The distinctive mission of the Ph.D. in Public Health is to train graduate students to conduct original research on the determinants of health status of populations, and the translation of such knowledge to improve strategies for preventing disease and disability. Graduates of the Ph.D. program will be prepared for independent and collaborative research careers, and to teach at advanced levels of instruction. Students enrolled in the Ph.D. in Public Health must concentrate in either Global Health or Disease Prevention.<br><br>The focus of the Ph.D. research concentration in Global Health is to train excellence in research through engagement in hypothesis-driven projects to investigate the global context of disease burden and the improvement of population health status. The program will attract candidates who seek to analyze problems at the intersection of risk, vulnerability, and disease. Activities may include investigation of strategies to make research results that have already produced benefits in one country or region effective in underprivileged regions. The program trains students in integrative expertise essential for global health research with hypotheses in the nexus of content (risk analysis), context (vulnerability assessments), and process (translation of knowledge to reduce the burden of disease).<br><br>The specific learning objectives of the Concentration in Global Health are for graduates of the degree to: <br><br>Demonstrate knowledge of the major theoretical underpinnings of advances in global health research.<br> <br>Explain the relationship between theory and research methods focused on understanding the association of risk, vulnerability, and outcome in global health.<br><br>Compare and contrast the health status of different populations with respect to their burden of disease. <br><br>Formulate research hypotheses in the intersection of risk factors, vulnerable populations, and burden of disease. <br><br>Compose research proposals and conduct original research resulting in discoveries that contribute to improved understanding of risk factors and variations in disease burden in a population, and strategies to alleviate the burden at the global level.