phd health economics johns hopkins

Melinda Buntin, PhD

Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Health Policy and Economics

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Johns Hopkins Carey Business School

Melinda J.B. Buntin is a health economist and a Bloomberg Distinguished Professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School.

Dr. Buntin’s body of work bridges health care policy and public health by advancing understanding of the U.S. health care delivery system and its costs, with an emphasis on improving the value of care.

Dr. Buntin received her Ph.D. in health policy with a concentration in economics at Harvard University in 2000. She started her professional career at RAND Health and transitioned into several health policy leadership roles.

During the next decade, she was the Director of the Office of Economic Analysis, Evaluation and Modeling at the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology and then a Director in the Health, Retirement and Long-Term Analysis division at the Congressional Budget Office.

In 2013, she became the founding Chair of the Department of Health Policy at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. During her tenure she grew the faculty over twofold, started a Health Policy track in the MPH program, and established the Ph.D. program in Health Policy.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Buntin was named the deputy editor of JAMA Health Forum , a new online information channel published by JAMA Network. She also established the Vanderbilt Health Policy and Public Health Covid-19 Advisory Panel in Tennessee; among other activities, the group developed a predictive model of the spread of COVID-19 within the state and its implications for hospital capacity.

In July 2023, she joined the faculties of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and of the Carey Business School. Dr. Buntin is primarily based at 555 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC, where she aims to inform health care policy through the newly established Center for Health Systems and Policy Modeling .

This Center will address emerging issues in health policy with rigorous empirical work—predictive models and causal inference methods from econometric study designs—with the goal of providing insights to the health care sector, businesses, and policymakers on how to improve health care delivery and outcomes.

Related work

Melinda Buntin, PhD interviews with Health Affairs Editor-in-Chief

Melinda Buntin, PhD, has been selected to the inaugural Advisory Board for the Peterson Health Technology Institute

HBHI Welcomes Melinda Buntin as Bloomberg Distinguished Professor

Strategic Healthcare Leadership Program

Transforming the Business of Health

Get Your Brochure

Last day to enroll.

4 months, online 3–5 hours per week

PROGRAM FEE

US$4,795 and get a referral benefit

For Your Team

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Learn together with your colleagues

Participants report that enrolling in a program with colleagues fosters collaborative learning and amplifies their impact.

Please provide your details to get more information about the group-enrollment pricing.

The benefit of learning together with your friend is that you keep each other accountable and have meaningful discussions about what you're learning.

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Based on the information you provided, your team is eligible for a special discount, for Strategic Healthcare Leadership Program starting on September 5, 2024 .

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The application deadline has been extended until

The first week is an orientation module only, there is no teaching, and it is recorded. Join the online program now and don't delay the impact that the program will have on your career.

Develop leadership skills to transform an evolving healthcare industry

As a healthcare professional at the forefront of a rapidly changing industry, you must exhibit diverse capabilities across business functions. Strategic thinking, problem solving, operations management, and budgeting are just a few of the skills that aspiring healthcare leaders like you — clinical or nonclinical — need to be adept at. As an executive who puts patient care at the forefront of your decisions, you can significantly benefit from increased leadership training, enabling you to create lasting outcomes in your career in health care.

The four-month Strategic Healthcare Leadership Program from Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Executive Education is designed to equip you with the hands-on skills and knowledge required to tackle the unique challenges in healthcare today. Leverage the thought leadership of expert faculty from Johns Hopkins, and gain cutting-edge insights to successfully place yourself on the path to success.

of healthcare CEOs believe that the industry needs disruption and change.

Source: KPMG Healthcare CEO Future Pulse

of healthcare CEOs expect all aspects of care delivery models to be transformed within the next three years.

is the projected growth in employment of medical and health service managers between 2021 and 2031, which is faster than the average for all occupations.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

What you will learn.

• Build and manage diverse health care teams, and design incentives to motivate them
• Hone your leadership and strategic decision-making skills to lead in complex health care settings
• Foster a culture of resilience that promotes adaptability and mental well-being
• Understand the intricacies of healthcare operations, including supply chain management, quality control, and finance
• Explore techniques for improving equity and accessibility within health care
• Harness the transformative power of digital innovation and artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare systems

Who is it for?

This program is ideal for experienced health care professionals who are stepping into a leadership role and looking to gain the knowledge and skills necessary to successfully lead a healthcare organization in today's complex environment. It is specifically designed for:

• Functional heads in healthcare or allied sectors who are looking to expand their skills and explore growth opportunities
• New and emerging clinical and nonclinical leaders who want to supplement their domain-specific knowledge with hands-on business and leadership skills
• Executives and C-suite officers of healthcare organizations who are keen to gain an end-to-end leadership and management perspective

Program highlights

Expert faculty

Gain insights from world-class faculty with deep healthcare industry experience and expertise

Comprehensive curriculum

Benefit from a cutting-edge curriculum that combines evidence-based frameworks with an application-based approach

Hands-on learning

Put concepts into practice through hands-on learning tools, such as knowledge checks, discussions, graded assignments, and feedback from industry experts

Capstone project

A three-phase capstone project to put program learnings into practice and drive immediate on-the-job impact

Peer networking

Network with and learn from an accomplished, global peer group, and gain new perspectives on healthcare leadership

CME credits

Jointly provided by Partners for Advancing Clinical Education and Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, this program has been approved for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™ and ANCC, ACPE, AAPA, and APA credits

Self-paced recorded sessions

Learn from renowned faculty and guest speakers who provide cutting-edge perspectives on healthcare

Office hours

Weekly office hours with program leaders to help you meet your learning goals

Why Johns Hopkins Carey Business School?

Program curriculum.

Identify sources of influence for managing teams, and apply the negotiation framework to arrive at the desired result.

Module 1: Ways of Seeing: Developing the Self as a Leader

This module discusses the different lenses of viewing a situation and how leaders can broaden their perspectives to develop a more adaptable and resilient healthcare organization.

Module 2: Power and Influence

This module helps participants identify different sources of power and influence and discusses strategies to apply those sources effectively within their healthcare organizations.

Module 3: Negotiations in Health Care

This module helps participants identify the benefits of different negotiation strategies and apply the appropriate strategy to healthcare scenarios based on their strengths and circumstances.

Explore strategies and motivation tools for building diverse teams, and foster a culture of adaptability with a focus on mental well-being within the organization.

Module 4: Engaging and Retaining Talent

This module discusses various strategies for motivating team members, from crafting your jobs to using incentives in the healthcare industry.

Module 5: Inclusive Leadership in Health Care

This module discusses how leaders can overcome unconscious biases within the healthcare ecosystem and build diverse teams by fostering a culture of inclusion.

Module 6: Creating a Culture of Resilience

This module explores the key practices of resilience, including recombining resources, redistributing strain, and reframing adversity that are critical in the field of healthcare.

Understand various aspects of health care operations from identifying bottleneck processes and lean principles to budgeting and financial analysis.

Module 7: Understanding the Health Care Ecosystem

This module discusses the impact of external forces such as technology, shifting demographics, and changing regulatory policies on the delivery of quality health care.

Module 8: Operations Management: Deploying Processes and Metrics in Health Care

This module equips participants with the operational skills and knowledge required to deliver quality health care.

Module 9: Financial Analysis for Health Care Leaders

This module equips healthcare leaders to analyze financial data and make more informed decisions.

Recognize the science behind implementing new strategies in health care, and apply behavioral economic approaches to understand, predict, and influence behavior.

Module 10: Developing Strategy

This module explores using different metrics to extract meaningful insights from data and apply healthcare strategies in making informed decisions.

Module 11: Behavioral Economics: Nudges and Incentives for Changing Behavior

This module discusses how applying behavioral economic approaches can lead to improved health care experiences. 

Module 12: Converting Knowledge into Action through Implementation Science

This module dives deeply into implementation science and explores methodologies to turn research and innovative concepts into tangible improvements in health care delivery.

Analyze the implications of AI in different domains of health care, and practice techniques for improving equity and accessibility within the industry.

Module 13: Evolving Health Care Needs: Equity and Access

This module discusses the multifaceted factors contributing to disparities in health care access and efforts to mitigate them. 

Module 14: Digital Innovation and AI in Health Care

This module explores how automation and AI are reshaping the healthcare industry across multiple domains, from clinical practice to administrative operations.

