Department of Health Informatics

The UMDNJ-SHRP Ph.D. degree program in Biomedical Informatics represents an articulated program of study designed primarily to serve health care practitioners, health sciences educators and researchers, and students who have completed an MS degree in: Biomedical Informatics, Computer Science, Engineering, Biology, Biomedical Sciences, or students who hold Master’s or advance degrees in the health related professions, or basic sciences. The program is designed to prepare individuals for informatics leadership positions in the schools of health sciences, teaching hospitals, health care organizations, pharmaceuticals, biomedical research laboratories, and government agencies.

Graduates of this program will develop, implement and evaluate informatics algorithms, biomedical computing solutions and technologies for decision support tools for improving clinical practice, and health care delivery and management; and design systems for more effective and informative research and education. Thus, expanding and advancing the science and methods of biomedical informatics. Students can select one of the following areas of specialization:

• Clinical Informatics
• Consumer/Patient Care Informatics
• Bioinformatics
• Hospital/Healthcare Information Management

Full-time students may complete the program in three to five years while Part-time students may take up to seven years to complete the program.

Students successfully completing the program will be granted the Ph.D. degree in Biomedical Informatics jointly by UMDNJ.

Degree Requirements for Ph.D. in Biomedical Informatics:
All students must complete at least 61 credits beyond the Master of Science degree; and maintain an average grade of 3.0 or better, with no more than two grades of C, and one credit hour of colloquium in biomedical informatics. In addition to meeting degree requirements, students are expected to assist in teaching at least one course in biomedical informatics, under the supervision of a faculty member.

Academic Requirements: The academic requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Informatics are as follows:

1. At least 24 credits of advanced courses (above 5000 level) subject to advisor’s approval and related to the expected research area of specialization;
2. 36 credits of dissertation research culminating in a dissertation,
   which meets publication requirements of UMDNJ-SHRP. A minimum of 6 credits may be (at the 7000 level) taken as pre-doctoral research work, culminating in dissertation proposal. The proposal must be successfully defended. These credits may be applied to the dissertation credits.
3. Participation in the graduate colloquium/seminars, BINF7910 Biomedical Informatics Seminar each semester.
4. Submission of the final draft of the dissertation with successful dissertation defense.
5. In addition to the dissertation, submission of at least one research paper for publication in a peer reviewed journal.
6. Qualifying Examination: Students must pass a doctoral qualifying examination, which is designed to test the fundamental knowledge of students in the area of biomedical informatics theory and systems, health care systems, and selected Biomedical Informatics courses related to the area of specialization. Admission to the doctoral program does not imply candidacy for a degree. Registration for dissertation research will be permitted to those who have passed the qualifying examination.
7. Oral Examination: The dissertation must be defended in an oral examination.
   

Admissions:
Program Entrance Requirements for Ph.D.:
Applicant for admission to the Ph.D. Program in Biomedical Informatics must hold a Masters degree from an accredited institution in the US or its equivalent with a major in any field of health sciences (including medicine, dentistry, allied health, nursing, public health, pharmacy), or biological sciences, computer science, engineering or an equivalent field of study. A student seeking admission to any of the Graduate Programs must satisfy all entrance requirements of UMDNJ-SHRP.

These requirements include:
• Completed applications form with the SHRP’s application fee.
• Three (3) letters of recommendation. Professors and/or individuals directly responsible for supervising the applicant, attesting to the candidate’s potential success in the program, should write these letters.
• Official transcripts(s) of previous collegiate work or last earned
degrees.
• GRE scores: (see below for GRE Exemption).
• Personal statement describing interest and commitment to the
program.
• Evidence of basic proficiency in any programming language,
database concepts and elementary calculus.

GRE Exemption: Applicants already holding a doctoral (e.g., Ph.D., MD, DDS) degree in an appropriate discipline from an accredited institution in the USA, or UMDNJ’s medical, or dental students are exempted from the GRE requirement. Students already holding a M.S. in Biomedical Informatics degree from UMDNJ and students applying for admission to the Health Care Informatics Certificate Program are also exempted from the GRE requirement. International Students and TOEFL: In addition to the requirements stated above international students are required to provide evidence of English language proficiency by submitting Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) examination scores. Applicants with scores below 550 or CBT equivalent are not considered for admission.

Advisement: Each entering student is assigned a faculty advisor who assists the student in initial course selection appropriate to the career goals of the student, selection of a project advisor and an advisory committee for the directed thesis or dissertation project.

Program retention: Retention in the graduate programs is based on the
following criteria:

• maintenance of GPA at 3.0 or better;
• obtain no more than one course failure for the duration of the program;
• retake a failed course only once and attain a C or better grade; and
• adherence to the policies of the UMDNJ, the SHRP and affiliating institutions and health care agencies.

NON DEGREE STATUS
Students with baccalaureate degrees who do not plan to seek admission in the Master of Science, Ph.D. or Health Care Informatics Certificate programs may request permission to enroll as non-matriculated status students. These students can take up to 12 credits in the program. Permission to take courses is contingent upon fulfillment of the specific course prerequisites, availability of spaces, and approval of the Program Director. Non-matriculated status students may apply for matriculated status in the Program after demonstrating capability to obtaining the MS degree or the Certificate.