Epidemiology
Courses
EPI 550 Applied Survey Research in Epidemiology 3.0 Credits
This course addresses theoretical and practical aspects of conducting survey research in human populations. We will discuss various types of self-report data, including questions to assess knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and perceived health and well-being. Design issues include wording of items and response scales, sampling, and respondent and staff burden. Implementation issues include methods of administration, interviewer training, and participant recruitment. Analysis issues include data processing, psychometric measurement (scaling, reliability), missing data, and basic descriptive statistics. Interpretive issues include guidelines for reports and manuscripts. The primary focuses of this course are observational study designs using probability and non-probability sampling.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
EPI 551 Epidemiology of Cancer 3.0 Credits
This course will provide students with training in the methods and topics specific to the epidemiology of cancer. Students will learn about cancer surveillance, etiologic studies, therapy trials, and prevention/screening studies of cancer.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 570 [Min Grade: B-]
EPI 552 Epidemiology for Public Health Practice 3.0 Credits
This course is designed to provide an overview of qualitative and quantitative epidemiology in public health practice, with an emphasis on the practical application of analytic epidemiology methods in public health and primary healthcare. The course covers a variety of topics, including national and global public health surveillance systems, disease mapping, and data analysis techniques for large-scale population-based study with complex survey designs, outcomes research, and introduction to Epi Info software. The class will engage the students in an active and collaborative learning environment through individual projects, team projects and a variety of in-class discussion and exercises.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 570 [Min Grade: B-]
EPI 553 Infectious Disease Epidemiology 3.0 Credits
Course will provide training in the methods specific to infectious disease epidemiology within the context of the study of several major classes of infectious diseases with global impact on public health. Students will learn about population-level data sources and surveillance methods and techniques in outbreak investigations.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 570 [Min Grade: B-]
EPI 555 Vaccine Design, Testing, & Implementation 3.0 Credits
The emergence of new pathogens, decreased uptake of vaccines in some populations, and increased transmission opportunities caused by globalization has led to a rising prevalence of new infectious diseases as well as reemergence of older diseases. In this course, students will learn basic immunology and infectious disease epidemiological concepts important for understanding how vaccines work both at the individual and population level. Students will also learn the history of many important vaccines currently used today and some of the controversies surrounding those vaccines. Students will learn reasons for vaccine hesitancy and refusal and will then be tasked with developing strategies to overcome these barriers.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
EPI 556 Perinatal Epidemiology 3.0 Credits
Perinatal Epidemiology provides an overview of maternal and child health during the perinatal period, from mid-pregnancy through the first month of infancy. Many perinatal outcomes, however, have processes that begin earlier in the prenatal and even preconception periods. Some of these outcomes and processes will also be discussed. The first half of the course focuses on the epidemiology of the main outcomes that affect the mother, fetus, and newborn, including methodological challenges in studying these outcomes. The second half of the course examines specific aspects of maternal and child health that have an impact on how we study and prevent adverse perinatal outcomes. Current research areas in perinatal epidemiology and future directions for research are also discussed.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 570 [Min Grade: B-] and BST 571 [Min Grade: B-]
EPI 557 Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology & Prevention 3.0 Credits
This course provides a forum for in-depth discussions of one of the main public health issues. Topics include the pathophysiology of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease (CVD), trends in coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension and heart failure mortality/morbidity, well-established and emerging CVD risk factors, and major strategies for CVD prevention/control.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 570 [Min Grade: B-]
EPI 558 Making Sense of Data 3.0 Credits
The focus will be on descriptive and exploratory methods often employed in the early phase of epidemiologic analysis of complex datasets. Students will work with datasets in class under the guidance of the instructors. Topics include: Descriptive and exploratory data analysis, graphical methods for data summarization and exploration, variable transformations, methods of assessing missing data patterns.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 570 [Min Grade: B] and (BST 555 [Min Grade: B] or EPI 564 [Min Grade: B] or BST 571 [Min Grade: B])
EPI 559 Pharmacoepidemiology 3.0 Credits
The aim of the course is to equip students with a basic understanding of the concepts and practice of pharmacoepidemiology. By the end of the course, students should be able to: Demonstrate an understanding of the important pharmacoepidemiological concepts and methods, and how these methods can be applied to specific drug utilization in real-life settings in specific populations; Define disease burden in terms of prevalence, incidence and potential complications associated with the use of specific medications; Examine patients’ characteristics and drug utilization, and address health disparities in medications associated health outcomes; Examine patients with multiple-comorbidity, multiple drug uses and drug-disease effects on health outcomes.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 570 [Min Grade: B-]
