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Master of Science 

Epidemiology

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Combat Outbreaks and Chronic Conditions through Scientific Study

Inhibit the spread of infectious disease by studying methods of transmission and learning how to track and analyze patterns of health and sickness across diverse communities. Control devastating chronic conditions by discovering how to identify risk factors and contextual influences, and applying evidence-based prevention approaches.

The 37-credit master’s in epidemiology prepares you to succeed in roles related to geographic and demographic health surveillance and the management of disease agents and risk factors.

Learn how to select study populations, collect and interpret data, and recommend ways to improve the health of people affected by communicable and chronic illnesses.

Program of Study

  • Principles and Methods of Epidemiology I and II
  • Principles of Public Health
  • Computer Programming for Data Management and Analysis in Public Health
  • Principles of Statistical Inference I and II
  • Quantitative Methods in Epidemiology
  • Three electives in epidemiology, biomedical sciences, environmental health sciences, biological sciences, anthropology, or biometry and statistics. Electives can also be taken at Albany Medical College.
  • Epidemiology Field Placement
  • Master’s Thesis


See the Graduate Bulletin for details.
For more information email Nicole Malachowski at nmalachowski@albany.edu or Akiko Hosler at ahosler@albany.edu.

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Field Research

During your field placement, you get to apply your knowledge to real epidemiological research projects.

More than 75% of faculty in the School of Public Health hold appointments with the NYS Department of Health, which provides many opportunities to work in the labs of the internationally recognized Wadsworth Center.

In addition, you can contribute to projects in the Cancer Research Center, Cardiac Quality Improvement Initiative, and Center for Health Workforce Studies.

If you're interested in private-sector epidemiological work, you can take advantage of the School’s relationship with numerous biotechnology firms located right on UAlbany’s Health Sciences Campus.

Career Paths

Graduate of this program study and solve large-scale public health problems in government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and research and development firms.

Sample job titles: epidemiological data analyst, infection control epidemiologist, field epidemiologist, pharmaceutical epidemiologist, and public health liaison.

My interest in public health started when I realized that I could contribute to population-based preventative approaches. I’m earning my master’s at UAlbany because it’s a great education in a great location. The program is helping me network and make close connections with epidemiologists – the career opportunities with the New York State Department of Health are unmatched.

- Meredith Robb, MS in Epidemiology student

Admission Requirements

Deadlines

Priority: February 1
General: April 15

Applicants who wish to be considered for a scholarship must submit their application by the priority deadline. Some scholarships require that applications be received earlier than the published priority deadline. Students who wish to be considered for one of the early submission scholarships should consult our Financing Your Degree page and must submit the degree application and any additional required documents by the stated date for that scholarship.

Fee waivers are available for the first program you apply to in SOPHAS to cover the initial $135 application fee. There are three types of fee waivers: financial-based, service-based, and international-based. You may only apply for one type of fee waiver, and the waiver request must be submitted before you submit your SOPHAS application. Fee waivers are granted on a first come, first served basis, so applicants are strongly encouraged to apply before the priority deadline when requesting a waiver. For more information, visit SOPHAS Fees and Fee Waivers.

Applications are accepted for all programs on a space available basis after the published deadlines. Contact us at sphadmissions@albany.edu or 518-402-0361 with any questions. 

MS Epidemiology Degree Application

The application and all supporting materials for the MS in Epidemiology must be submitted through SOPHAS.

 

Application Requirements

  • Must hold a bachelor’s degree from a college or university of recognized standing
  • Grade point average of 3.00 or better
  • It is very strongly recommended** to have an undergraduate major in in mathematics, statistics, computer science, the biological, physical or social sciences
  • One semester of college level calculus
  • One semester of biology and chemistry
  • Minimum GRE scores 160 verbal; 148 quantitative; 4.5 writing

**Students with undergraduate majors in areas other than those listed may be admitted on the basis of relevant work experience and course work as a non-major in the recommended disciplines. At least one semester of college-level mathematics and biology is strongly advised. Students lacking preparation in biological sciences will be required to take additional course work in this area.

For application specific questions, contact us at epibio@albany.edu.

 

International Requirements

  • WES evaluations for international transcripts.  Evaluations are not required for Canadian transcripts if the language of instruction is English.  
  • Minimum TOEFL score of 98 (institution code: 5688), two semesters of full-time study at a US college or university, or completion of an undergraduate degree in a country where English is the official language and language of instruction


Required Application Materials

Official Transcripts 

  • Official transcripts from EVERY post-secondary academic institution attended, including college coursework completed during high school, must be sent directly from the institution to SOPHAS. 
  • UAlbany students must have an official UAlbany transcript sent directly to SOPHAS.
  • Applicants who use the transcript entry service provided by SOPHAS should note that the entry process adds TWO FULL WEEKS to the time it takes for an application to be verified and considered complete by the admissions committee.


