Primary Care and Public Health (PhD/MPhil)
PhD 3-4 years; MD 2 years; MPhil 1 year (Full-time) / Please discuss with School (Part-time) / n/a (Distance / E-Learning)
The Institute of Primary Care and Public Health is one Centre within the School of Medicine where students can conduct their research. Full details of all the research areas available can be found through the Medicine (PhD/MPhil/MD) programme.
Programme Aims
The Institute aims to conduct world-leading research that is socially responsive, locally relevant, and applicable internationally.
Our research integrates biological, social, mathematical, clinical and epidemiological fundamental science to take innovations forward using our world leading translation science and topic expertise.
The Institute’s mission is to improve health and well-being by:
- Integrating high quality research, teaching, training, clinical service, and innovation and policy engagement
- Better understanding inequality and the variation in the causes of ill health and health care delivery
- Developing and evaluating interventions to address ill health and inequalities with people/patients and groups at the centre
- Developing the methods for maximal excellence in research process and research implementation
- Ensuring our work will be internationally excellent and locally relevant, with maximal uptake into policy and practice.
Ensuring our science-based teaching will promote lifelong learning of evidence and relationship based medicine that improves clinical care and health and well being.
About the Institute
The Cochrane Institute of Primary Care was created in 2011 as one of seven Institutes within the School of Medicine. The Institute currently has 112 members of staff and 24 Principal Investigators, and has a close symbiotic relationship with the UK CRC Registered South East Wales Trials Unit (SEWTU), core-funded by National Institute for Health and Social Care Research (NISCHR). The Institute will continue to build on the work of the Clinical Epidemiology Interdisciplinary Research Group that brought together applied researchers based in different departments around common research themes of Encounter Research, Infections and Large Scale Epidemiology. Many of these researchers have now joined the new institute from former departments of Child Health, Geriatrics and the Institute of Medical Genetics.
The Institute will continue to exploit the opportunities in Wales notably:
- A stable population that has wide variations (urban, rural and post industrialised);
- Established research excellence in clinical epidemiology, notably the work of Cochrane, Tudor Hart, Stott, Burr, Elwood and others;
A supportive Welsh Government that has highlighted this area as a priority in its Science Strategy.
Training and Studentships
There are currently 25 PhD students across a number of research areas and 33 Master of Public Health students based within the Institute. We endeavour to channel funding in the creation of additional studentships, and also in the support and development of our students.
Research Areas
There are five research programmes, subject to ongoing review, which are building on the current research we have in place. These programmes are:
- Common Infections and Antibiotic Resistance - This area covers the epidemiology, diagnosis, decision making, treatment and prevention of common infections and antibiotic resistance, and includes the behaviour change required to modify patient and clinician behaviour.
- Behavioural Medicine and Clinical Quality – This area aims to improve health and health care through a programme of multidisciplinary research to understand and change the behaviour of the population, patients and clinicians.
- Early Years
- Healthy Places - Research conducted by the Healthy places group involves the development and application of approaches that integrate understanding of the influence of social, economic, biological and physical environments on the health of individuals within families, neighbourhoods and communities especially studying generational and life course effects.
- Healthy Ageing
Special Features
- There may be opportunities for students to work on a part-time / temporary basis on research conducted within the Institute.
- All post-graduate researchers attend a taught research methods course during their first year, including generic training and detailed statistical, data collection and qualitative research modules.
- The University Graduate College offers courses ranging from generic (e.g. data presentation) to specialist skills (e.g. statistics). The University Code of Practice for Research Degrees provides Quality assurance in PGR training and the University Graduate College Programme (UGCP) that helps students identify appropriate training, record completion and assess its value.
- Progress is monitored 6 monthly by a formal appraisal panel, also overseeing supervision effectiveness. All post-graduate researchers present their work within research groups, at the Institute’s monthly seminar series, at the annual School of Medicine Postgraduate Research Day and national and international meetings. These structures extend to early-career researchers who attend the Research Staff Career Development Skills Programme, with supervision and mentoring by senior researchers and clinician scientists.
- Non-clinical senior academics are integral to our multidisciplinary team including professors, senior lecturers in psychology, and medical sociology.
- Supervision by a multidisciplinary team
- Daily access to supervisors
- Sensitive group feedback when presenting at the weekly seminar programme
- Financial and other support for attending additional courses and conferences
Skills Acquired
Students will benefit from gaining a range of transferrable and professional skills during their PhD study. Depending on the project, these could include qualitative analysis, quantitative analysis, qualitative interviewing skills, presenting skills, focus group facilitation, academic publication writing, and more.
Career Prospects
The Institute of Primary Care and Public Health PhD programme offers an introduction to a career in the academic world, the NHS, or a health-related field, in clinical trials, clinical epidemiology and the development of innovative interventions and methods.
Entry Requirements
Suitable for graduates in mathematics, epidemiology, statistics, medicine, psychology and sociology.
Applicants should hold, or expect to obtain, a first-class or upper-second-class Honours degree in biomedical science, psychology, sports and exercise science, social science, medicine, epidemiology, public health, nursing, allied health disciplines or a related area.
Applicants whose first language is not English are normally expected to have reached the minimum University requirements (e.g. 6.5 IELTS) in their English proficiency. Copies of appropriate English language certificates must be supplied with your application.
How to Apply
Please complete the online application form of Cardiff University. You can find the link at the bottom of this page.
Tuition Fees:
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UK & EU Full Time for 2013/14
£3,900.00
-
International Full Time for 2013/14
£16,000.00
Next intake: The University has four entry points for research degrees; 1st October, 1st January, 1st April or 1st July
School Contact
Name: Angela Watkins
Telephone: +44 (0)29 2068 7190
Fax:
Email: watkinsa6@cardiff.ac.uk
School Website:
http://medicine.cf.ac.uk/primary-care-public-health/