EPI 560 Intermediate Epidemiology 3.0 Credits
This course expands on basic methods used in epidemiologic thinking and research - with a focus on observational studies of disease risk factors. Topics covered include: basic principles of causal inference, observational study designs, bias, confounding, effect modification, stratified analysis, and the epidemiologic approach to multivariable modeling. Course material assumes that students have completed introductory-level courses in biostatistics and epidemiology. Students typically have taken or are currently enrolled in Intermediate Biostatistics 1 (or equivalent). Students who have not met pre-requisites may request permission of the instructor.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: BST 571 [Min Grade: B] and EPI 570 [Min Grade: B]
EPI 561 Pathophysiologic Basis of Epidemiologic Research 3.0 Credits
This course will examine the causes of many human diseases at a molecular level, paying particular attention to the role of inflammation in disease processes and examining the role of cell cycle dysregulation in the etiology of many human cancers. In order to understand the pathologic basis for disease, the course will also cover the normal structure and function of many body systems, that when compromised lead to diseases of public health importance.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 570 [Min Grade: B-]
EPI 562 The Changing US HIV Epidemic and the Responses of Affected Communities 3.0 Credits
This course is intended as a comprehensive epidemiologic overview of the evolving US HIV epidemic over time, along with parallel responses by communities affected by AIDS and artists to express their sense of loss and strength through various media. These include written word, spoken word, and visual arts including painting, photography and film. We will follow the pandemic over time, making weekly stops along the way to observe the culture and expression of loss and resiliency by specific cultures within America and throughout the world. More importantly, the HIV epidemic, as portrayed in literature and the arts, will be dovetailed with formal social epidemiologic considerations of the spread of infection and barriers to accessing healthcare/treatment.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
EPI 563 Interprofessional Collaboration for Urban Health 3.0 Credits
This course is designed to guide public health professionals in working across disciplines, sectors, and settings. Strategies will be presented for working with leaders who transform local health systems and other determinants of health, including those from a range of clinical, policy, legal, community, engineering, and design backgrounds. Crucial to successful collaborations will be understanding fundamentals of these other professions, as well as articulating the distinct characteristics and potential contributions of public health to heterogeneous teams.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
EPI 564 Data Science Using R 3.0 Credits
This course is designed to provide students with sufficient programming knowledge and analysis experience in R to solve data science problems that a data analyst with a master’s degree in epidemiology or biostatistics might encounter in the workforce. The focus of the course is an understanding of the R computing platform with application to data analysis problems of a public health nature. The interactive classes will feature a lecture component and a laboratory component. The RStudio environment will be the interface used for all classroom discussion, and is strongly recommended.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
EPI 569 Disease Outbreak Investigations 3.0 Credits
The emergence of new pathogens and drug resistance, as well as increased transmission opportunities caused by globalization has led to a rising prevalence of new infectious diseases as well as reemergence of older diseases and health problems due to environmental toxins. This course will focus on the surveillance, identification, control, and prevention of selected infectious diseases and environmental associated disease, of Public Health importance both globally and within the United States. Specific areas that will be addressed include the causative agents, the routes of transmission, the host responses, environmental factors, unique risk factors, outbreak investigations, surveillance and strategies for control and prevention, as well as application of epidemiological methods used to control an outbreak.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
EPI 570 Introduction to Epidemiology 3.0 Credits
Introduction to Epidemiology provides an understanding of basic concepts and methods in epidemiology needed to conduct public health research and practice. This course will cover epidemiology as a methodology for thinking about and designing research to address basic questions of interest in health and medicine and to address specific hypotheses regarding risk factors. Specifically, students will understand the science concerned with the occurrence, distribution, and causality of diseases and other health-related conditions.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
EPI 572 Design and Analysis of Epidemiological Studies 3.0 Credits
This course will demonstrate the applicability of the goals and approaches from descriptive and analytical methods in biostatistics and epidemiology courses to real world problems. The project will provide the student with the opportunity to use methods in an area of their choice.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 570 [Min Grade: B] and BST 571 [Min Grade: B]
