Program Overview

Introduction to the Ph.D. in Public Health, Concentration in Brain, Behavior, and the Environment

The doctoral program at FIU Stempel College is designed to provide students with a broad knowledge of environmental exposures, neuroscience, cancer, occupational health, toxicology, and drug discovery. This program aims to make students competitive for private, public, and government positions in bench science, policy development, and community education.

Program Overview

The Department of Environmental Health Sciences (EHS) offers a doctoral degree in two different tracks: Environmental Toxicology and Brain, Behavior, and the Environment. The Brain, Behavior, and the Environment (BBE) track emphasizes emerging themes in neuroscience, pharmacology, neurotoxicology, imaging, psychology, and psychiatry, alongside environmental exposures.

Program Details

• Duration: Approximately 5 years
• Credit Hours: 75
• Format: In-person

Admission Requirements

Applicants must meet the University's general graduate admission requirements:

• A four-year bachelor's degree or equivalent from a nationally accredited institution
• A minimum of a 3.0 GPA, "B" average, in the last 60 upper-division undergraduate coursework
• International graduate student applicants whose native language is not English are required to submit a score for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS)

The College also requires:

• A current resume
• Three letters of recommendation
• A writing sample (Master's thesis or research project, published manuscript, or some other document which demonstrates writing ability)
• A personal statement of research interest

Doctoral Requirements

A student may enroll for dissertation credits after completing all coursework, passing the candidacy examination, and being advanced to candidacy. The candidacy examination will be prepared and graded by a committee consisting of a minimum of three faculty members.

Curriculum

The BBE Ph.D. track requires approximately 75 credit hours, including:

• A core curriculum shared across all Public Health majors (12 credit hours)
  • PHC 6601: Emerging Issues in Public Health
  • PHC 6091: Biostatistics 2
  • PHC 7981: Research Concepts and Proposal Development
  • PHC 7705: Methods in Evidence Based Public Health
• Specific to Environmental Health Science Ph.D. students (9 credits)
  • PHC 6328: Molecular & Cellular Toxicology
  • PHC 6329: Biomarkers
  • PHC 7732C: Research Ethics & Scientific Integrity
  • PHC 6921: Environmental Health Sciences Seminar
• Specific to the BBE concentration (12 credit hours)
  • PHC 7381C: Neuroscience
  • PHC 7731C: Advanced Neurotoxicology Research Methods
  • PHC 7384: Advanced Neurotoxicology
  • PHC 7385C: Emerging Issues in Neurotoxicology
• Elective courses: A minimum of 18 additional credit hours from elective courses related to the Ph.D. student's research
• Dissertation research: A minimum of 15 dissertation credit hours

Research Areas

The program focuses on emerging themes in neuroscience, pharmacology, neurotoxicology, imaging, psychology, and psychiatry, alongside environmental exposures. The Department of Environmental Health Sciences applies the next generation of biomedical advances by leveraging emerging knowledge in human disease biology and environmental health impacts.

Accreditation and Rankings

Stempel College is accredited and ranked among the top schools of public health among public universities. It is recognized for its highly-rated programs and top research funding among public universities.