Module 15: High-Reliability Organizing and Leading in Uncertain Times

This module equips participants with the knowledge and skills needed to navigate uncertainty, mitigate risks, and foster a culture of high reliability within their healthcare organizations.

Module 16: Capstone Project

Work on a three-phase capstone project by putting program learnings into practice and drive immediate on-the-job impact.

The capstone project will give you an opportunity to apply program insights to solve real-world challenges in your organization. The three-phase project begins with the identification of the power and influence strategy you will use to address the challenge, followed by ideating the incentives you will give your team to achieve the desired result. As a final phase, you will consider which AI solution you would choose to solve the problem.

Program faculty

Michelle Barton, PhD Associate Professor of Practice, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Michelle Barton’s expertise lies in organizational and team resilience, managing uncertainty, and interpersonal effectiveness during adversity.

Tinglong Dai, PhD Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Tinglong Dai is a renowned expert in health care analytics and global supply chains with research interests spanning human-AI interaction, and marketing-operations interfaces.

Stacey Lee, JD Professor of Practice, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Stacey Lee is an expert in business law, health law, and negotiations and has received numerous research grants and fellowships for her teaching innovations.

Mario Macis, PhD Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Mario Macis is an applied economist studying the role of incentives in shaping pro-social behavior and attitudes toward morally contentious exchanges.

Kathy McDonald, PhD Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, Johns Hopkins University Kathy McDonald is one of the nation’s leading experts in patient safety and explores what makes for safe, affordable, and high-quality health care delivery systems.

Lasse Mertins, PhD Professor of Practice, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Lasse Mertins has expertise in the areas of financial statement analysis, managerial accounting, and performance assessments.

Christopher G. Myers, PhD Associate Professor and Faculty Director for the Strategic Healthcare Leadership Program, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Christopher has expertise in the areas on individual learning, leadership development, and innovation, with particular attention to how people learn vicariously and share knowledge in health care organizations and other knowledge-intensive work environments.

Daniel Polsky, PhD Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, Johns Hopkins University Daniel Polsky is a leader in health economics and health care policy whose research focuses on understanding the cost and quality trade-off of health care interventions.

David Smith, PhD Associate Professor of Practice, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School David Smith’s work focuses on social psychology, inclusive leadership, and gender in the workplace.

Kalahn Taylor-Clark, PhD, MPH Executive Education Faculty Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Kalahn Taylor-Clark is a consumer and public engagement professional, with experience in creating strategic growth opportunities in diverse private and public health care organizations.

Michelle Barton, PhD Associate Professor of Practice, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School

Tinglong Dai, PhD Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School

Stacey Lee, JD Professor of Practice, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School

Mario Macis, PhD Professor, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School

Kathy McDonald, PhD Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, Johns Hopkins University

Lasse Mertins, PhD Professor of Practice, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School

Christopher G. Myers, PhD Associate Professor and Faculty Director for the Strategic Healthcare Leadership Program, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School

Daniel Polsky, PhD Bloomberg Distinguished Professor, Johns Hopkins University

David Smith, PhD Associate Professor of Practice, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School

Kalahn Taylor-Clark, PhD, MPH Executive Education Faculty Johns Hopkins Carey Business School

Certificate of completion

Upon successful completion of the program, Johns Hopkins Carey Business School grants a verified certificate of completion that showcases the learning and skills acquired during the program. The program is also eligible for Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits.

Upon successful completion of the program, your verified digital certificate will be emailed to you, at no additional cost, in the name you used when registering for the program. All certificate images are for illustrative purposes only and may be subject to change at the discretion of Johns Hopkins Carey Business School.

About the Hopkins Business of Health Initiative

How do i know if this program is right for me.

After reviewing the information on the program landing page, we recommend you submit the short form above to gain access to the program brochure, which includes more in-depth information. If you still have questions on whether this program is a good fit for you, please email [email protected], and a dedicated program advisor will follow up with you very shortly.

Are there any prerequisites for this program?

There are no prerequisites for this program.

The program is taught in English and proficiency in English is required.

What is the typical class profile?

Class profiles vary from one cohort to the next, but, generally, our online certificates draw a highly diverse audience in terms of professional experience, industry, and geography, leading to a very rich peer learning and networking experience.

On what future dates will this program be offered?

Refer to this program's web page, or email us to inquire if future program dates or the timeline for future offerings have been confirmed yet.

How much time is required each week?

You will be required to provide approximately three to five hours a week to gain maximum benefits from the program.

How will my time be spent?

We have designed this program to fit into your current working life as efficiently as possible. Time will be spent doing a variety of activities, including:

• Engaging with recorded video lectures from faculty
• Attending webinars and office hours, as per the specific program schedule
• Reading or engaging with examples of core topics
• Completing knowledge checks/quizzes and required activities
• Engaging in moderated discussion groups with your peers
• Completing your final project, if required

The program is designed to be highly interactive while also allowing time for self-reflection and to demonstrate an understanding of the core topics through various active learning exercises. Please email us if you need further clarification on program activities.

What is it like to learn online with the learning collaborator, Emeritus?

More than 300,000 learners across 200 countries have chosen to advance their skills with Emeritus and its educational learning partners. In fact, 90% of the respondents of a recent survey across all our programs said that their learning outcomes were met or exceeded. All the contents of the program would be made available to students at the commencement of the program. However, to ensure the program delivers the desired learning outcomes, the students may appoint Emeritus to manage the delivery of the program in a cohort-based manner, the cost of which is already included in the overall program fee. A dedicated program support team is available 24/5 (Monday to Friday) to answer questions about the learning platform, technical issues, or anything else that may affect your learning experience.

How do I interact with other program participants?

Peer learning adds substantially to the overall learning experience and is an important part of the program. You can connect and communicate with other participants through our learning platform.

What are the requirements to earn the certificate?

Each program includes an estimated learner effort per week, so you can gauge what will be required before you enroll. For the Strategic Healthcare Leadership Program, the participant effort would be approximately three to five hours per week. This program is scored as a pass or no-pass; participants must complete the required activities to pass and obtain the certificate of completion. For the Strategic Healthcare Leadership Program, the participant should complete the capstone project and other related activities. Please email us at [email protected]. if you need further clarification on any specific program requirements.

What type of certificate will I receive?

Upon successful completion of the program, you will receive a smart digital certificate. The smart digital certificate can be shared with friends, family, schools, or potential employers. You can use it on your cover letter, resume, and/or display it on your LinkedIn profile. The digital certificate will be sent approximately two weeks after the program, once grading is completed.

Can I get the hard copy of the certificate?

No, only verified digital certificates will be issued upon successful completion. This allows you to share your credentials on social platforms, such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

Do I receive alumni status after completing this program?

No, there is no alumni status granted for this program. In some cases, there are credits that count toward a higher level of certification. This information will be clearly noted in the program brochure.

For how long will I have access to the learning materials?

You will have access to the online learning platform and all the videos and program materials for 12 months following the program start date . Access to the learning platform is restricted to registered participants as per the terms of agreement.

What equipment or technical requirements are there for this program?

Participants will need the latest version of their preferred browser to access the learning platform. In addition, Microsoft Office and a PDF viewer are required to access documents, spreadsheets, presentations, PDF files, and transcripts.

Do I need to be online to access the program content?

Yes, the learning platform is accessed via the internet, and video content is not available for download. However, you can download files of video transcripts, assignment templates, readings, etc. For maximum flexibility, you can access program content from a desktop, laptop, tablet, or mobile device. Video lectures must be streamed via the internet, and any livestream webinars and office hours will require an internet connection. However, these sessions are always recorded, so you may view them later.

Can I still register if the registration deadline has passed?

Yes, you can register up until seven days past the published start date of the program without missing any of the core program material or learnings.

What is the program fee, and what forms of payment do you accept?

The program fee is noted at the top of this program web page and usually referenced in the program brochure as well.

• Flexible payment options are available (see details below as well as at the top of this program web page next to FEE ).
• Tuition assistance is available for participants who qualify. Please email [email protected].

What if I don’t have a credit card? Is there another method of payment accepted?

Yes, you can do the bank remittance in the program currency via wire transfer or debit card. Please contact your program advisor, or email us for details.

I was not able to use the discount code provided. Can you help?

Yes! Please email us with the details of the program you are interested in, and we will assist you.

How can I obtain an invoice for payment?

