The Epidemiology concentration trains students to become public health professionals that possess the skills to critically analyze and understand how individual, social and structural factors shape population-level health and well-being.
Our foremost goal is to provide rigorous education and training in the conceptual and practical applications of epidemiological methods for the next generation of public health leaders. Students are also encouraged to work with faculty mentors, community-based organizations as well as local, state and federal public health agencies to make important connections as well as gain the skills required to become public health leaders.
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Key Skills
Professional Development
Degree Requirements, Full-Time and Part-Time Sequences
Epidemiology Planning Checklist (for students who matriculated in 2024)
Epidemiology Planning Checklist (for students who matriculated in Fall 2022 or later)
Epidemiology Planning Checklist (for students who matriculated prior to Fall 2022)
Key Skills
When you graduate from the Epidemiology concentration, you will be prepared to take on leadership roles in public health settings around the globe. You will stand out to employers with a skillset that has both breadth and depth in the following competencies:
- Identify methods for measuring the distribution of determinants of health outcomes and well-being within and across populations
- Critically evaluate the application of epidemiologic methods to answer public health questions
- Identify data sources, manage large datasets, and conduct analyses using appropriate statistical software
- Synthesize the extant epidemiologic literature and identify its limitations and gaps
- Effectively communicate epidemiologic findings both orally and in writing.
Professional Development
You will benefit from numerous opportunities to build your epidemiologic skills and prepare for successful careers in public health and epidemiology. Learn more about what our alumni are doing by visiting our Career Hub. For information on our on-going research activities, visit our Centers, Labs & Initiatives page. Finally, we are continually updating our students with information on professional development opportunities available at NYU GPH, including internships, fellowships, employment, volunteer opportunities, professional association membership, and more.
All students in the Epidemiology concentration take the following core courses (18 credits):
GPH-GU 2030 Introduction to Global Health (2) [F, S]
GPH-GU 2106 Epidemiology (3) [F, S]
GPH-GU 2140 Global Issues in Social & Behavioral Health (3) [F, S]
GPH-GU 2110 Health Care Policy (2) [F, S, Su]
GPH-GU 2112 Public Health Policy and Management (2) [F, S, Su]
GPH-GU 2153 Global Environmental Health (3) [F, S, Su]
GPH-GU 2995 Biostatistics for Public Health (3) [F, S, Su]
GPH-GU 5171 Global Health Informatics Workshop (0) [F]
GPH-GU 5170 Introduction to Public Health (0) [F, S]
All students in the Epidemiology concentration take the following concentration courses (15 credits):
GPH-GU 2450 Intermediate Epidemiology (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2930 Epidemiology Design & Methods (3) [F]
GPH-GU 2332 Applied Regression Analyses (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2225 Psychometric Measurement & Analysis in Public Health Research & Practice (3) [F, S, Su]
Culminating Experience (4 credits)
Students in the Epidemiology concentration complete an internship and a thesis as part of their culminating MPH experience.
- The internship is a minimum of 180 hours of practice experience completed prior to enrolling in the Thesis I course.
- The thesis is completed over two-semesters and students register for the following two courses during their second year:
GPH-GU 2686 Thesis I: Practice and Integrative Learning Experiences (2) [F]
GPH-GU 2687 Thesis II: Practice and Integrative Learning Experiences (2) [S]
All students in the Epidemiology concentration take three elective courses (12 credits) across any of the following areas:
Agent-Based Modeling:
GPH-GU 2152 Introduction to Agent-Based Modeling (3) [F]
GPH-GU 3152 Advanced Agent-Based Modeling (3) [S]
Biostatistical Methods:
GPH-GU 2372 Applied Bayesian Analysis in Public Health (3) [F]
GPH-GU 2368 Applied Survival Analysis (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2363 Causal Inference: Design and Analysis (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2286 Introduction to Data Management & Statistical Computing (3) [F]
GPH-GU 2480 Longitudinal Analysis of Public Health Data (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2338 Machine Learning in Public Health (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2022 SAS for Beginners: Data Management and Exploration (1) [F, S]
GPH-GU 2512 Special Topics: Applied Spatial Statistics in Public Health (1) [varies]
GPH-GU 2182 Statistical Programming in R (3) [F]
GPH-GU 2387 Survey Design, Analysis, and Reporting (3) [F]
Chronic Disease Epidemiology:
GPH-GU 2278/9278 Global Cancer Epidemiology: A Focus on Nutritional Risk Factors (3) [varies]
