skills, ethics, determination, resilience, and creativity.

Examples of potential applicants include recent college graduates with social science or quantitative majors, those with public health degrees looking for a more specialized or analytical degree, established professionals in healthcare or government looking to incorporate advances in health services research into their skillsets, and clinicians looking to focus on policy-relevant research to improve health and healthcare.

The Department of Population Health Sciences works where biology, human behavior, environments, society, and healthcare intersect. The inherently interdisciplinary nature of our department means that a variety of different backgrounds are relevant to our research and education missions, and we look to select students via a comprehensive approach that takes both past accomplishments and future potential into account.

We may look to see how a candidate who has strong quantitative strength can demonstrate their commitment to the interpretative, communicative, and collaborative aspects of population health science. Likewise, we may seek evidence of the capacity applicants without quantitative backgrounds have to learn quantitative concepts and skills.

The Master of Science in Population Health Sciences is a quantitatively and methodologically rigorous program; students will take courses that rely on a basic knowledge of statistics and mathematics.

We do not have any specific prerequisites, but we strongly recommend that applicants demonstrate familiarity with these topics through coursework, professional experience, or other means:

• At least one course in introductory statistics, or equivalent work experience

AND

• At least one college-level math course, calculus or higher (e.g., calculus, linear algebra)

Our faculty research spans the areas of:
· Bioethics
· Clinical Decision Sciences
· Epidemiology
· Health Behavior
· Health Economics
· Health Measurement
· Health Policy
· Health Services Research
· Dissemination and Implementation Science

The Department is hosting an open house for prospective students on Wednesday, January 23, from 5–7 pm at our downtown Durham office, 215 Morris St., Suite 210, Durham, NC. Please join us! To RSVP, please click here.

To learn more about the department and its research and education initiatives, please visit here.