Info for Faculty

What is the dual PhD/MS degree program in Microbiology and Immunology and Hospital and Molecular Epidemiology?

The dual degree program is a program wherein PhD students in the Microbiology and Immunology department (M&I) can earn an MS in Hospital and Molecular Epidemiology (HME) concurrently with their PhD. The program requires students to take several extra courses than are required for the PhD alone, but no additional internships or research projects are required. Although most of the coursework is accomplished during the first two years, the MS is not awarded until the student receives his/her PhD due to the interdependency of the two degrees.

Why do we need this program?

There are several reasons why we created this program, such as remaining competitive with the substantial number of peer institutions that have already instituted such dual degrees. The primary reason is that students are very interested in this dual degree program. A number of students have completed or are pursuing the dual degree, and current and prospective students are interested.

One objection some have raised is that students interested in this program should instead simply do a PhD in Epidemiology, and that creating a new program is unnecessary. This objection, however, fails to recognize that students in the dual degree program are primarily interested in biomedical research and secondarily in epidemiology. Obtaining a PhD in M&I is still their primary objective. Another suggestion has been that students could just take their electives in the epidemiology department instead of obtaining an extra degree. While this is certainly a good idea for many students, students in the dual degree program are looking for a deeper understanding of epidemiology than they could obtain with just a few electives. It is anticipated that membership in the dual degree program will provide these students with a sense of membership in the HME community and mentorship that will influence and facilitate their career options. Similarly, the HME capstone and related programs will benefit from the inclusion of students with a strong biomedical focus. Moreover, many of the interested students are seeking careers in applied, translational research that integrates biomedical science with public health and epidemiology; these students benefit from both the training and the additional credential that the MS in HME will grant them.

Similar concerns apply to the suggestion that a certificate program, rather than a dual degree, be implemented; the coursework for such a program is simply not as in-depth as students would like, and they fear that a certificate is a meaningless credential. Finally, the benefits to the student of a concurrent dual degree program rather than two consecutive degrees are clear: the dual degree is intended to be completed in the same length of time as the PhD alone and thus will incur no additional tuition. In stark contrast, the program would take one and a half additional years and cost the student $60,000 if the MS were pursued separately.

Will students be spending as much time in lab as other students?

Only extremely motivated and highly qualified students will be admitted to the dual degree program, and we therefore anticipate that dual degree students will graduate in about the same span of time as other M&I PhD students. Although the dual degree program will be an intense experience, students enrolling in this program are aware that they will need to work especially hard to stay on track. The expectation is that these students will simply spend more time working than other students would; they should be spending at least as much time in lab as other students.

To help alleviate the very valid concern that students will be working in lab less during their second year, the M&I department may provide additional tuition support for dual degree students for 4-12 months after PIBS funding ends. The department will provide this limited tuition assistance on a case-by-case basis.

While dual degree students certainly will have more coursework than most students, it should be noted that this additional coursework is equivalent to a major extracurricular activity, such as playing on an intramural sports team, extra terms of TAing, or volunteering for a political campaign. Thus far, as each student considering the dual degree has been counseled pre-matriculation, it has been impressed upon them that whereas many current M&I students devote significant effort to extracurricular activities that are valuable for their personal growth or that may influence their career directions, dual-degree students must realize that their schedules will leave less time for such activities.

Finally, some faculty members have expressed concern that it will be difficult to get to know dual degree students during their rotations because these students will be taking more courses during their first year. To address this concern, the program recommends that dual degree students take full term rotations rather than the half-term rotations that are an option for other PIBS students; this will allow students and mentors to get to know each other well in spite of students’ heavier course loads. Importantly, all students intending to pursue the dual degree will be advised of the necessity of announcing this intention to prospective rotation mentors upon initial contact. We have created a rotation agreement form that must be signed by each dual degree student’s rotation advisor to ensure that this vital communication occurs.

Will all students in the program be working in M&I labs?

Students in the dual degree program will still be required to follow all PIBS and/or M&I requirements regarding the laboratories in which they may complete their rotations and dissertations. This means that students may rotate in any lab as long as their mentor or one of their co-mentors is affiliated with PIBS, but if they wish to join the M&I department, the student must have a mentor or co-mentor with an appointment in M&I. The exception to this general rule is that due to funding concerns, PIBS has ruled that students cannot do their dissertations with a faculty member whose primary appointment is in the School of Public Health.

Since the intent of the dual degree program is to provide students with substantive training in epidemiology, we do suggest that students arrange a rotation with an SPH mentor or co-mentor if doing so would not impede their ability to choose a laboratory for their dissertation research. Because of PIBS stipulations, however, students in the dual degree program can do their dissertation research in SPH laboratories only if they have a co-mentor in the M&I department. If a student approaches you to act as a co-mentor for his or her dissertation, please bear in mind that agreeing to act as a co-mentor is a serious matter that will require you to provide financial support for the student should the support from the student’s other mentor fall through. No faculty member, regardless of affiliation with or support for the dual degree program, is in any way obligated to take on such a co-mentorship. We recommend that co-mentorship agreements for dissertation research be arranged only in cases where the student’s project would truly bridge the work done in both labs.

Are students going to be missing key PIBS or M&I requirements?

According to the degree requirements spelled out in the dual degree proposal to Rackham, and as students now entering the program are advised, dual degree students will fulfill all PIBS and all M&I requirements, including one PIBS core course and the required M&I classes 607, 615, and 640. The only exception is that although they will participate, students will not register officially for M&I 812 each term. Rackham fee credit guidelines permit only one course per term to be taken for credit (without additional tuition payment) after advancement to candidacy, so during post-candidacy terms when dual degree students are taking other required courses they will not register for M&I 812. They will still, however, be expected to attend all M&I 812 seminars and present their research once per year.

Dual degree students will have slightly less freedom to choose their core courses than most students would. Dual degree students must take PATH 581, a PIBS- and M&I- approved Cell Biology core course alternate to CDB 530, because it also fulfills the HME pathology requirement.

What additional things to Dual Degree students need to do?

They need to get a special rotation form signed by each rotation mentor. That form is found elsewhere on the site, under "Links to Key Information and Forms"

What classes will students in the dual degree program actually be taking?

See the sample courses of study elsewhere on the web page.