Welcome to the PhD Program at the College of Public Health!

The PhD Program

The PhD is granted in recognition of high attainment in a specific field of knowledge. It is a research degree and is not conferred solely upon the earning of credit, the completion of courses, or the acquiring of a number of terms of residency, but also the successful completion of scholarly work. The length of residency and the requirements below are minimums; programs/colleges may elect to establish more rigorous requirements.

The degree will be granted after the student has shown proficiency and distinctive achievement in a specified field, has demonstrated the ability to do original, independent investigation, and has presented these findings with a high degree of literary skill in a dissertation. A major professor will be appointed as soon as possible but no later than the time the student has completed 50% of the program. The advisor will advise on any specific subject matter deficiencies and assist in the choice of a major professor and area of research.

Mission

The mission of the PhD degree is to prepare public health professionals to make substantive contributions to public health inquiry and practice.

This mission relates directly to the University of South Florida mission, which includes creating a community of learners together with significant and sustainable university‐community partnerships and collaborations, as well as designing, strengthening and building sustainable healthy communities and improving quality of life.

Curriculum Overview

Program Requirements

Accreditation

The University of South Florida is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of College and Schools (SACS). The College of Public Health degree programs are fully accredited by the Council on Education in Public Health (CEPH).

The PhD Guidebook

This PhD Guidebook has four sections, linked below and on the upper left of this page. Follow these four steps to work through your program.

Get Assistance

Navigating your PhD experience can be challenging at times, and we are here to help. This guidebook walks you through the basic steps from your first semester to graduation. Please reach out to us with any questions you have.

Persons to Contact

Director of PhD program: You can contact
Assistant Director of Professional Programs: You can contact Somer Burke at sburke@health.usf.edu or (813) 974-6606.
Office of Academic and Student Affairs:
- You can call us at (813) 974-6505 or call toll-free (888) USF-COPH or (888) 873-2674 and press 1.
- You can email us at advisor@health.usf.edu or view our staff directory to contact someone directly.
- You can visit us at the WELL (MDA) across Holly street from the College of Public Health.
- You can also reach out to /wiki/spaces/COPHHB/pages/16768469664
Admissions: Please go to our Prospective Students page to request an appointment with an advisor.

COPH and USF Forms

All COPH and USF forms that you will need are located on this page: http://health.usf.edu/publichealth/forms.html

Student Resources

Please go to this link for information on a variety of student resources available to you as a student of USF: Student Resources

Printing the Guidebook

You can print any single page of the guidebook using the "Tools" menu in the upper right corner and exporting the page to a PDF copy. You can print sections of this document by using the "Browse" menu in the upper left corner of the menu bar and selecting the "Space Operations" option. There you can select the "PDF Export" option and the customize the PDF to include any sections you wish.

Catalog Disclaimer

This version of the PhD Guidebook is the official version of the USF College of Public Health Guidebook for the PhD degree effective for the current catalog. This is a subset of and supplement to the USF Graduate Catalog. If there are conflicts between the two documents, the USF Graduate Catalog prevails.

The College of Public Health reserves the right to change its rules, courses, and requirements from time to time and to make all such changes applicable to all students, whether new or continuing, when in its sole judgment such changes are deemed necessary.

To view the complete USF Graduate Catalog, go to: http://www.grad.usf.edu/catalog.asp; for USF regulations and policies, go to http://regulationspolicies.usf.edu/.