Participants
In the twenty-five years of its existence, more than 2,500 physicians from a variety of clinical fields have enrolled in and completed the summer curriculum of the Program in Clinical Effectiveness. Many completed the requirements for a Master's degree at the Harvard School of Public Health, and nearly all have received academic appointments at research-oriented institutions. A description of this program and some of its participants can be found in Research Training in Clinical Effectiveness: Replacing "In My Experience ..." with Rigorous Clinical Investigation (Clinical Research 1990;38:686-693), Making Medicine More Scientific (Nature 1994;371:100), The Harvard Clinical Effectiveness Training Programme (In: Peckham M, Smith R (eds), Scientific Basis of Health Services, BMJ Publishing Group 1996;7:65-71), and Protecting an Endangered Species: Training Physicians to Conduct Clinical Research (Academic Medicine 2009 Apr;84(4): 439-444.
Faculty and Administration
Drs. David W. Bates, E. Francis Cook, and Arnold M. Epstein are Co-Directors of the Program in Clinical Effectiveness. The other principal faculty in the core and elective courses in recent years include Drs. John Ayanian, Heather Baer, Maureen Bisognano, Carlos Camargo, Gary Curhan, Roger Davis, Jonathan Einbinder, Jonathan Finkelstein, Michael Fischer, Garrett Fitzmaurice, Michael Gaziano, Donald Goldmann, Patricia Hibberd, Albert Hofman, Myriam Hunink, Jeffrey Katz, Anthony Komaroff, Thomas Lee, Matthew Liang, Edward Marcantonio, Ellen McCarthy, Michelle Mello, Blackford Middleton, Kerrie Nelson, E. John Orav, George Reed, Sebastian Schneeweiss, Deborah Schrag, Donald Simonson, Daniel Singer, David Studdert, Marcia Testa, Milton Weinstein, and Joel Weissman.
Program Evaluation
As of October 2011, 2,555 individuals have been trained in the Program. The summer curriculum of the Program in Clinical Effectiveness has received very positive evaluations. About 90% of prior enrollees have stated that they were satisfied or very satisfied with the curriculum, and have indicated that they would take the curriculum if they had to make the decision again.
The faculty for the summer curriculum was chosen both for their strong research backgrounds and for their skills as teachers. All instructors received superior ratings for the quality of their lectures and for the overall value for each course.
Admission Procedures
Admission to the Program in Clinical Effectiveness requires acceptance by an admissions committee from the faculty of the Program. All applicants must submit an application online through the Schools of Public Health Application Service (SOPHAS) at www.sophas.org. A CV, a statement of intention, and three letters of recommendation from individuals familiar with their research potential must be submitted. Local applicants must have a guaranteed position in a clinical department in a Boston teaching hospital. Applicants from outside of Boston must be sponsored by their medical school or teaching hospital. One letter must be from the applicant's department or division head, and it must indicate support for the applicant, including a guarantee for all tuition charges. Typically, sponsoring departments/divisions guarantee the tuition for the applicants. However, self-funded applicants will also be considered as long as they have the recommendation from their department/division head. The application deadline for the Program in Clinical Effectiveness is February 1, 2012. Late applications will be considered based on available space. Please go to: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/academics/clinical-effectiveness/ to view detailed application instructions.
Those who wish to simultaneously apply to a Master’s Program at Harvard School of Public Health may do so online through SOPHAS at www.sophas.org. Please go to http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/academics/clinical-effectiveness/ to view detailed application instructions and www.hsph.harvard.edu/admissionsoffice for comprehensive information on the degree admissions process. Catalogues can be obtained from the Admissions Office, Harvard School of Public Health, 677 Huntington Ave., Boston MA 02115 or by calling (617)-432-1031. Completed Master's degree (SM and MPH) applications received on or before December 15, 2011, will be considered. Students who begin the Program in Clinical Effectiveness as non-degree candidates may apply to the School within four years of taking their summer courses, at which time they may petition to have credits (up to a total of 20) and tuition charges (for 20 credits) counted towards the requirements for a degree.
Minority Applicants
The program encourages applications from individuals from minority groups. Harvard University is an equal opportunity employer.
Charges
Since the 15 academic credits granted by the Harvard School of Public Health represent more than 1/3 of the total needed for a master's degree, the tuition charge for the summer program is about 1/3 of the total tuition for a full-time student. Last summer, the charges for tuition and registration fees totaled $13,775. Historically, tuition charges have increased between 3% and 6% each year, and a similar increase can be expected for this summer. Most participants have the tuition paid by their sponsoring institution. Some make personal payment. The exact per credit rate tuition charge will be known by mid- February 2012. Additionally, there is a $115 SOPHAS application fee.
