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Master of Science
MSCotermOverview
The Master’s Degree in Epidemiology and Clinical Research provides students with the skills essential to population-based study and patient-oriented clinical research, including epidemiologic methods and statistical analysis. Many students are clinical investigators with an MD or comparable clinical degree, often in the fellowship stages of their training or are already junior faculty members. The program also considers applicants from doctoral programs in the social, behavioral, or biological sciences who are interested in a concurrent master’s degree and wish to apply epidemiologic techniques in their areas of research interest. The program also serves as a rigorous introduction to epidemiology and clinical research for students with baccalaureate degrees or Stanford co-term students (below) who anticipate careers in clinical epidemiology or medicine. Many go on to PhD and MD degrees or pursue careers in public health and other disciplines.
See Epidemiology & Population Health opens in a new tabfor additional information on the MS Epidemiology & Clinical Research program.
Mentors
MS students in the Graduate Program in Epidemiology and Clinical Research have two mentors. Upon entering the program, each student is assigned an academic program advisor, usually a core faculty member. In addition, the student will choose a research mentor. Research mentors are typically members of the Stanford University professoriate but need not be designated as faculty in EPH. For physicians in our graduate programs, this mentor is usually from the discipline of the student’s clinical affiliation. For example, physicians who maintain an affiliation with another university can often arrange to include a research mentor from the other university if the student’s research takes place, in part, at that university. If the research mentor is from EPH, then the same faculty member may serve as both academic program advisor and research mentor with permission of the program director.
The academic program advisor also serves as the student’s methodology mentor and is responsible for advising in the selection of courses, approving a thesis research topic, monitoring the student’s progress through the program, and helping with other program-related issues that may arise. If a student’s thesis research requires additional expertise not covered by those of the methodology or research mentors (e.g., outcomes research or advanced statistical methods), a third mentor may be appointed with the approval of the methodology mentor.
Coterminal Master’s Program
The Department of Epidemiology and Population Health also offers a coterminal Master’s program opens in a new tab in Epidemiology and Clinical Research for current Stanford undergraduates. Students who desire to concentrate in a specific area can participate in one of the track areas (Infectious Diseases, Health Equity and Community-Engaged Research, Global Health ). Coterminal students are enrolled full-time, and courses are ordinarily taken on campus. Graduates of this program are prepared to contribute creatively to basic or applied projects in epidemiology and clinical research. Many go on to PhD and MD degrees or pursue careers in public health and other disciplines.