Please email us your invoicing requirements and the specific program you’re interested in enrolling in.

Is there an option to make flexible payments for this program?

Yes, the flexible payment option allows a participant to pay the program fee in installments. This option is made available on the payment page and should be selected before submitting the payment.

How can I obtain a W9 form?

Please connect with us via email for assistance.

Who will be collecting the payment for the program?

Emeritus collects all program payments, provides learner enrollment and program support, and manages learning platform services.

Are there any restrictions on the types of funding that can be used to pay for the program?

Program fees for Emeritus programs with Johns Hopkins Carey Business School may not be paid for with (a) funds from the GI Bill, the Post-9/11 Educational Assistance Act of 2008, or similar types of military education funding benefits or (b) Title IV financial aid funds.

What is the program refund and deferral policy?

For the program refund and deferral policy, please click the link here .

Didn't find what you were looking for? Write to us at [email protected] , schedule a call with one of our Program Advisors, or call us at +1 410 888 0655 (US), +44 20 3835 5527 (UK), +65 3138 3003 (SG).

Early registrations are encouraged. Seats fill up quickly!

Flexible payment options available. Learn more.

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A Johns Hopkins postdoc, Herbert Baxter Adams, brought the seminar method of teaching from Germany, where he earned a PhD in 1876. The idea: That students would learn more by doing than by listening to lectures and taking exams.

That spirit of inquiry , of challenging the way things are done, lives on today in our nine academic divisions, all of which offer full-time graduate programs.

More information about our graduate programs is available below

School of Advanced International Studies

Students get global perspectives on today’s critical issues, with programs in international affairs , international studies , economics and finance , and public policy

Krieger School of Arts & Sciences

More than 60 full-time and part-time graduate programs spanning the arts , humanities , and natural and social sciences

Also see:   Part-time graduate options via Advanced Academic Programs

Carey Business School

The Carey Business School’s AACSB-accredited business programs provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful leaders and lifelong learners .

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One of the nation’s top schools of education, according to U.S. News & World Report , with degree and certificate programs in teaching , special education , counseling , administration , and leadership

Whiting School of Engineering

Programs in fields of critical importance to the future, health, and safety of our world, including robotics , biomedical engineering , cybersecurity , and systems engineering

Also see: Part-time and online options via Engineering for Professionals

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Since 1893, Johns Hopkins Medicine has trained the next generation of great medical leaders and is widely regarded as one of the best med schools and hospitals in the world, with top programs in internal medicine , women’s health , HIV/AIDS , geriatrics , drug/alcohol abuse , and pediatrics

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The U.S. News & World Report top-ranked school prepares graduate level pre-licensure students and current BSN or advanced practice nurses to be health care leaders through a variety of MSN, DNP, and PhD programs. Students can focus on a wide range of advanced practice specialty areas – including health care organizational leadership , nurse anesthesiology , pediatric , adult/Gerontological , family , or critical care .

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Founded in 1857, this world-renowned conservatory offers degrees in composition , computer music , conducting , performance , jazz , music education , music theory , and recording arts and sciences

Bloomberg School of Public Health

The Bloomberg School, U.S. News & World Report ‘s top-ranked graduate school of public health for more than two decades, offers programs in health administration , health science , and public policy

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Dr. amankwah returns.

Ernest Amankwah, Ph.D., Joins Johns Hopkins All Children's as Associate Director for Quantitative and Population Health Sciences in the Institute for Clinical and Translational Research and Co-Director of Data Coordinating Center for Pediatric Multicenter Studies

Ernest Amankwah, Ph.D., has joined Johns Hopkins All Children’s as the Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (ICTR’s) associate director for Quantitative and Population Health Sciences, co-director of its Data Coordinating Center (DCC) for Pediatric Multicenter Studies , and director of the Epidemiology and Biostatistics Unit in the Johns Hopkins All Children’s Clinical and Translational Research Organization. He is also an associate professor of Oncology, Division of Quantitative Sciences, in the Johns Hopkins University of School of Medicine.

Amankwah, who previously served in the role of associate director for the National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute of Southeast Wisconsin at the Medical College of Wisconsin, will focus his efforts on strategic growth of investigator-initiated clinical research, including multicenter study design and analytic leadership and mentorship in these areas of his expertise, on the Johns Hopkins All Children’s campus in St. Petersburg, Florida. His work will also leverage partnerships with faculty on the main campus in Baltimore, including via the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the NIH-funded Johns Hopkins Medicine ICTR. He will continue his personal line of research in cancer genetic/epigenetics and national leadership in cooperative multicenter studies of pediatric thromboembolism, including as co-director of the DCC for the Rotterdam-based International Pediatric Thrombosis Network (IPTN) and the University of California San Diego-based Children’s Healthcare Advancements in Thrombosis (CHAT) Consortium.

Neil Goldenberg, M.D., Ph.D. , associate dean for research on the Johns Hopkins All Children’s campus, ICTR director, Perry Family endowed professor for Clinical and Translational Research and professor of pediatrics and medicine in the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, says, “We are incredibly fortunate to have recruited Dr. Amankwah back to Johns Hopkins. He is a highly-sought expert and collaborator in pediatric clinical trial design, implementation, oversight, analysis and reporting, and is among the most published Epidemiologists/Biostatisticians in his area of pediatric subspecialty focus. Most importantly, he is a cherished colleague, humbly brilliant, with indefatigable passion for teaching and mentorship.”

Goldenberg adds, “Dr. Amankwah’s trajectory includes a decade of critical contributions to Johns Hopkins All Children’s evolution into a leading pediatric academic health system, as a key member of a then-small group of research leaders focused on innovation in research education, training, and collaboration. His passion and expertise were invaluable toward developing research infrastructure and expertise on the Johns Hopkins All Children’s campus that not only met the needs of its research community, but also filled a niche for unmet needs of a pan-institutional child health research community—as exemplified by the role being served today by our DCC for Pediatric Multicenter Studies, on behalf of research networks that lack this infrastructure, expertise, and/or the federal support to sustain it. With the impact that Dr. Amankwah will have over the next 10 years, the future is very bright for Johns Hopkins All Children’s and the field of child health research.” 

Amankwah obtained his Ph.D. degree in Epidemiology from the University of Calgary and gained practical experience as an epidemiologist for Health Canada in 2006-2008, before completing a post-doctoral fellowship with Alberta Health Services. He moved to the United States in 2011 to work as a Research Scientist for Moffitt Cancer Center. In 2013, he was recruited to join Johns Hopkins All Children’s as its inaugural director of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. After a decade of shaping the research ecosystem at Johns Hopkins All Children’s and amassing an impressive legacy of mentees and impactful original research publications, Amankwah took the opportunity to serve as associate director of the NIH-funded Clinical and Translational Science Institute of Southeast Wisconsin at the Medical College of Wisconsin, spanning both pediatric and adult health science research. Remarking on his decision to return to the Johns Hopkins All Children’s Institute for Clinical and Translational Research to serve as its inaugural associate director for Quantitative and Population Health Sciences (a campus-wide leadership role), Amankwah emphasizes, “The warm and enthusiastic welcome have been truly heartening. I am thrilled to reconnect with wonderful colleagues and meet new members of the Hopkins family. My 10 years’ experience here was rewarding, and I am excited to build on that foundation and contribute to the continued success of the research mission and vision of Johns Hopkins. It is an awesome feeling to be back.” 

International Health, PhD

Bloomberg school of public health, doctor of philosophy (phd).

The STEM-designated  PhD program prepares students to become independent investigators in academic and non-academic research institutions and emphasizes contributions to theory and basic science.

Students interested in a doctoral research degree must apply to one of the Department's four concentrations. 

Program Concentrations

Global disease epidemiology and control, requirements for admission.

Applicants to the program must have a degree in medicine, veterinary medicine, or dentistry, or a master's level degree or equivalent graduate training in epidemiology, statistics, international health, tropical medicine, microbiology, parasitology, immunology, or virology. Prior work experience is preferable. GRE scores are required.

Overall Program Goal

This program provides training for public health researchers who will use epidemiologic, immunologic and/or laboratory and statistical methods to design, implement, and/or evaluate disease control interventions for diseases of public health importance to under-served populations. Graduates will have a fundamental understanding of the pathogenesis, epidemiology, and control measures applicable to diseases of public health importance in disadvantaged populations throughout the world. Interventions to be studied will be primarily biomedical (e.g. therapeutic or prophylactic drugs, vaccines or environmental modifications), although there may be a behavioral component to effective implementation of such interventions.

