Doctor of Science (DSc)

Doctor of Science (DSc) in Environmental Health


The doctoral program in Environmental Health, which leads to the DSc degree, gives students specialized training and research experience.  The doctoral program prepares them for roles as research scientists in environmental and occupational epidemiology, exposure assessment, risk assessment, toxicology, urban environmental health, or environmental and occupational health policy. It also prepares them for management and staff positions in organizations concerned with environmental management and regulation as well as with public policy affecting environmental or occupational health. Graduates of the doctoral program continue the department’s tradition of rigorous, innovative, and socially engaged research.


Although no formal tracks of study are defined within the doctoral program’s environmental health science and policy concentrations, most of our students have followed similar paths in the areas listed above.


All students must meet the same set of degree requirements and may draw on the course offerings of the Department of Environmental Health and other departments within the School. All doctoral candidates also participate in research rotations through which they clarify their research interests.


Doctoral students take part in a weekly seminar series that focuses on topics chosen each semester by the department’s faculty and students. Recent topics include gene–environment interaction, obesity, immunotoxicology, exposure assessment, and environmental health law.  A proseminar offers an informal setting in which students may present on their own evolving research interests or hold sessions on a range of topics intended to help them move successfully through the doctoral program.


To receive the DSc degree, candidates entering the doctoral program must complete the equivalent of 64 credits, 16 graduate-level courses, complete three research rotations, pass a qualifying exam, and complete a dissertation. Candidates who have already earned the MPH or a related master’s degree must take 8 graduate-level courses (32 credits) beyond the master’s degree and complete a dissertation; at least 16 credits of the coursework must be in environmental health.  Those not completing the requirements for the MPH degree can receive the DSc without earning a master’s degree. If the requirements for the MPH degree are completed, the degree will be awarded while the DSc is in progress. 


Dissertation


Students must complete their coursework and pass their qualifying examination prior to beginning their dissertation. Students working on their dissertations must register for continuing study, EH 980, each Fall and Spring semester until the dissertation is defended orally and accepted. Dissertation charges are set at the equivalent of 2 credits per semester plus student health insurance. Students are certified with full-time status. 


The dissertation demonstrates to the student’s thesis committee that the degree candidate has designed, performed, and reported on substantial independent research in his or her chosen field. It is an original research effort judged to meet the publication standards of peer-reviewed journals in the candidate’s field of concentration. 


Doctor of Science (DSc) in Epidemiology


The Doctor of Science in Epidemiology provides advanced training to individuals already holding a graduate degree in public health or a related health science.  To receive the DSc degree, students must complete and defend a doctoral dissertation based on original research and specific to a selected topic in epidemiology. Graduates of this program will be prepared to assume prominent positions in research, teaching, or health administration and are trained to address some of the most urgent public health issues facing us today.


Students complete at least 32 credits (8 courses) beyond the master’s degree. It is expected that most of these courses be from the epidemiology and biostatistics course offerings at the School of Public Health. Students may also choose from other courses offered at the School and pertinent graduate courses at Boston University, such as those offered by the departments of Mathematics and Computer Science and the Division of Graduate Medical Sciences.  The intent of the coursework is to provide a firm foundation in epidemiologic principles and methods, biostatistical methods, and general public health and medical knowledge.


Upon completion of coursework, students must pass a comprehensive written examination to evaluate their readiness to begin thesis research and are required to develop a written dissertation proposal outlining the nature of the research.  The proposal must be approved by each student’s advisor and thesis committee; the dissertation is prepared and written under the direction of the candidate’s principal advisor.  The research usually involves collecting, processing, and analyzing original data. When the dissertation is complete, the candidate defends his or her work before the thesis committee and other faculty.


The postbachelor’s program must be completed within 10 years of the first registration for doctoral study.  The post-master’s program must be completed within eight years of the first registration for the doctoral program.


Minimum residency requirements are the equivalent of two consecutive regular semesters of full-time graduate study at Boston University. Students who have completed their course requirements must register for EP 980 each subsequent Fall and Spring semester as continuing students and pay the continuing student fee and student health insurance until they have completed all requirements for the degree. Authorized leaves of absence, approved by the Epidemiology Doctoral Committee, are the only means of waiving the residency and registration requirements.


Students with questions regarding the doctoral program should contact  Tim Lash (tlash@bu.edu), Program Director.


Doctor of Science (DSc) in Health Services Research


The Doctor of Science in Health Services Research (DSc) degree program is designed to provide individuals with excellent research skills for use in academic, industry, or government settings. Students have the opportunity to collaborate with senior faculty in innovative research crucial to the improvement of health care delivery, treatment outcomes, and government policies. Graduates are known for their excellent methodological skills and substantive knowledge of health care settings and policies, skills that enable students to translate research findings into practical applications.


The DSc program offers students two fields of specialization:


• Health Outcomes and Quality

• Health Economics


The DSc includes at least 69 credits of coursework: 36 credits of core courses and the remainder in field courses and electives. Students who have appropriate master’s degrees, with preparation in epidemiology, biostatistics, health services, and health law, are required to complete a minimum of 36 credits of coursework in the DSc program. Students without such preparation will be required to take additional coursework in those areas.


Core DSc Courses


PM 814 Contemporary  Theoretical and Empirical Issues in Health Services


EP 712 Epidemiological Methods; or


EP 813 Intermediate Epidemiology 


BS 703 Biostatistics


PM 811 Health Services Research Methods 


PM 821 Advanced Health Services Research Methods 


PM 824 Theory and Research on Organizations 


PM 826 Health, Illness, and the Use of Health Services 


PM 842 Health Economics for Health Services Research; or


EC 501 or 


EC 701 Microeconomic  Theory 
(a one-semester first-year course required for DSc students in the Health Economics field, offered in the Boston University Economics Department on the Charles River Campus)


LW 751 Public Health Law


Required field courses for DSc students in the Health Outcomes and Quality field are:


PM 837 Evaluating Health Care Quality 


PM 855 Cost-Effectiveness Analysis and Decision Analysis


PM 830 Developing Patient-Based Health Status and Outcomes Measures


Required field courses for DSc students in the Health Economics field include:


1-credit Health Economics Research Seminar (register as PM 932)


PM 855 Cost-Effectiveness Analysis and Decision Analysis


plus two 4-credit courses from the Boston University Economics Department chosen with approval by the DSc Program Director.


Elective courses must be approved by the DSc Program Director.


Students will be expected to complete all the requirements for graduation within eight years of matriculation. DSc students are required to complete and pass an admission to candidacy exam, a field exam in the field of specialization, a qualifying paper, a doctoral dissertation, and dissertation defense.


Students who have completed the DSc coursework must register for PM 980 Continuing Study, each Fall and Spring semester until the thesis is defended and accepted. PM 980, which certifies a student as full time, carries the equivalent of a 2-credit tuition charge plus the fee for student health insurance (unless waived).


TOP OF PAGE

Published by Trustees of Boston University
One Silber Way
Boston, MA 02215

31 October 2008
Boston University
Questions
Credits