PhD-Health Behavior Research
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The PhD program in Public Health Sciences prepares professionals for research, teaching, and service with the overall objective of improving the health of populations. To meet this objective, all students in the program pursue excellence in conducting research and disseminating knowledge. The primary focus is on research that advances knowledge and facilitates discovery regarding etiology, interventions, and policies that promote health at the individual, population, societal, and/or global levels. The concentration in Health Behavior Research provides a rigorous scientific approach to the study of the psychological, social and cultural factors that impact human health and health behavior. An understanding of these factors at multiple social-ecological levels including: individual, interpersonal, organizational, community, and population, will be expected. Students will be prepared to perform basic and applied research, to teach, and to serve communities with the goals of promoting healthy lifestyles, reducing risk behaviors, and eliminating health disparities related to race ,ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or gender.
Upon completion of the PhD in Public Health Sciences degree with a concentration in Health Behavior Research, the student will have demonstrated proficiency in the following competencies:
Identify the role and impact of the psychological, behavioral, social, and cultural factors that promote population health as well as those which contribute to increase morbidity and mortality.
Effectively engage communities as partners in promoting health, reducing risk behavior, and changing social conditions that undermine public health and safety.
Develop, test, and implement interventions designed to achieve social and behavioral change.
Conduct scientifically rigorous research on the social and/or behavioral determinants of health, and ways to reduce health disparities.
The PhD program requires a minimum of 87 semester credit hours (SCH) post-baccalaureate degree and is offered on a full time, face to face format. Any graduate credits post-baccalaureate, including master’s degree courses may be applied to coursework outlined within the PhD degree plan. A student may apply up to 42 SCH of previously taken graduate level courses toward the completion of the PhD coursework (Advanced Standing). All such courses are subject to approval.
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