Quantitative Methods for Biomedical Research

This is a core, required course for the PhD program in the Epidemiology stream. The course is designed to help students prepare for the written comprehensive exam in epidemiology and will help prepare students to carry out (and supervise) quantitative research studies of the student’s own design.
The course will meet (up to) twice per week in seminar format. Regular small and large take-away assignments will be used for student evaluation and as the basis for class discussion.

This course will provide students with an overview of the theory behind, and use of, data analysis techniques most commonly used in epidemiological study designs. The course will emphasize how quantitative researchers need to select the appropriate analysis options for task at hand as opposed to what has been done or recommended before. Students will be required to find and justify their own solutions to problems posed and become familiar with techniques for self-directed learning with respect to different analysis options and keeping abreast of advanced in the field. The learning objectives of this course fall into two areas of skills development: 1) Knowledge and skills of biostatical approaches applied to epidemiologic research; and,2) Professional skills as an independent investigator