Special strengths of the program are infectious disease epidemiology and vaccinology. Students can acquire a broad understanding of the methods needed to design studies and gain hands-on experience in the design, conduct an analysis of community and clinical trials and/or laboratory-based investigations, including the immunologic and biologic basis of responses to immunizations and other prophylactic or therapeutic interventions.

General Knowledge

Learning Objectives

• Describe the evolution of key approaches that have been applied in an attempt to address the major public health problems of underserved populations and to place these approaches in the context of general development, culture and health policies.
• Define the most important indicators of health status of underserved populations, identify databases and other sources of information for these indicators, and describe how changes in these indicators reflect changes in the health status of populations.
• Describe the epidemiology, biology, pathophysiology, modes of transmission, and strategies for prevention and control of the major infectious diseases of public health importance to resource-poor environments. Be able to argue for the appropriateness of specific strategies for prevention and control in selected circumstances. 

Research Skills

• Review and critique the relevant literature on a topic of interest.
• Place a research question in the context of current knowledge.
• Frame a research question in terms of study goals and specific aims. 
• Design a research study to address specific aims. Be able to differentiate between study designs and argue in favor of using a specified design as most appropriate to address that research question
• Develop and write a research proposal 
• Develop and justify a budget for a research proposal.
• Discuss the ethical issues involved in research in resource-poor environments and argue for a particular approach to addressing these ethical issues.
• Prepare an application to an IRB for ethical approval.
• Implement and manage a research study, monitor the progress of the study and the quality of data collected.
• Produce an appropriate statistical analysis of the data collected during the research project, and provide a reasoned interpretation of these results.
• Place the research findings in the context of current knowledge, identify limitations of the research, and be able to specify further areas for research.
• Analyze the policy implications and public health significance of the research findings.

Communications

• Make oral and poster presentations of research findings for professional audiences.
• Write manuscripts of publishable quality for the peer-reviewed literature that describe and explain research findings.
• Teach other students basic introductory materials in the student’s general area of expertise.

Advising Faculty 

Professorial level faculty are eligible to advise doctoral students. Please visit the Global Disease Epidemiology and Control Faculty webpage for a list of current advising faculty.  

Health Systems

Applicants must have a prior Master's degree in biological, health sciences, or alternatively in management or social sciences. Prior international or health systems experience is a significant advantage. GRE scores are required.

Educational Objectives

The overall goal of the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in the Health Systems Program is to produce the next generation of leaders in health systems research and practice, particularly in low- and middle-income country settings. Graduates of the PhD program in Health Systems should have the competencies to play leadership roles in: (a) health policy; (b) health planning, financing, and management; (c) monitoring and evaluation; (d) institution building and community development; (e) public health teaching; and (f) research on health systems, in low and middle-income countries or with disadvantaged populations in any part of the world. 

Overall Program Goal 

There are four overarching academic competencies applicable to each area of study that students are expected to master during the course of their doctoral program. Students should be able to: 

• Apply public health sciences to address health problems in vulnerable populations
• Provide leadership in health systems management and analysis
• Conduct independent research on health systems in low- and middle-income countries and vulnerable populations
• Communicate effectively with researchers, policymakers, and key stakeholders in health systems

Advising Faculty

Professorial level faculty are eligible to advise doctoral students. Please visit the Health Systems Faculty webpage for a list of current advising faculty.

Human Nutrition

The program seeks to attract and train future experts and leaders in public health nutrition across a range of professional interests and backgrounds. Entry into the doctorate in philosophy (PhD) program in Human Nutrition requires, at a minimum, a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent, preferably in nutritional, biological, food health or social sciences, public health practice, food security, economics or health policy with a minimum of one year of post-baccalaureate experience which can take the form of a master’s degree, a dietetic internship, medical training or other relevant work experience. GRE scores are required.

The doctoral program in Human Nutrition is designed to train professionals to identify, understand and solve, through scientific methods, problems of public health importance in human nutrition. Graduates are expected to assume leadership roles in academia, government, industry and other private-sector enterprises. They will be expected to advance knowledge in human nutrition through research and advocate the application of such knowledge through public health policies and programs.

There are five overarching academic competencies, applicable to each area of study, that students are expected to master during the course of their doctoral program. Students should:

• Understand the biochemical, molecular, epidemiological, social and behavioral fundamentals of human nutrition
• Comprehend the complex interrelationships between food-and-nutrition and health-and-disease in diverse populations
• Master quantitative and qualitative analytic skills required to understand, critically evaluate and conduct nutrition research
• Be able to integrate ethical principles and standards in the conduct of human research
• Develop the professional skills necessary to communicate effectively 

Students in the doctoral program in Human Nutrition are expected to gain knowledge and master skills in the following broad content areas of the curriculum, each with sub-areas of specialization:

Nutrition and Health

Sub-areas: Nutrition over the life span, social, cultural and behavioral influences, food and nutrition policy.

This content area of the curriculum has core competencies that can be addressed in a flexible manner, and in consultation with a student’s academic adviser.

Learning Objectives – Know and understand:

• Nutritional processes in each stage of life
• Age-, disease- and physiologic state-specific nutrient requirements
• Social, political and cultural contexts influencing nutritional status of individuals and populations 
• Pathological processes and how they influence nutritional well-being and vice versa
• Development and application of evidence-based food and nutrition policies

Biochemistry and Metabolism

Sub-areas: Nutrient metabolism

Minimum requirements in the area of metabolism would provide candidates with the biochemical and metabolic fundamentals of nutritional science. 

• Biochemical and metabolic pathways of macronutrients and micronutrients
• Relationship between cell structure and metabolism and nutrient functions
• Genetic basis of nutritional interactions and requirements

Research Methodology

Sub-Areas: Biostatistics, Epidemiology, Nutritional Assessment, Nutritional Epidemiology, Research Proposal Development, Qualitative Research Methods

Minimum required competencies in research methodology provide candidates with quantitative and qualitative knowledge and skills for understanding and conducting research in human nutrition. 

Learning Objectives – Know and understand concepts and terms:

• Compose research questions
• Link nutrition research questions to appropriate study design, methods, analysis, interpretation, and writing
• Be familiar with underlying principles, methods of collection, analysis and interpretation of quantitative and qualitative data
• Demonstrate ability to analyze a nutrition-related (e.g., dietary or nutritional status) data set
• Understand the use of nutrition reference data
• Demonstrate competence in one primary statistical software and data management package
• Understand the principles and use of nutrition-related laboratory techniques, equipment and field assessment methods 

Professional Skills

Sub-areas: Grant writing, scholarly publishing, teaching and public speaking, ethics, information technology

The goal of the professional skills core curriculum is to provide the student with exposure to or experiences in important skills necessary to work effectively as a professional at the doctoral level. Development of these competencies occurs through the academic process of the degree rather than through didactic coursework per se.

To support students in transitioning from coursework to thesis research, Dr. Caulfield leads the Doctoral Seminar in Proposal Development. Through the sequence, HN doctoral students (or those in other programs with research interests in nutrition) are engaged in career planning, identifying opportunities at Johns Hopkins, speaking and communicating their research ideas, persuasive written communication to various audiences, seeking research funding, and grant writing and budgeting. By the end of the sequence (2nd quarter of year 2), students are expected to have a solid draft of their research proposal and are planning for completion of the proposal and their oral exams. To support this process, and to reflect the academic work involved, students also sign up for varying credits of special studies with their adviser.

We encourage students to write and publish peer-reviewed scientific papers in addition to their thesis throughout their doctoral program. Dr. Gittelsohn offers a 2-quarter special studies course designed to assist students in writing their first research article for publication, or students may sign up for special studies with their adviser.

Professorial level faculty are eligible to advise doctoral students. Please visit the Human Nutrition Faculty webpage for a list of current advising faculty.

Social and Behavioral Interventions

Entrants into the program must have professional experience and a master’s degree in the health or social sciences. GRE scores are required.

The program exposes students to applied social science and health education/communication theory and methods for health-related research, program implementation, and evaluation. Coursework emphasizes theoretical and methodological approaches within applied medical anthropology and social determinants of health, qualitative and quantitative methods, competency within a specific cultural/geographic area, and principles and methods for community-based intervention research.

