Assistantships and Scholarships
A limited number of graduate assistantships for the Ph.D. in are available on a competitive basis for qualified students. A graduate assistantship includes tuition, fees, health insurance, and $35,000 stipend that is renewable on an annual basis, up to a maximum of four years, based on student performance, the availability of funds and in accordance with policies of both the UAMS Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health and the UAMS Graduate School.
We also offer a pre-doctoral assistantship on a competitive basis (ARCHD-T32) for students interested in health disparities research and advanced data analytics. This program is funded by a grant from the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities. The funding is available only to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. The funding includes an annual stipend, travel assistance, and tuition discounts. Learn more about the ARCHD-T32 scholarship application and requirements or contact Mick Tilford, Ph.D., at TilfordMickJ@uams.edu.
Ph.D. in Health Systems and Services Research Curriculum
The HSSR Ph.D. Program is designed for full- or part-time study and requires a minimum of seventy-two (72) semester credit hours of study. Full-time students typically take four years to complete their studies. Students will spend their first two years in on-campus study at UAMS completing coursework (see below).
After completing the required coursework, students must successfully pass doctoral candidate examinations demonstrating mastery of core areas of the coursework before progressing to dissertation work.
Students who pass the examinations then focus on the development, conduct, and defense of their dissertation research under the guidance of a doctoral dissertation committee comprised of faculty members chosen by the student. For additional details, please see the dissertation guidelines.
Completion of the coursework and dissertation ensures that graduates have attained competencies for the Ph.D. in Health Systems and Services Research.
HSR Theory and Applications
| Course ID | Course Name | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| HPMT 61033 | Health Systems Theory and Research | 2 |
| PBHL 64381 | Fundamentals of Research | 1 |
| HPMT 62133 | Variation in Health System Performance | 3 |
| PBHL 50033 | Introduction to Public Health | 3 |
| HPMT 51053 | Introduction to Health Economics | 3 |
| HPMT 63153 | Advanced Methods for Quality & Health Outcomes | 3 |
| HPMT 61143 | Advanced Health Policy & Management | 3 |
| HPMT 63193 | Implementation Research in Clinical Practice | 3 |
Research Methodology
| Course ID | Course Name | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| HPMT 63133 | Advanced Methods in Health Services Research | 3 |
| HPMT 53363 | Data Mining in Healthcare | 3 |
| HPMT 63243 | Advanced Econometric Methods and Special Topics | 3 |
Selectives
NOTE: Can take either Disparities of Healthcare Access or Social Determinants of Health (but not both)
| Course ID | Course Name | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| HPMT 63173 | Performance Measurement, Reporting & Incentives | 3 |
| PSGP 51203 | Pharmacoeconomics & Health Technology Assessment | 3 |
| PSCI 51193 | Applied Research Methods Using Retrospective Data Sources | 3 |
| HPMT 63203 | Advanced Health Economics I: Demand for Health | 3 |
| HPMT 63233 | Advanced Health Economics II: Supply of Health | 3 |
| BIOS 53243 | Analyzing Health Surveys | 3 |
| EPID 62243 | Clinical Trials | 3 |
| EPID 55733 | Data Management and Programming for Epidemiologists | 3 |
| PBHL 63033 | Community-Based Program Design | 3 |
| PBHL 63463 | Social Determinants of Health | 3 |
| HPMT 64263 | Disparities in Healthcare Access | 3 |
| EPID 61202 | Principles & Practice of Public Health Surveillance | 3 |
| NPHD 61033 | Qualitative Research Methodology | 3 |
| NPHD 61083 | Qualitative Data Analysis, Theory & Practicum | 3 |
| PSCI 51263 | Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement | 3 |
| PSCI 51233 | Pharmaceutical Economics and Policy | 3 |
| BMIG 50103 | Information Modelling—From Data to Knowledge | 3 |
| BMIG 50303 | Computational Methods in Biomedical Informatics | 3 |
| BMIG 60103 | Database Systems and Data Warehousing | 3 |
| HPMT 53353 | Data Visualization for Healthcare Analytics | 3 |
| HPMT 53373 | Data Quality Management | 3 |
| HPMT 54483 | Social Network Analysis | 3 |
| HPMT 53383 | Introduction to Natural Language Processing | 3 |
| HPMT 63303 | Advanced Topics in Implementation Science | 3 |
| ENVH 64103 | Geographic Information Systems in Public Health | 3 |
| HPMT 63293 | Health Care & Organizational Theory | 3 |
Scholarship Skills
| Course ID | Course Name | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| PBHL 64373 | Grant Writing | 3 |
| PBHL 6100V | Directed Study (Doctoral) |
Dissertation
| Course ID | Course Name | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| PBHL 6999V | Dissertation Research | 18 |