Standardized Exam

  • Official GRE (institution code: 4216) or MCAT scores  
  • The standardized test requirement may be waived for applicants who have completed a graduate degree program from an accredited US institution and received a minimum GPA of 3.0 in the program. Applicants should consult directly with the department to determine waiver eligibility.
     

Three letters of recommendation

  • A minimum of two letters must be from academic faculty 
  • At least one letter must be from a university faculty member in the major field of study
  • Applicants who have been out of school for five or more years may submit professional references


Personal Statement

  • Why do you wish to pursue a career in public health and why are you interested in your chosen area of study?
  • 2-page limit
  • The personal statement must have well-defined research interests and should be very specific in nature


CV/Resume

 

Application Submission

Applicants should submit their application as soon as the items you have control over are complete (personal statement, resume/CV, institutions attended, coursework entry, and all other required sections of the online application). Test scores, transcripts and letters of recommendation will be added as they are received, after which SOPHAS will begin verifying your application.

Applications will not be reviewed until all required items, including official transcripts, official test scores, and required letters of recommendation, have been received and your application has been verified.  Please note that once SOPHAS has received all of your application materials, it may take up to 4 full weeks to be verified by SOPHAS.  Be sure to request all transcripts, recommendations, and standardized test scores in advance so that your application can be completed and verified by the specified application deadline.



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Student Learning Objectives

Learning objectives that UAlbany students are expected to attain through their course of study within their academic program.

Core Competencies
  • Be able to define epidemiologic study designs-ecologic (correlational), cross-sectional, cohort, case-control, and experimental (intervention) studies-and compare their strengths and weaknesses.
  • Be able to define and discuss the relationship of random error, systematic error, bias, the types of bias-selection, information, and confounding bias-and methods of bias control.
  • Be familiar with the concept of effect modification and how it differs from confounding.
  • Be able to define, contrast, and apply the concepts of validity and generalizability while reviewing epidemiologic studies.
  • Be able to define and apply the epidemiologic criteria of causality and be able to distinguish between a measure of association and evidence of causality.
  • Begin to be able to make an epidemiologic decision on a public health issue, even if given conflicting research results, exercising your critical judgment based on what you have learned in this course.
  • Be familiar with the ethical issues pertinent to epidemiological studies.
  • Describe public health as a system, including its unique and important features and their role within it, to general audiences.
  • Apply measures of population health and illness, including risk factors, to community health improvement initiatives.
  • Identify and distinguishing public health and prevention strategies from curative strategies for prevalent health problems.
  • Describe the role of law and government in promoting and protecting the health of the public and identifying specific functions and roles of governmental public health agencies in assuring population health.
  • Describe the public health role, and their own level of participation, in emergency responses for a range of contingencies that might arise.
  • Identify and explaining how various occupations, professions, and careers contribute to carrying out public health’s core functions and essential services.
  • Identify and describing key challenges facing public health workers in the early 21st century.
  • Apply descriptive techniques commonly used to summarize public health data.
  • Develop written and oral presentations based on statistical analyses for both public health professionals and educated lay audiences.
  • Apply basic informatics techniques with vital statistics and public health records in the description of public health characteristics and in public health research and evaluation.
  • Use statistical software to analyze public health data.
  • Use information technology to access, evaluate, and interpret public health data.
  • Identify key sources of data for epidemiologic purposes.
  • Draw appropriate inferences from epidemiologic data.
  • Comprehend basic ethical and legal issues pertaining to epidemiologic data.
  • Distinguish between population and individual ethical considerations in relation to the benefits, costs, and burdens of public health programs.
  • Solve problems under emergency conditions.
  • Facilitate collaboration with internal and external emergency response partners.
  • Apply statistical methods of estimation and hypothesis testing and explain the basics of correlation and regression for the purpose of analyzing the health of populations.
  • Apply knowledge of statistical software and database management for the purpose of conducting research on the health of populations.
  • Have a working knowledge of statistical software and database management.
  • Conduct independent research in epidemiology
  • Plan and execute, with considerable independence, original and extensive laboratory research on a significant problem in epidemiology.
  • Demonstrate advanced communication skills, both verbal and written, to disseminate the results of research.