Biostatistics, PhD

Coursework

A minimum total of 72 credits are required.

PhD candidates normally complete graduation requirements in four to five years.

Electives

In situations where a student’s special interests or needs indicate an alternative course is more appropriate it may be substituted with the permission of the student’s academic advisor and department chair.

Dissertation Research Credits

Students must complete three credits of BIOST 3010  or one term of FTDR 3999 . Please see guidelines for both courses below.

Preliminary (Qualifying) Examination

The preliminary examination is designed to assess the breadth of the student’s knowledge of the discipline, the student’s achievement during the first year(s) of graduate study, and the potential to apply research methods independently. The preliminary examination is used to identify those students who may be expected to complete the doctoral program successfully and also to reveal areas for improvement in the student’s preparation.

The Biostatistics PhD preliminary examination is typically offered annually in June. The examination consists of two separate components: theory and application (including public health based on epidemiology). In order to pass the preliminary examination, students must receive passing scores for both components of the examination. Eligible students are permitted to retake the portions of the examination they did not pass when the examination is offered again the following year. Students who do not pass the examination on the second attempt will be released from the PhD Program in accordance with the Pitt Public Health Probation and Dismissal Guidelines.

Once a student passes the preliminary examination, the student may begin working on his/her dissertation. Students should not begin dissertation work before they pass the preliminary examination.

Eligibility

A student is eligible to take the preliminary examination if the student:

• is enrolled in the Department of Biostatistics PhD Program with good standing (3.00 QPA or greater)
• did not fail the preliminary examination more than once; and
• completed the required courses (listed below) with a B or better, or equivalent coursework which the student has obtained transfer credits or exemption for

Required Coursework

Doctoral Dissertation

Students must write a dissertation that presents the results of a research project carried out by the student. An appropriate research project involves a substantive piece of original and independent research grounded in an appropriate body of literature. The PhD dissertation should consist of material sufficient for at least two publications in peer-reviewed journals. At least one of the manuscripts, based on the dissertation and first authored by the student, must be submitted before the PhD dissertation defense.  For PhD students matriculated prior to fall 2015, it is recommended that at least one of the manuscripts be submitted before the PhD dissertation defense.  It is the responsibility of the student’s dissertation committee to evaluate the dissertation in these terms and to recommend the awarding of the doctoral degree only if the dissertation is judged to demonstrate these qualities. 

Before the student’s dissertation overview and comprehensive examination, the student’s dissertation advisor proposes for the approval of the Department Chair and the Pitt Public Health Office of Student Affairs, a doctoral dissertation committee.

Dissertation Overview & Comprehensive Examination

Doctoral students must prepare and present a dissertation proposal. The dissertation proposal consists of two parts: (i) a presentation of a dissertation overview to members of the student’s doctoral committee and all interested members of the Department of Biostatistics and (ii) a comprehensive examination attended only by the student and his/her doctoral committee. The purposes of the overview and the comprehensive exam are for a student to demonstrate that he/she is prepared to complete a dissertation by showing a general breadth of biostatistical knowledge and deep understanding of particular area(s) of biostatistics, demonstrating the ability to use biostatistical research methods and presenting a carefully formulated plan of novel dissertation research.  An announcement advertising the time and location of the dissertation overview should be disseminated to the Department at least one week prior to the presentation. The doctoral committee must unanimously approve the dissertation topic and research plan before the student is admitted to candidacy for the doctoral degree.  Approval of the overview does not imply either the acceptance of a dissertation prepared in accord with the overview or the restriction of the dissertation to its original overview. The dissertation overview and comprehensive examination should be passed at least one academic term before scheduling the dissertation defense.

Admission to Candidacy

Admission to candidacy for a doctoral degree constitutes a promotion of the student to the most advanced stage of graduate study and provides formal approval to devote essentially exclusive attention to the research and the writing of the dissertation.

Eligibility

To qualify for admission to candidacy a student must:

1. be in full graduate status
2. have satisfied the requirement of preliminary examination
3. have completed all required coursework with a minimum quality point average (QPA) of 3.00
4. shown proficiency in a research or investigative tool
5. have received approval of the proposed dissertation subject and plan following successful completion of the dissertation overview and comprehensive examination requirements

Students are informed of admission to candidacy by written notification from the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs.

Admission to candidacy should occur at least one academic term before the defense of the dissertation in order to provide an opportunity for the dissertation committee members to review, criticize, and monitor the proposed research.

Meetings of the dissertation committee and student must occur at least annually from the time the student gains admission to doctoral candidacy. During these meetings, the dissertation committee should assess the student’s progress toward the completion of degree requirements and discuss objectives for the following year and a timetable for completing degree requirements.

Doctoral Dissertation Defense

The final oral examination in defense of the doctoral dissertation is conducted by the student’s dissertation committee. One copy of the dissertation must be submitted to each member of the dissertation committee at least two weeks before the scheduled doctoral defense. The defense may not be scheduled earlier than two weeks following submission of the dissertation but must be held at least two weeks before the degree is conferred.

At least one month before the scheduled defense, the student must provide the department registrar with the defense time, date, place, dissertation title and abstract for school-wide advertisement.  More information on defense announcement guidelines can be found by viewing the Pitt Public Health Graduation page.

The final copy of the dissertation must be prepared and submitted according to University Guidelines for Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETD). Detailed dissertation rules can be found in the Pitt Public Health Handbook.

Graduation

All PhD students must register for at least one credit or FTDR 3999  during the term in which they intend to graduate.