Professorial level faculty are eligible to advise doctoral students. Please visit the Social and Behavioral Interventions Faculty webpage for a list of current advising faculty.

Program-Specific Requirements and Courses

Course location and modality is found on the BSPH website .

Global Disease Epidemiology and Control 

Global disease epidemiology and control course requirements .

All required courses must be taken for a letter grade with the exception of courses only offered for pass/fail. For additional information regarding policies and requirements, please  view our departmental Academic Guide  published August of each academic year. 

Updates regarding course availability can be found on the BSPH Course Directory System.    

Although students take several biostatistics and epidemiology courses in this program, 340.694.81 Power and Sample Size for the Design of Epidemiological Studies is a highly recommended course online in 3rd term that is helpful in preparing for the comprehensive examinations and in preparing proposals.

Students are encouraged to take advantage of offerings in other schools of the University. The Institute of the History of Medicine in the School of Medicine is a unique resource; the courses most relevant to GDEC students are History of International Health and Development and History of Health and Development in Africa. (http://www.hopkinshistoryofmedicine.org/content/course-descriptions)

Health Systems Course Requirements

All required courses must be taken for a letter grade with the exception of courses only offered pass/fail. Any application to waive courses must be made in writing (with approval from the adviser) to the coordinator at least 1 term prior to the start of the course. Even if waivers are granted, students are responsible for course content on comprehensive exams.  For additional information regarding policies and requirements, please  view our departmental Academic Guide  published August of each academic year.  

Updates regarding course availability can be found on the BSPH Course Directory System.

Although students take several biostatistics and epidemiology courses in this program, 340.694.81 Power and Sample Size for the Design of Epidemiological Studies is a highly recommended course online course in 3rd term that is helpful in preparing for the comprehensive examinations and in preparing proposals.

The Health Systems Program also offers a Health Economics “specialization” which tracks with school wide standards set out by the interdepartmental PhD Program in Health Economics. For further information on these courses, see the Health Systems Program Coordinators. 

Human Nutrition 

Requirements .

Students are expected to take 6 quarters and at least 96 credits of coursework to satisfy the educational requirements for the Human Nutrition program, pass a written and an oral comprehensive exam, a final oral defense and successfully complete a thesis research project.

At least two thirds of course credits that are required are associated with the core content areas common to all doctoral students (about 64 credits). The exact number of required core course credits taken by a student will vary depending on specific choices made by the student in conjunction with their adviser. To complete the remainder of their coursework requirements, students will choose elective courses and special studies. Thus, about 25-35 credits will be completed through electives chosen by the student in conjunction with their adviser, depending on their unique career goals and research interests.

The goals of the doctoral program form the basis for the four core content areas of the educational program: Metabolism, Research Methods, Nutrition and Health, and Professional Skills. Students are required to take specific courses in each of these four content areas in order to develop the competencies expected of all doctoral-level nutrition professionals. Within each content area are various sub-areas that more clearly define the content area and provide the basis for identifying minimum competencies for all doctoral candidates. Agreement about these competencies, in turn, led to the development of the core curriculum requirements.

Human Nutrition Course Requirements

All required courses must be taken for a letter grade with the exception of courses only offered for pass/fail. For additional information regarding policies and requirements, please  view our departmental Academic Guide  published August of each academic year.  

Updates regarding course availability can be found on the BSPH Course Directory System. 

Although students take several biostatistics and epidemiology courses in this program, 340.694.81 Power and Sample Size for the Design of Epidemiological Studies is a highly recommended online course in 3rd term that is helpful in preparing for the comprehensive examinations and in preparing proposals.

Social and Behavioral Interventions

Requirements and courses.

During the 1st and 2nd term of each academic year, each doctoral student should develop a course plan. This can be done through discussions with the adviser and through the individualized Goals Analysis that will be part of the Special Studies requirement for Educational Program Development. This should be reviewed and discussed with the student’s adviser. If changes are needed the student is requested to discuss and get approval from their adviser. 

If students have particular interests that cannot be met through existing course offerings, requirements for these topic areas can be met through special studies courses after students have requested permission to substitute course requirements using the Course Waiver Form. Such courses, when carefully developed, are an excellent way for doctoral students to gain requisite knowledge and skills, and they give students the opportunity to work closely with faculty and pursue specific intellectual interests. These courses need to first be negotiated with sponsoring faculty and agreed upon by the academic advisers. Once substitutions are approved the Course Waiver Form should be completed and submitted with the student’s tracking sheet via CoursePlus. Students are given access to the tracking course at the beginning of each year by the Academic Program Administrator. Students may take courses at any of the Schools within the Johns Hopkins University system. A full listing of University courses can be accessed here .

SBI CURRICULUM 

Unless otherwise specified all required courses must be taken for a letter grade with the exception of courses only offered for pass/fail. For additional information regarding policies and requirements, please  view our departmental Academic Guide  published August of each academic year.  

A. General Requirements

This area of requirements is designed to give students broad knowledge of global public health issues and grounding in epidemiology, disease prevention, and statistics.

B. SBI Program Course Requirement 

These nine courses provide students with the theoretical and methodological base necessary to be a competent and educated social scientists working on global health issues in the social sciences.

Doctoral students who were Master’s students in SBI and have already taken PhD required courses can apply for a waiver for SBI program core requirements. If students have taken more than three years off between degrees, they will still have to earn at least 64 credits during the PhD program. For students who have taken a similar course at other schools, waivers will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis (upon submission of the relevant syllabus and, in some cases, an exam on the content area). 

Although the SBI program seminar in the 2nd and 3rd terms (224.861 and 224.862) is not required for PhD students, they are encouraged to register or informally attend sessions as a way to connect to the rest of the SBI cohort or to get information relevant to specific doctoral interests.

C. School-wide Doctoral Requirements

The following three courses are required of all doctoral students in the School. They provide an overview of the appropriate role of research in the public health endeavor and how to conduct research ethically with integrity.

For each of the following topic areas, students may propose any university course (including special studies) that meets the learning objectives associated with each topic area. After most topic areas is a list of pre-approved courses. 

D. Research Design and Methods (7 credits)

The learning objectives for this area are to: (a) understand the fundamentals of designing research studies, (b) expand the student’s knowledge and facility with a core research methodology, such as social network analysis, or survey research, and (c) gain a working knowledge of how to appropriately evaluate a social or behavioral intervention. 

Although students take several biostatistics and epidemiology courses in this program, PH.340.694 Power and Sample Size for the Design of Epidemiological Studies I  is a highly recommended online course in 3rd term that is helpful in preparing for the comprehensive examinations and in preparing proposals.

E. Social and Behavioral Sciences (9-12 credits)

This area covers a broad range of issues and topics and is meant to provide a core foundation in the social and behavioral sciences. The learning objectives for this area are to: (a) understand the major social determinants of health, (b) gain an understanding of multi-level influences on health behaviors, including social, policy, familial, dyadic, and environmental forces that affect health behavior, (c) gain broad knowledge of the major theories of behavior change, (d) understand the theoretical basis and components of major types of behavioral health interventions, such as health education and communication, social marketing, and structural and policy-based interventions, (e) gain a comprehensive understanding of the association between health behavior and health outcomes, and (f) understand how community-based behavioral health initiatives are designed and implemented. This list is not comprehensive. Other courses in social and behavioral sciences offered in the School of Public Health, the School of Arts and Sciences, or elsewhere in the university can be substituted with permission of the PhD Program Coordinator.

F. History, Geography, Culture, and Linguistics (6 credits)

The main learning objective associated with this topic area is to prepare students for dissertation fieldwork with regard to knowledge of the history, geography, culture, and language specific to the population they plan to study. Given that there is no required set of courses for this topic area, students and their advisers should include in their course plan which of the two options below the student will pursue:

Option 1 includes a combination of direct study courses across the University that is relevant to the student’s fieldwork area, including language study. Students who are unable to obtain a field practicum prior to their dissertation fieldwork may benefit from this option. A minimum sum of 6 units is required.

