Master of Science in Clinical & Epidemiological Research

At least 38 quarter-units of coursework are needed for graduation. Students will take the majority of their coursework in the first year allowing for focus on performing and publishing original research in the second year with faculty support.

In-person attendance is required only for select core courses (Designing Clinical Research and our Seminar series on Tuesday afternoons). Some courses may hold in-person exams that would require attendance. Attendance at all other lectures/sessions, although strongly encouraged for maximizing learning, content retention, and building community, is not required.

Comprehensive literature review: Students complete a comprehensive review and critique of the literature pertinent to a specific research question. 

Conference presentation: Students must present their original research at a national or international scientific meeting.

Journal submission: Students will submit their research to a peer-reviewed scientific journal as the first author.

Experience in the instruction of clinical research methods as an educational apprentice for one course.

Graduate students must maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.00 (B) and must make satisfactory progress toward the degree as defined by the program. Students who fail to maintain a 3.00 grade point average or fail to make satisfactory progress toward the degree are subject to dismissal by the Dean of the Graduate Division after consultation with the faculty of the degree program.

Clinical research is broadly defined as health-related research where people, as individuals or in groups, are the objects of observation. It includes patient-oriented, translational, epidemiologic, comparative effectiveness, behavioral, outcomes or health services research.

Clinical research aims to improve human health by identifying strategies to prevent disease and improve care for patients with diagnosed illnesses. Clinical researchers usually define an area of focus with respect to diseases (examples include breast cancer, heart disease, HIV, or malaria) and affected populations (examples include research focusing on children, older adults, minority populations, or urban communities). Researchers focus on many different influences on health including genetic and physiologic risk factors, individual-level behavior, social and environmental determinants, health care access and quality, drugs and devices. The basic methods that clinical researchers use in their work are those of epidemiology, experimental study design, and biostatistics.

Of note, clinical research is typically not primarily performed in a basic science laboratory via characterization of genes, molecules and cells. Rather, it is performed with individual humans or groups of humans as the unit of observation; computers and software are the major technological tools. The products of basic science laboratories are often used as measurements in clinical research but the initial identification of a gene or molecule is typically in the purview of basic science rather than clinical research. Some recent examples of clinical research studies completed in this MS program include:

• Role of breastfeeding in preventing childhood obesity among Latina women;
• Impact of under-prescription of medications in the management of refractory high blood pressure; and
• Influence of HIV disease severity on the occurrence of heart disease

The critical difference between our MS program (a graduate program) and an MPH program (a professional program) is that our MS and ATCR programs are focused on the design and conduct of independent and original research. In contrast, an MPH program is devoted to training public health practitioners. Specifically, MPH programs provide a broad overview of environmental health, health administration, epidemiology and biostatistics. The last two domains are essential tools shared by the MS/ATCR Programs and the MPH. However, the MS program focuses on epidemiology and biostatistics, which are most pertinent to clinical researchers (and not on environmental health or health administration). Furthermore, our programs offer many courses often not found in MPH programs but are specific to the conduct of clinical research (Designing Clinical Research, Clinical Epidemiology, and Clinical Trials are just a few examples) and provide opportunities to learn the backbone of clinical informatics, data science and implementation science.

Yes. Prior substantive knowledge or experience in a health-related field (e.g., breast cancer, HIV, substance abuse, or exercise promotion), obtained from formal education, volunteering or employment, can help in identifying a research area of interest and demonstrate commitment to health research. As such, preference during the admissions process will be given to scholars who have demonstrated knowledge or experience in some aspect of a health-related field (e.g., clinical practice, public health, health promotion, or research) by virtue of either possession of a graduate or professional doctoral degree (MD, DDS, PharmD, PhD or international equivalent), being currently enrolled in such a program, or relevant work or volunteer experience. This prior knowledge or experience is preferred because, as noted above, Master’s students must perform original research in a subject matter area of their choosing to fulfill graduation requirements.

Program graduates are poised to work in a variety of research settings, including universities, public health departments, foundations, and private industry. Regardless of setting, the program strives to train individuals who will become leaders of research efforts and teams. The great majority of our graduates are employed in university settings in some aspect of clinical research. The program can be completed as a stand-alone experience, but it also provides a springboard for students considering advanced degree programs, such as an MD or PhD (e.g., the UCSF PhD Program in Epidemiology and Translational Science). Because our graduates must both present their research at national scientific meetings and publish their findings in biomedical journals, they have built academic records that should make them more competitive when applying for subsequent MD or PhD programs.