International Doctoral Programme in Epidemiology and Public Health (IPPE)

The main objectives of the international doctoral programme are to increase knowledge and understanding of major public health problems, particularly in low and middle income countries, and to build sustainable public health capacity by training epidemiologists and public health personnel for leadership positions in research, administration, programme planning and policy development, in collaboration with global partners.

The selected PhD candidates will attend one academic year (August – May) at the Health Sciences Campus (Kauppi Campus) to complete the required full-time coursework (60 ECTS).

The required coursework includes doctoral level courses in epidemiology, biostatistics and other health sciences. There are also courses and seminars on research proposal development, study design, implementation and analysis, comminication and reporting. For more information see the Curricula guide. The courses may be selected to meet  the students individual learning and professional goals.

Completion of a doctoral degree usually requires 3-4 years after completion of coursework.

PhD research (3-4 additional years): Field research (in Finland or abroad) is generally conducted after the coursework has been completed. A doctoral dissertation requires 3-4 original scientific articles published in peer-reviewed journals.

After completion of coursework and successful public defense of dissertation, the candidate will receive a doctoral degree (PhD) in epidemiology or a related field.