Option 2 requires enrollment in a special studies course plan (minimum of 6 credits; student enrolls in credit requirement all at one time) with the student’s adviser. The special studies should integrate a pre-approved reading list and attendance or participation in at least three cultural, ethnographic, historical, or political activities related to the country or field site for the student’s dissertation. Examples of such activities include but are not limited to: review of a related film or documentary, informational meeting with community or health systems representative, seminar attendance, cultural fest attendance/participation, etc. As part of this requirement, students prepare a short paper or essay summarizing their experience and/or findings in the context of their proposed fieldwork or study proposal.

The overall goal in providing these two options is to enable students to fulfill this requirement within the contexts of their dissertation fieldwork, intellectual needs, and/or course availability. For example, enhancing language skills may be appropriate for some students, but not others. Students should also use this area to become familiar with ethnographic, sociological, historical and economic literature in the area – as well as become familiar with regional medical systems and literature on ethnomedical beliefs and practices. 

G. Public Health Problem Area (6 credits)

The learning objective for this topic area is to acquire detailed knowledge of the public health problem area that the student plans to examine in their dissertation research (e.g., HIV/AIDS, violence, family planning, malaria, mental health, adolescent health, maternal/child health, water and sanitation, nutrition). The student should consider the following aspects of the health issue of interest: (a) epidemiology (b) regional and global variations (c) biologic aspects and medical treatment, (d) social and behavioral interventions addressing the health issue, (e) policy issues relevant to the health issues, and (f) social aspects such as stigma and discrimination associated with the health issue or its interventions.

General PhD Requirements

Residency & outside department course requirements.

The total number of course credits to be earned depends upon individual program requirements. But, to meet the Residency requirement, students must complete a minimum of 64 credits of didactic courses in four consecutive terms. When general and program-specific requirements total less than 64, the difference may be made up in electives. Thesis Research (820 series) may not be included in the count, but special studies earning credit that are part of a program’s requirements only (840 series) are admissible.

The School also requires that 18 credits must be satisfactorily completed in formal courses outside of the IH Department. Among those 18 credits, no fewer than three courses must be satisfactorily completed in one or more departments of the School of Public Health. The remaining outside credits may be earned in any department or division of the University.

Teaching Experience Requirement 

For the most up-to-date policy on teaching assistants, please view our Academic Guide . 

Departmental Written Comprehensive Examination

The written comprehensive exam is offered annually soon after the end of the second or fourth term, depending on the program, and is two days in length. Although most of the material is covered in specific courses, it must be understood that graduate education involves much more than the accumulation of specific course credits. Thus, students are responsible for the material, regardless of the particular curriculum followed. Students in the GDEC and Health Systems programs will take the comprehensive exam at the end of their first year. Students in the SBI and Human Nutrition programs will take the exams in January of their second year. The dates of the exam are announced in the fall.

A minimum overall grade of 75% is required. Those scoring below this level must retake the entire examination at a specially arranged offering 6 months later. Only one reexamination is permitted. Students failing twice are terminated from the doctoral program. MSPH students who pass the PhD examination must enter the PhD program within 3 years of graduation or retake the exam and pass it again.

Students should plan to take the exam when coursework is essentially completed since questions will cover both required courses and those representing the elected field of specialization and research. Because of the infrequent offering, however, students may have to take the exam before the final completion of coursework. While the exam may be taken whenever the student and adviser feel prepared, the timing does not affect the breadth and depth of coverage of course material. Not taking the exam with the rest of the cohort will delay a student’s timeline to completion and will likely lengthen their time to completion for the program.

Students must  NOT  pass along exam questions to future generations of students,  NOT  post questions and/or answers online,  NOT  seek, solicit, accept, or consult content from prior comprehensive exams, and  NOT  share or publicize any content from the comprehensive exam in any form with anyone at any time.

Students who require exam accommodations must get the accommodations approved by  Disability Support Services at the Bloomberg School of Public Health .

Thesis Advisory Committee (TAC) 

In order to undertake research leading to a thesis, the student must prepare a research protocol acceptable to a Thesis Advisory Committee (TAC). The objective of the TAC is to provide continuity in the evaluation of the progress and development of the student’s thesis work. The TAC is expected to: counsel the student in protocol preparation; determine the protocol’s acceptability as a basis for actually carrying out the research; and provide guidance during the conduct of the research and the writing of the thesis.

The TAC should be formed as soon as the student has selected a tentative research topic. This will normally be by the time that coursework has been completed and the Departmental Written Comprehensive Examination has been taken and no later than when the student takes their Preliminary Oral Exam. The student and their adviser decide on the composition of this committee. The Committee will have at least 3 members: the adviser, a second faculty member with advising privileges in the student's department, and at least one faculty member(s) from another program or department. We encourage students to consider adding a fourth and even a fifth member if they provide needed expertise to advise the student appropriately on their thesis topic. Students should have no more than five members total. TAC members from outside of JHU can be approved (for example, a project PI) after consultation with the student’s adviser about the composition of the student’s TAC. For such requests to be approved a student must have three members of their TAC within JHU, of whom one is their adviser, and their 4th member can be from outside of JHU. At least two of the TAC members must be tenure-track faculty eligible to serve on School examining committees. The proposed members must be approved by the adviser and the relevant PhD Concentration Director. Students will complete the Thesis Research Documentation Form (PDF) and upload it to their Portfolio once they have selected a TAC and no later than at the time of their Preliminary Oral Exam.

The TAC (3-5 members), the departmental oral examination committee (4 members), the Schoolwide Preliminary Oral Examination Committee (POE) (5 members), and the Committee of Final Readers (CFR) (4 members) are four separate entities. Although it is desirable to provide for overlapping membership, the adviser is the only individual who must be a member of all four committees.

The first meeting of the TAC should occur when the student is developing their thesis proposal. A written progress report should be submitted to the TAC by the student at the time of the meeting and then should be uploaded to the student’s Portfolio. This progress report, and all subsequent progress reports, should follow the format described in the following section. Following the meeting, the adviser will discuss this evaluation with the student and will then approve the report in the student’s Portfolio as part of the student’s academic file.

It is a requirement that the student meet at least every 6 months (either in-person or via phone/Zoom) with the entire TAC during the thesis phase of the program. Students will submit written progress reports, which will be read and evaluated by the TAC. It is the responsibility of the Department to provide administrative oversight of the TAC to ensure that the student meets and submits reports. Although a once yearly meeting and report is required by the school, the DIH department requires students meet with the TAC more frequently, ideally every 6 months during the conduct of their thesis research, and to prepare a progress report with any questions for the TAC for each meeting. Students who are working outside of the country or at distant sites within the country are not required to return in person for annual TAC meetings, although in-person participation is desirable.

Non-Thesis Related Research Experience

All PhD students must complete a research experience in addition to their doctoral thesis work. This is typically conducted with the student’s adviser or other faculty member prior to beginning doctoral thesis work. This can take a variety of forms including participating in the development and planning of a new research project, development of data collection instruments for a research project, conducting analysis of existing data, or completing an entire, small research project on a topic other than the thesis topic. It is also possible to fulfill this requirement through an internship or practicum with a foundation, nongovernmental organization, or government or private industry entity, provided it includes a significant research training component. The PhD is a research degree and obtaining a variety of practical training in research is an integral part of the learning process. Once this experience is completed, please fill out the Non-Thesis Related Research PDF Form found in the Portfolio library and upload it to the indicated Portfolio touchpoint.

Thesis Proposal Approval

Regardless of the mode and timing of the general presentation of the proposal, the TAC members will provide continuing guidance in its development. After the student has passed the University Preliminary Oral Exam and before the student begins fieldwork on the dissertation, the TAC should be satisfied that the proposal is of acceptable quality to be implemented, at which point the student must obtain the TAC members’ signatures on the Thesis Proposal Approval Form found in the Portfolio library and should be uploaded to the student’s Portfolio touchpoint. After approving the thesis proposal, the TAC is expected to continue offering suggestions for further improvement, especially in light of unexpected difficulties encountered in the field.

Realistically, it is not always possible for the student to carry out in the field the specific study designed and presented at the preliminary oral exam. In such cases when the topic of the study changes entirely or if the proposed research undergoes substantial changes, the student must submit a new thesis proposal to the TAC. The TAC approves the proposal and the student will then submit a new Thesis Proposal Approval Form to their Portfolio. If the student’s TAC changes, the student will need to submit a new Thesis Research Documentation Form and a new Thesis Proposal Approval Form. 

