The overarching goal of this program is to foster scholarship in developing new and innovative ideas in population health sciences, improve communication of those ideas effectively, and understand changing health needs in different societies and contexts.
What is Population Health Sciences?
‘Population Health’ captures the social and biological dimensions of human groups. It also demonstrates the common perspective that underlies the Fields of Study with ‘population’ as the object of study, target of inference, intervention, and improvement. Thus, Population Health Sciences presents an umbrella framework to reflect the general changes in our understanding of population health worldwide, to answer a call for multidisciplinary researchers in the health sciences, and also to respect the need for depth in a particular area of expertise.
Who are PHS students at Harvard?
PHS students at Harvard have the benefit of affiliation with two vibrant academic communities. As PhD students at Harvard University, students are formally enrolled in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) and become part of the expansive community of GSAS scholars. At the same time, students maintain an academic affiliation with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, home to the five academic departments whose faculty provide the research, teaching, and advising expertise that form the foundation of the Fields of Study for this PhD: Environmental Health, Epidemiology, Global Health & Population, Nutrition, and Social & Behavioral Sciences.
