Cambridge University MPhil courses in epidemiology, public health and primary care are evolving in to a new MPhil in Population Health Sciences (PHS). This new course is jointly run by the MRC Epidemiology Unit, Department of Public Health and Primary Care, and the MRC Biostatistics Unit (BSU), with contributions from colleagues across the University.
The MPhil in Population Health Sciences is a postgraduate master’s course, with specialisation streams covering the academic disciplines of health data science, infectious diseases, epidemiology, global health, public health, and primary care research. MRC Epidemiology Unit staff will teach courses across all these streams, including a brand new module in global health.
The new MPhil is a one-year full-time master’s degree (FHEQ level-7 equivalent) of the University of Cambridge. It builds upon and replaces the previous MPhils in Primary Care Research, Public Health, and Epidemiology, which ran for 6, 15, and 27 years respectively. The course can also be taken as an MSt in Population Health Sciences, which is a two-year part-time master’s degree of the University of Cambridge. Due to support from HDRUK, we are fortunate to be able to offer scholarships to some UK candidates following the Health Data Science theme. These will be awarded at the discretion of the course admissions committee to cover between 50% and 100% of tuition fees and living costs. Applicants for the Health Data Science stream will automatically be considered for these scholarships.
The overall aim of the programme is to provide course participants with the necessary knowledge and skills to serve as a foundation for a career in population health sciences in academic, practice or other settings. Students will receive basic training in the core research methods used in the related academic disciplines of epidemiology, global health, health data science, infectious diseases, public health, and primary care research, and will then be given the opportunity to further specialise in their chosen area of interest. The course will teach students how to critique and design population health studies, and will give them the opportunity to carry out focused research under close supervision. Ultimately, we expect graduates of the course to contribute to the study and improvement of population health.
In one of the many alumni testimonials, Jack Birch, now a PhD student at the MRC Epidemiology Unit, said:
The MPhil proved excellent preparation for PhD study at Cambridge. It was academically rigorous and challenging; the course content was reflective of both my individual interests and the skills I wished to develop to prepare me well for future study. For example, the comprehensive statistics and epidemiology training that was central to the MPhil ensure I can understand and critique the scientific underpinnings of key models and literature I encountered both as part of the MPhil and in my PhD. The MPhil in Public Health is a fulfilling, exciting and interesting experience to have completed – and one that I can highly recommend.”
Read Jack’s full testimonial and others here.
Dr Jean Adams, programme leader in the MRC Epidemiology Unit, and Academic Director of the MPhil in Population Health Sciences said:
It’s great to see our MPhil programmes expanding and evolving like this. Unit staff are leading many components of the new MPhil from our Public Health and Global Health streams, to the core modules on epidemiology and public health, and our specialist modules on physical activity and nutritional epidemiology, public health policy, and behaviour change. The MPhils are our contribution to training the next generation of population health scientists whether they work in local public health practice, research, international policy, advocacy or beyond. It’s a real privilege for us to make this important contribution and work with the very best students from around the world.”
Apply now
Applications are now open for 2021/2022. The course is open to graduates and other qualified candidates who wish to pursue a research, practice or leadership career in population health sciences.
If you would like to find out more, visit www.phs.masters.cam.ac.uk