EPI 573 Autism as a Public Health Challenge 3.0 Credits
Demonstrates how to apply public health concepts to an important societal challenge that is quite distinct from those more commonly thought of as public health problems (like infectious diseases, chronic diseases, and injuries). Students will be introduced to autism spectrum disorders from a variety of perspectives and will gain skill and experience distilling and communicating information relevant to understanding and explaining the public health challenges related to autism spectrum disorders and the ways we are working toward solutions.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
EPI 610 Public Health Surveillance 3.0 Credits
One of the most critical functions of public health practice and intervention is monitoring the health of populations. In this introductory survey course, students will be introduced to both the principles and practice of public health surveillance, as well as statistical methods for monitoring the health of populations. Topics focused on surveillance practice will include planning a surveillance system, identifying sources of health-related information, management of surveillance information systems and quality control of data, descriptive epidemiology, evaluating public health surveillance, state and local public health surveillance, and surveillance of quality in healthcare.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 570 [Min Grade: B] and BST 571 [Min Grade: B]
EPI 621 Social Epidemiology 3.0 Credits
This course will introduce students to the field of social epidemiology. Readings and discussion will address history and theories of social epidemiology, as well as the roles of social exposures in population health and health disparities (social class and inequality, working and living environments, discrimination, social relationships and psychosocial mechanisms, social and economic policies). Challenges of causal inference in social epidemiology and methodological considerations will also be discussed.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: BST 571 [Min Grade: B] and EPI 570 [Min Grade: B]
EPI 633 Urban Inequality and Health: Theory, Evidence, and Action 3.0 Credits
This course will explore dimensions of urban inequality including residential segregation, gentrification and displacement, and racialized violence and trauma in urban settings and examine the pathways linking them to health and health inequalities. These issues will be explored using an explicit anti-racist lens and will draw on literature from sociology, history, and epidemiology. Finally, the course will explore various models for action in addressing urban inequalities and the impact policies and interventions have on health and health inequalities in urban settings.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
EPI 677 Health and Design Research 3.0 Credits
In this inter-professional course, students will explore concepts and methodologies of design, health research, and design thinking. The course is cross-listed between the disciplines of public health and design, and students will be drawn from both disciplines to examine the reciprocal relationship between health research and human centered innovation and creative thinking.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
EPI 699 Master of Science Epidemiology Project 1.0-12.0 Credit
This course is designed to provide guidance of the MS Epidemiology project. Working with a faculty advisor, students will design and conduct an epidemiologic study that poses and tests a research question using a sufficiently robust data set. Components of the project will include data collection as necessary, data management and analysis and the preparation of a manuscript for publication or a research report that is consistent with accepted thesis and publication standards in epidemiology.
Repeat Status: Can be repeated 3 times for 48 credits
EPI 700 Advanced Epidemiology 3.0 Credits
This course covers more advanced methodologic issues in analytic epidemiology including: in-depth discussions of cohort, case-control, and case-cohort studies, missing data and methods of single/multiple imputation, theoretical basis of and analytic methods for using intermediate endpoints/surrogate markers, repeated measures analysis, the use of DAGS, and propensity scores to mitigate confounding.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Restrictions: Can enroll if major is CHP or major is EOH or major is EPID and classification is PhD.
EPI 749 Research and Practice in Epidemiology 3.0 Credits
This course will engage students in the culminating experience required of second-year master’s students in epidemiology. Students will either develop a hypothesis based on a public health problem and perform a multi-variable analysis to test the hypothesis using an appropriate dataset and describe how that addresses the public health problem or conduct a rigorous systematic literature review that both critiques and synthesizes the existing public health literature that addresses the public health problem. Students must work individually on this project and are required to complete a high-quality written product and an oral presentation at the end of the experience.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: BST 555 [Min Grade: B] and BST 560 [Min Grade: B] and EPI 560 [Min Grade: B]
EPI 751 Integrative Learning Experience in Epidemiology 3.0 Credits
The Integrative Learning Experience comprises the culminating experience required of MPH students. Students will develop a hypothesis based on a public health problem and perform a multi-variable analysis to test the hypothesis using an appropriate dataset and describe how that addresses the public health problem. Students must work individually on this project and are required to complete a high-quality written product and an oral presentation at the end of the experience. With this class, the students are expected to transition from student (directed learning) to professional (self-directed learning) and should expect guidance from their faculty mentor rather than instruction.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 749 [Min Grade: B]