ORAL EXAMS AND DEFENSE 

Departmental oral exam.

The purpose of the departmental oral examination is to determine whether the student is adequately prepared to conduct research. Because the department requires the student to have a proposal for their research in hand and to provide this proposal to the examining committee in advance of the examination, the student may receive constructive criticism of the proposal as part of feedback associated with the examination. 

Specific procedures for the examination are as follows: 

• The student, in consultation with their adviser, identifies at least four IH faculty (two faculty must be at least at the level of Associate Professor or Professor to serve as the chair and sub-chair for the exam of which the adviser cannot serve either role) of the committee. At least two faculty must have primary appointments in the International Health Department, of whom one can be the student’s adviser. The other two faculty must at least have a joint appointment with IH. One member with a primary appointment in IH must be from the student’s program area. One faculty member should be identified as an alternate and cannot count as one of the two required faculty with a primary appointment in IH. Two scientist track faculty are able to sit in the departmental exam committee at the same time. If the student’s adviser does not have a primary appointment with IH then at least two other faculty on the committee, excluding the alternate, must have a primary appointment with IH.
• Copies of a research proposal are to be circulated to all participating faculty at least 2 weeks in advance of the exam. 
• Departmental Oral Exam must be taken  at least 30 days  before the Schoolwide Preliminary Oral Exam. When planning this, students should first meet with Elisabeth Simmons, the Academic Program Administrator, to discuss requirements for both exams and timing.
• The most senior faculty member other than the adviser will act as Chair of the examining committee. The Chair is responsible for maintaining an atmosphere of constructive criticism, ensuring that each faculty member has adequate opportunity to question the student, and limiting the total duration of the exam to a maximum of two hours.
• The oral exam will produce one of three results: (1) Unconditional Pass; proceed with the Schoolwide Preliminary Oral as scheduled; (2) Conditional Pass; before proceeding as scheduled, the student should strengthen their competence in certain identified areas of weakness; or (3) Failure. 

Only one reexamination is permitted. Anyone failing the departmental oral examination twice will be terminated from the doctoral program. Students must formally schedule their Departmental Oral Exam with Elisabeth Simmons at least 2 weeks in advance.

Schoolwide Preliminary Oral Exam

The Schoolwide Preliminary Oral Examination must be taken no later than the end of the student’s second year in the PhD program. Students must have completed their ethics requirement before taking the Schoolwide Preliminary Oral Exam. Students should keep in prior to taking this exam they should have passed the Departmental Oral Examination. 

All members of the examining committee represent the department of their primary appointment except the student’s adviser who would represent IH if they have a joint appointment. The committee of five members includes the student's Thesis adviser, one other IH faculty member, and three members from at least two other departments in the University, of whom one must be from JHSPH. The most senior faculty member from outside the student’s department will serve as the chair and must hold the rank of full or Associate Professor. One adjunct faculty, one scientist track faculty, or one visiting professor may serve on the committee but may not serve as the chair or adviser. Exceptions to this only apply if a student had an adviser assigned to them prior to having their rank changed in which case they can continue to advise the student and can serve on the committee. Two alternates should be identified. One alternate is an IH faculty while the other is from outside the student’s department. Students should be aware that an alternate who may need to serve in place of the committee chair must be of the rank of Associate or full Professor and be from outside the Department of International Health.

The examination’s purpose is to determine whether the student is sufficiently knowledgeable of the general field of public health and is capable of undertaking independent research in a specialized area of interest. The question period of about two hours considers the student's coursework as well as the feasibility and logical consistency of any research proposal. The examination is not meant to be a proposal defense; rather, a research proposal permits the student to be questioned on areas of expertise and public health problems with which the student is familiar. 

Three results of the examination are possible: (1) unconditional pass; (2) conditional pass; and (3) failure with the possibility for one reexamination. When the second or third outcomes occur, the examining committee is expected to set time limits for the satisfaction of conditions or the reexamination. In case the examining committee fails to set time limits, they will be established by the IH Curriculum and Credentials Committee. In no case may the time allowed exceed one year. Only one reexamination is permitted. Students failing the University Preliminary Oral Examination twice will be terminated from the doctoral program. 

For both the Departmental and Schoolwide Preliminary oral examinations, the student may need to begin polling faculty for dates/times that will be available a couple of months in advance, as many faculty members have fixed teaching and travel commitments. Students must meet with Elisabeth Simmons to learn about the necessary forms and other considerations when forming an examination committee.  Students must have their exam request submitted through the Exam Request System, at minimum, 5 weeks in advance (37 days) of the exam date.

Thesis Readers and Final Oral Defense

The thesis topic acceptable to the TAC must be a piece of original, independent research focusing on selected aspects of international health in developing or underserved societies.

The Final Oral Defense consists of two parts, a public seminar and a defense of the thesis before a Committee of Readers. The public seminar and closed thesis defense are held on the same day with the seminar being conducted first, followed immediately by the closed defense. Thesis readers should have at least 30 days to read the final thesis prior to the Final Oral defense. The Dissertation Approval Form will be sent to the committee by the student along with a copy of their final thesis at minimum 30 days before the Final Oral Defense indicating the adviser’s approval of their thesis as suitable for dissemination to their final thesis defense committee members. After the exam the Committee of Readers must accept the thesis as satisfactory and, in addition, the Committee Chair and the Thesis adviser must write a letter of acceptance to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs.

If a student defends any time after the last day of 4th term and before the first day of Summer Term, the student must register for three credits of Thesis Research during the Summer Term. The only time PhD students are allowed to register during summer term is when they are defending in the summer. Tuition scholarship is not applied in the summer term. 

International students must notify OIS at least two months before defending to determine if there are any issues with their visa. OIS must also be notified that the student is planning on defending, outside of the typical academic year. Any student on a visa must communicate with OIS, and have approval to proceed in the summer, before a student can register and work with Elisabeth Simmons to schedule their exam and submit the required forms. 

If a student defends after the last day of Summer Term, the student must register for 1st term as a full-time student. 

The Final Thesis must be submitted to the JHU Library, and to the Department of International Health. The Department of International Health accepts final theses as a PDF document. Final thesis and the letters from the Chair of the examination committee and the adviser must be submitted to the School of Public Health Registrar’s office, respectively, by the end of the term in which they are registered (if international student) or by add/drop of the following term. Failure to meet this deadline means having to register for the following term. 

Any student returning from a leave of absence must be registered for a minimum of two terms before their thesis defense can be scheduled.

Students must contact Elisabeth Simmons at least two months in advance of their desired defense date to learn about defense and convocation deadlines.

Selecting the Committee of Readers

Students must follow instructions on selecting committee members and readers stated in the Appointment of Thesis Readers and Final Oral Exam form found in the Portfolio library. The Associate Dean for Academic Affairs shall, upon recommendation of the student’s Department Chair or Associate Chair for Academic Programs, approve a committee of four readers, including the student’s thesis adviser, who serves as a departmental reader. The readers should be at the rank stated on Page 15, “Advising and Exam Committee Composition by Faculty Rank.” A minimum of three departments of the University, two being from the School of Public Health, must be represented. Two readers must be from the student’s Department. All faculty serve on the Committee representing the department of their primary faculty appointment except when the faculty member serves in their capacity as the student’s adviser. The most senior faculty member without a primary appointment in the student’s Department will serve as Chair of the Committee and MUST hold the rank of Associate or full Professor. A second reader not in the student’s department will sever as the Sub-Chair of the Committee and must also hold the rank of Associate or full Professor. With the approval of the Dean for Academic Affairs, the Department may nominate an individual from outside the University to serve as a 5th non-voting member.

PhD Program Policies

For a full list of program policies, please visit the PhD in International Health webpage where students can find a link to our most recent Academic Guide .

Program Concentration Learning Outcomes

According to the requirements of the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH), all BSPH degree students must be grounded in foundational public health knowledge. Please view the  list of specific CEPH requirements by degree type .