GPH-GU 2230 Global Non-Communicable Disease Prevention & Control (3) [S]
Emergency Preparedness:
GPH-GU 3260 Complex Systems, Disasters, and the Social Ecology of Health (3) [every other S]
GPH-GU 5150 Emergency Preparedness for Healthcare Organizations (3) [Su]
GPH-GU 5210 Global Health Disaster Preparedness & Response (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2345 Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response: A Global Perspective (3) [varies]
GPH-GU 5270 Management of Public Health Disasters (3) [F]
Environmental Health:
GPH-GU 2232 Detection and Control of Waterborne Pathogens (3) [S]
Epidemiological Methods & Applications:
GPH-GU 2374 Advanced Epidemiologic Methods I: Evaluation of Epidemiologic Studies (3)*** [varies]
GPH-GU 3275 Advanced Epidemiologic Methods II: Practical Applications in Epidemiology (3) [varies]
GPH-GU 2355 Analysis of Epidemiologic Data Using SAS (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2361 Research Methods in Public Health (3) [F, S]
GPH-GU 2317 Social Epidemiology (3) [S]
Global Health:
GPH-GU 2325 Behavioral and Communication Strategies for Global Epidemics (3) [varies]
GPH-GU 3120 Navigating the Landscape of Global Health: Understanding Challenges and Solutions (3)
GPH-GU 2347 Tackling Global Health Disparities through Implementation Science Research (3) [F]
Infectious Disease Epidemiology:
GPH-GU 2440 Emerging Disease & Bioterrorism (3) [S]
GPH-GU 5120 HIV/AIDS from a Global Perspective (3) [varies]
GPH-GU 2343 HIV/AIDS Public Health Promotion (3) [varies]
GPH-GU 2324 Infectious Disease Epidemiology (3) [F]
GPH-GU 2274 Outbreak Epidemiology: Re-emerging and Emerging Infectious Diseases (3) [F]
GPH-GU 2500 Topics in Public Health: The Geopolitics of Pandemics (3) [varies]
Mental Health:
GPH-GU 2227 Psychiatric Epidemiology (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2132 Stress and Health in Communities (3) [F]
GPH-GU 2255 Substance Use and Public Health (3) [S]*
Nutritional Epidemiology:
GPH-GU 2342 Global Issues in Public Health Nutrition: Obesity and Diabetes (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2344 Maternal and Child Nutrition in Public Health (3) [F]
GPH-GU 2275 Nutrition Epidemiology in Public Health (3) [S]
Special Topics:
GPH-GU 2015 Genomics and Global Public Health (4) [F]
GPH-GU 2319 Grants Writing to Fund Public Health Research (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2126 Healthcare Claims Data Analysis (3) [S]
GPH-GU 2160 Qualitative & Field Methods (3) [F]
GPH-GU 1165 Research Ethics (3) [F]
* this course was formally called Psychoactive Drug Use and Public Health
** GPH-GU 2240 Perspectives in Global Mental Health (3) - as of Fall 2022, this course is no longer being offered; students who have taken it will still receive elective credit.
*** this is a doctoral-level course, but MPH students should enroll in the 2000-level component.
Year 1:
Fall Semester (11 credits)
GPH-GU 2995 Biostatistics for Public Health (3)
GPH-GU 2106 Epidemiology (3)
GPH-GU 2030 Introduction to Global Health (2)
GPH-GU 2140 Global Issues in Social & Behavioral Health (3)
GPH-GU 5171 Global Health Informatics Workshop (0)
GPH-GU 5170 Introduction to Public Health (0)
Spring Semester (12 credits)
GPH-GU 2332 Applied Regression Analyses (3)
GPH-GU 2450 Intermediate Epidemiology (3)
GPH-GU 2153 Global Environmental Health (3)
Elective (3)
Year 2:
Fall Semester (11 credits)
GPH-GU 2686 Thesis I: Practice and Integrative Learning Experiences (2)
GPH-GU 2930 Epidemiology Design & Methods (3)
Elective (3)
Elective (3)
Spring Semester (12 credits)
GPH-GU 2687 Thesis II: Practice and Integrative Learning Experiences (2)
GPH-GU 2225 Psychometric Measurement & Analysis in Public Health Research and Practice (3)
GPH-GU 2110 Health Care Policy (2)
GPH-GU 2112 Public Health Management and Leadership (2)
Elective (3)
The following is a sample part-time 4-year sequence. Students should work with their advisor on mapping out a sequence if they plan on doing the program over the course of 3 years or 5-6 years.
Year 1:
Fall Semester (6 credits)
GPH-GU 2106 Epidemiology (3)
GPH-GU 2995 Biostatistics for Public Health (3)
GPH-GU 5171 Global Health Informatics Workshop (0)
GPH-GU 5170 Introduction to Public Health (0)
Spring Semester (6 credits)
GPH-GU 2332 Applied Regression Analyses (3)
GPH-GU 2450 Intermediate Epidemiology (3)
Year 2:
Fall Semester (6 credits)
GPH-GU 2140 Global Issues in Social & Behavioral Health (3)
GPH-GU 2930 Epidemiology Design & Methods (3)
Spring Semester (6 credits)
GPH-GU 2225 Psychometric Measurement & Analysis in Public Health Research and Practice (3)
Elective (3)
Year 3:
Fall Semester (6 credits)
GPH-GU 2153 Global Environmental Health (3)
Elective (3)
Spring Semester (6 credits)
GPH-GU 2110 Health Care Policy (2)
GPH-GU 2112 Public Health Management & Leadership (2)
GPH-GU 2030 Introduction to Global Health (2)
Summer Semester:
Fieldwork hours for Thesis requirement.
Year 4:
Fall Semester (5 credits)
GPH-GU 2686 Thesis I: Practice and Integrative Learning Experiences (2)
Elective (3)
Spring Semester (5 credits)
GPH-GU 2687 Thesis II: Practice and Integrative Learning Experiences (2)
Elective (3)