Title of the group:

BioStatistics and Epidemiology

History / Introduction of the group:

The Department of BioStatistics and Epidemiology was established in 2014 to cover the teaching of BioStatistics, research methods and epidemiology courses. Since 2011, in order to educate and train a professional and efficient workforce, students have been admitted to the master's degree in biostatistics. And since 2023, students have been admitted to the master's degree in epidemiology.

Head of Department:

Emails: kzfir@yahoo.com , kzfir@gmail.com , angali_k@ajums.ac.ir
Phones: 09389976104 , 06133112846

Personnel:

• Statistics Department Expert:
  Emails: Fatemeh.varshovi1362@gmail.com , f.varshovi@yahoo.com , varshovi.f@ajums.ac.ir
  Phones: 09163146150 , 06133112899
• Clerk of Office:
  Email: ss.la359@gmail.com
  Phones: 09163229358 , 06133115332

International Affairs Liaison:

Emails: kzfir@yahoo.com , kzfir@gmail.com , angali_k@ajums.ac.ir
Phones: 06133112846 , 09389976104

Active Laboratories:

2 laboratories equipped with 18 computers, 1 projector and screen, and 1 television.

Student Statistics:

• Iranian Students: 11
• International Students: -

Total Course Credits

• Compensatory: 1
• Core: 18
• Non-core: 6
• Seminar: 2
• Dissertation: 6
• Total: 32

Program Description

The M.Sc. in epidemiology is a branch of basic medical sciences and health that evaluates the individuals and public health by collecting data and its analysis. It identifies their distribution in the society, factors affecting them, and then proposes solutions and evaluates the services provided by the health centers in different levels.

Mission

The recent century has witnessed a major change in the health patterns of the society. The changes in the birth and death patterns, age pyramid, life expectancy and patterns of the prevalent diseases in the society are evident. Changes in the prevalent diseases from infectious diseases such as Tuberculosis and cholera to cardiovascular diseases, cancers and metabolic disorders and causal models of new diseases in addition to the serious attention given to evaluation of environmental factors, work factors and psychological factors have led to development of new interests in this field and provided new grounds for doing research on public health and factors affecting it.

The most important role of an epidemiologist is the analysis of health statistics, monitoring and evaluating the health programs and determining the cost-effectiveness of health plans. An epidemiologist plays an important role in health system by optimizing the costs in different health programs and levels, and also contributing to selection of the best ways in raising the public health, all of which leading to the economic and social development of the society.

Perspective

Graduates of epidemiology enhance epidemiological thinking in the society and in different administrative parts of it. They analyze the public health data and help authorities in data analysis, making evidence-based decision and also drawing their attention to cost-effectiveness. In this regard, they help to produce full and equal access to quality health care services for all members of the community.

They also help by proposing solutions and offering effective preventive measures raising the medical sciences in the country by doing clinical researches with regard to research standards and by raising the quality of the results. It is expected that in the future we would become one of the main centers of decision making and policy making in the field of health and disease in our region and worldwide.

Objectives

The main objective of the program is training human sources in the graduate level in order to provide the related health services in the following fields:

• Teaching and empowerment in identification of the health issues of the society
• Teaching and empowerment in identification of the behavioral patterns and the society’s characteristics in various aspects
• Teaching and empowerment in scientific ways of collecting data
• Teaching and empowerment in monitoring and evaluating of programs and analysis of cost-effectiveness
• Teaching and empowerment in ways of using the statistical methods and computers in data analysis
• Teaching and empowerment in identification of the danger sources and ways of controlling them in different levels of the research

Admission Requirements

Admission requires a B.S. degree in health related sciences from an accredited university.

Expected Competencies & Skills

At the end of the program learners will be competent in the following skills:

• Stating the health related problems in a population and setting priorities
• Developing proposals for doing epidemiological studies
• Designing epidemiological studies
• Implementing epidemiological studies in fields
• Reporting epidemiological evaluations.

Student Assessment (Methods and Types)

• Formative
• Summative
• Comprehensive exam

M.Sc. Thesis Proposal & Defense

Proposal: The thesis proposal describes the rationale for the proposed research and outlines its basic components. The proposal is submitted to the department’s research committee members (consisting of a dissertation advisor, department’s head, and department education and research representatives) for the final evaluation and approval.

Defense: The student and the thesis committee are required to comply with the School of Public Health guidelines with regard to preparation of the thesis and meeting deadlines for graduation. During the thesis defense, the thesis committee will thoroughly examine the student’s knowledge in the content area of the research.

Tables of the Courses

Table 1. Compensatory Courses

Table 2. Core Courses

Table 3. Non-Core Courses

The students are required to pass 6 credits from those mentioned below. Choosing non-core credits depends on the student’s interest, dissertation, and the instructors’ opinion.