Global Disease Epidemiology & Control

• Analyze information on global causes and trends of morbidity and mortality to assess gaps in knowledge and propose research to address them in disadvantaged populations;
• Apply knowledge of biological and socioeconomic factors in global epidemiology to inform prevention and/or mitigation of a disease or condition in a disadvantaged population;
• Design a community trial, clinical trial or evaluation study that answers a relevant quantitative research question of concern to disadvantaged populations;
• Critically evaluate the strengths, weaknesses and sustainability of disease control programs and policies;
• Explore deep didactic and experiential knowledge to expand students' individual interest that will inform their doctoral thesis proposals.
• Analyze use of summary measures of population health for policy development, resource allocation for programs and interventions, and planning efficient and equitable health care systems;
• Generate health systems research questions with an understanding of the role of quantitative, qualitative, and mixed method approaches within different study designs, depending on the type of inference required to improve health systems processes;
• Appraise and apply scientifically sound and appropriate methods and tools to design a research study including a conceptual/theoretical framework, study instrument, sampling design, and plan for data analysis;
• Compose and communicate scientific findings through written and oral methods to scientific audiences and peers;
• Apply and appraise health systems frameworks, strategies, and tools (e.g., systems thinking, budgeting, financial management, performance management, etc.) to identify and address gaps to strengthen health systems in LMICs.
• Explore and examine public health nutrition problems in their biological, social, cultural, behavioral and epidemiological context;
•  Examine how nutrient metabolism and specific nutrient functions in body systems apply to disease in human populations;
• Critically analyze and evaluate the reliability and validity of indicators of nutritional status (anthropometry, biochemical markers), and measures of dietary intake and food-related behaviors, for assessment of individuals, groups, or populations for various purposes;
• Evaluate existing evidence in a review of peer-reviewed literature to frame a research question to address a nutrition problem in terms of study goals and specific aims, study design and methods to address the aims;
• Evaluate policy options to address food and nutrition-related health problems considering the policy process, stakeholder engagement, advocacy, and economic considerations.

Social & Behavioral Interventions

• Evaluate and critique the relevant literature on a topic and frame a research question in terms of study goals and specific aims;
• Design a theoretically-grounded research study on social, cultural, and behavioral aspects of health, differentiating between qualitative and quantitative designs;
• Assess and critique the strengths, weaknesses, and variations in practice for the range of qualitative methods used in public health, including participant observation, interviews, focus groups, formative research, and content analysis; and design research that uses these methods appropriately and to their best advantage;
• Design, conduct, and analyze a methodologically rigorous qualitative research study;
• Analyze data through principles of psychometrics and using psychosocial statistics, including latent variable models, factor analyses, latent class analyses, structural equation modeling, and latent trait analyses (IRT).

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Advocating for Change: Johns Hopkins Doctoral Students Bring Research and Practice to Washington

In the right atrium of the nursing profession lies a commitment to advancing the health and well-being of the people we serve. In July 2024, six Johns Hopkins School of Nursing students including three PhD students – Marcus Henderson , Aisha Ellis , and myself – and three DNP students – Angelica Garcia-Ditta , Maureen Ndzi , and Kimesha Grant – participated in the Minority Fellowship Program ’s 2024 Intensive Training Institute (ITI), a flagship workforce development program sponsored by the the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and implemented by the American Nurses Association (ANA).

This annual gathering of all MFP fellows, alumni, and mentors celebrates 50 years of fostering diversity in psychiatric mental health and substance use nursing, particularly among ethnic groups who experience higher rates of discrimination, including Black, Latino, and Asian populations. As part of this event, the six of us took our passion for nursing to Capitol Hill, where we met with congressional representatives and legislative staff to advocate for crucial investments in the health workforce pipeline – such as the MFP – and national safety net programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Thrifty Food Plan which promote the health of our patients and communities through a different and equally important mechanism.

This advocacy effort was not just a testament to the power of individual nursing voices; it reflected the strength of collaboration within the nursing discipline. By working together, our group of PhD and DNP students demonstrated the combined impact of research and clinical practice in shaping national policy. Those of us in the PhD program bring a deeper expertise in research, while those in the DNP program are experts in clinical practice and the boots-on-the-ground for the implementation of scientific discoveries. Together, we form a powerful force for change.

In its 2022 position statement , the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) emphasized collaboration between PhD and DNP prepared nurses as essential for the future of the profession. This collaboration begins in the classroom and clinical settings, where we as students are encouraged to engage in joint assignments, team-based literature reviews, and co-authorship of research papers. These collaborations extend to advocacy efforts like those we carried out at the ITI in Washington, D.C., where our respective passions and skills allowed us to multiply the effects of one another’s work, clarifying our arguments and strengthening our storytelling.

Aisha Ellis, a PhD student and SAMHSA/ANA doctoral fellow, emphasized the significance of collaboration at the ITI:

“When we bring our research together with the practical experience of DNP nurses, we can take on problems that are too big for any one of us alone. It’s about working together to make a real difference in people’s lives.”

Angelica Garcia-Ditta, a DNP student, echoed this sentiment, adding, “As nurses, we’re not just here to care for patients; we’re also here to help shape the policies that affect their health. By teaming up with our colleagues in the PhD program, we can combine our strengths to understand what afflicts our patients and what we can do to improve lives one patient at a time.”

The collaboration between School of Nursing PhD and DNP students at the 2024 ITI is a shining example of how nurses can harness the power of its diverse skill sets to drive change. This type of collaboration not only strengthens the impact of nursing in healthcare but also fosters relationships that will continue to shape healthcare practice and policy long after graduation. Through our combined efforts, we are advocating for a future in which healthcare is more accessible, equitable, and effective for all.

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About the Author: Fernando Mena-Carrasco

Fernando is a PhD student at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, as well as a fellow of the Minority Fellowship Program. Fernando’s focus is in social justice, policy, mental health and immigrant health promotion.

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Johns Hopkins Army ROTC

Spring 2024 commissioning ceremony.

This year’s ceremony was held at The Star-Spangled Banner Flag House in Baltimore, MD

Congratulations to our newest Second Lieutenants! You all have worked so hard in our Battalion to get to this point, and this is just the beginning of your careers. It was an honor to have Major General (Ret.) Michael Place as our guest speaker.

• 2 LT Daniel Ardia graduated from JHU with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and a Minor in Applied Mathematics. He commissioned in the Army Reserves as a Cyber Officer.
• 2 LT Francisco Crespin-Maravilla graduated from UMBC with a Bachelor of Arts in Health Administration and Policy and Sociology and Minors in Emergency Health Service, and Modern Language and Linguistics focusing in Spanish. He commissioned as an active-duty Medical Service Corps Officer.
• 2 LT Jack Dunn graduated from JHU with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Minors in Accounting and Financial Management, and Financial Economics. He commissions as an active-duty Infantry Officer.
• 2 LT Kyle Fisher graduated from JHU with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. He commissions in the Army Reserves as a Cyber Officer.
• 2 LT Mikeala Furman graduated from JHU with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. She commissions as an active-duty Engineer Officer.
• 2 LT Jackson Hall graduated from Stevenson University with a Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies. He commissions with an Education Delay to attend University of Maryland Law School. Upon graduating with his J.D. he will continue his service as an active-duty Army lawyer in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps.
• 2 LT Elizabeth Herrera graduated from JHU with a Bachelor of Science in Molecular and Cellular Biology. She commissions as an active-duty Engineering Officer.
• 2 LT Shivani Kapoor graduated as a Distinguished Military Graduate from JHU with a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and a Minor in Music. She commissions with an Education Delay to attend the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences. Upon graduating with her M.D., she will continue her service as an active-duty Army physician in the Medical Corps.
• 2 LT Matthew Lurie graduated from JHU in 2021 with a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies. He most recently graduated as a Distinguished Military Graduate from The Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies with a Master of Arts in International Relations. He commissions as an active-duty Infantry Officer with a branch detail in Military Intelligence.
• 2 LT Colleen Morgan graduated from the University of Maryland in College Park in 2021 with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering. She most recently graduated as a Distinguished Military Graduate from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County with a Master of Science in Systems Engineering. She also received her Associate Systems Engineering Professional certification. She commissions as a Field Artillery Officer in the Virginia Army National Guard.
• 2 LT David Whitney graduated from the UMBC with a Bachelor of Arts in History. He commissions as an active-duty Quartermaster Officer.

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Leveraging Data Science and Biomedical Informatics to Improve Health Equity and Population Health

Leveraging Data Science and Biomedical Informatics to Improve Health Equity and Population Health featuring Jiancheng Ye, PhD 

Jiancheng Ye, PhD 

Assistant Professor of Health Informatics

Department of Emergency Medicine

Weill Cornell Medicine