EPI 801 Causal Inference in Epidemiology: Theory 3.0 Credits
Provides an in-depth theoretical foundation on epistemology and models of disease causation in epidemiology. Students will be expected to answer the question how can we know that A causes B from diverse perspectives ranging from theoretical models, statistical conventions around identifying causation, and mitigating bias.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 560 [Min Grade: B] and BST 560 [Min Grade: B]
EPI 803 Proposal Writing Seminar 3.0 Credits
This course is designed to assist doctoral students in the preparation of a research proposal. The focus of the course is synthesis and application of prior coursework to the development of a feasible and informative epidemiological study. The seminars consist of student presentations of research questions, literature review, plans for collection and analysis of epidemiological data, with discussion by students and faculty. Students will prepare a research proposal for study in a human population using the form developed by the National Institutes of Health. The course also offers students opportunities to critically evaluate the adequacy and scientific merit of research protocols through on-going peer-review.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 560 [Min Grade: B] and BST 560 [Min Grade: B]
EPI 804 Causal Inference in Epidemiology: Application 3.0 Credits
This course is designed to provide a theoretical foundation and the practical tools necessary for addressing challenges to causal inference in epidemiological research.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 700 [Min Grade: B] and (BST 620 [Min Grade: B] or BST 820 [Min Grade: B])
EPI 805 Advanced Topics in Epidemiologic History, Theory and Biases 3.0 Credits
This advanced seminar is designed to offer doctoral students an opportunity to synthesize theories and methodologies in epidemiology. The emphasis will be on the combination of theoretical and methodological ideas and tools. Existing controversies in the field will be highlighted. Topics to be covered include: (a) history of epidemiology, (b) the role of theory in epidemiology, (c) philosophy of science as it pertains to epidemiology, and (d) current discussions about causal inference in epidemiology. Students will discuss hypothesis generation and testing, causal reasoning, and the interplay between theories, models and data.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Restrictions: Can enroll if major is EPID and classification is PhD and program is PHD.
EPI 806 Bias and Validity in Epidemiology 3.0 Credits
This course is a doctoral-level seminar where students engage in discussions and debate about the concepts of bias and validity in epidemiology. The course will cover the theoretical basis of bias and confounding and its implications in practice. Students will perform quantitative bias analysis to explore its impact. The course will review the seminal as well as contemporary papers in bias and validity. Students will learn practical skills that are essential to any rigorous epidemiological investigation and can be used when applying for funding and conducting dissertation research.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: EPI 700 [Min Grade: B]
EPI 861 Pathophysiologic Basis of Epidemiologic Research 3.0 Credits
This course will examine the causes of many human diseases at a molecular level, paying particular attention to the role of inflammation in disease processes and examining the role of cell cycle dysregulation in the etiology of many human cancers. In order to understand the pathologic basis for disease, the course will also cover the normal structure and function of many body systems, that when compromised lead to diseases of public health importance.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Restrictions: Can enroll if classification is PhD.
EPI 864 Data Science Using R 3.0 Credits
This course is designed to provide students with sufficient programming knowledge and analysis experience in R to solve data science problems that a data analyst with a master’s degree in epidemiology or biostatistics might encounter in the workforce. The focus of the course is an understanding of the R computing platform with application to data analysis problems of a public health nature. The interactive classes will feature a lecture component and a laboratory component. The RStudio environment will be the interface used for all classroom discussion, and is strongly recommended.
Repeat Status: Not repeatable for credit
Prerequisites: BST 560 [Min Grade: B]
EPI 999 Thesis Research: Dissertation Guidance in Epidemiology 1.0-9.0 Credit
Directed guidance of dissertation research, preparation for presenting dissertation research to colleagues at the dissertation seminar and preparation for the final defense.
Repeat Status: Can be repeated multiple times for credit
EPI T580 Special Topics in Epidemiology 0.5-12.0 Credits
Topics decided upon by faculty will vary within the area of study.
Repeat Status: Can be repeated multiple times for credit
EPI T680 Special Topics in Epidemiology 0.5-12.0 Credits
Topics decided upon by faculty will vary within the area of study.
Repeat Status: Can be repeated multiple times for credit
EPI T780 Special Topics in Epidemiology 0.5-12.0 Credits
Topics decided upon by faculty will vary within the area of study.
Repeat Status: Can be repeated multiple times for credit
EPI T880 Special Topics in Epidemiology 0.5-12.0 Credits
Topics decided upon by faculty will vary within the area of study.
Repeat Status: Can be repeated multiple times for credit
EPI T980 Special Topics in Epidemiology 0.5-12.0 Credits
Topics decided upon by faculty will vary within the area of study.
Repeat Status: Can be repeated multiple times for credit
