Degree Offered
PhD
Program Description
Health professions education (HPE) is critical to the task of meeting the healthcare needs of communities. Few healthcare professionals and faculty are formally prepared in consuming and applying evidence on how people learn to curricular and instructional design, assessment, program evaluation, and institutional leadership. The University of Maryland Baltimore (UMB) is uniquely prepared to meet the growing need for health professions educators and to advance the scholarship of professional education in these fields.
Learners in the UMB HPE program will build on existing health professional competencies gained through their education and practice, examine the historical and current theoretical foundations of learning, and engage in the practical application of emerging science of teaching and learning. Learners will examine current educational and curricular challenges faced by health professions programs and institutions to advance their skills and knowledge. By conducting rigorous research studies, graduates will contribute to the transformation of educational practice and knowledge in their discipline.
Graduates of this program will:
- Demonstrate high quality and effective teaching methods.
- Demonstrate proficiency in curricula design, delivery, and assessment at the course and program level.
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Advance theoretical research and models, generate and disseminate scholarship in their educational areas of interest
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Demonstrate the ability to integrate systematic evaluation and research techniques to demonstrate program or institutional effectiveness, improvement, and sustainability.
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Demonstrate academic and executive leadership qualities needed to lead program, institutions, agencies, and organizations in the health professions.
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Participate in community engagement to improve educational access and quality.
Graduates will be prepared to apply the skills that they have acquired through the degree to academic research and leadership roles, as well as employment in the private sector, and local, state or government positions in healthcare and education.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the program, students will be able to:
- Advance theory through the generation and dissemination of rigorous educational research and scholarship.
- Demonstrate proficiency in curriculum design, delivery, and evaluation.
- Work effectively in interprofessional research teams.
- Demonstrate academic and executive-level administration and leadership skills needed to lead higher education programs, institutions, agencies, and organizations in the health professions.
- Demonstrate evidence-based teaching and assessment methods at the course or program level.
- Demonstrate the ability to apply analytical skills to improve educational programs and institutional effectiveness.
- Participate in the broader national and global health professions community to improve health professions education.
Program admission
Admission to UMB’s PhD programs is highly selective. In addition to meeting the Graduate School’s minimum admission requirements, candidates for admission must provide evidence of a minimum of an earned master’s degree or equivalent education and training from an overseas college or university; proof of current professional license to practice (as applicable to one’s field or discipline); and a statement of proposed research interests. Individuals whose profession does not require a license to practice will still be considered for admission. Finalists for admission will be invited to interview with the program’s admissions committee.
Degree Requirements
The Ph.D. in health professions education consists of sixteen courses with a total of 60 credits. The instruction occurs online utilizing distance learning technologies in addition to a mandatory on-site residency taken in tandem with the beginning of years 2 and 3 in the program. The mandatory residency requires students to attend four consecutive days of face-to-face lectures, training, discussions, and presentations at UMB’s campus in Baltimore, MD. The in-person interactions assist in facilitating the peer learning, research, reflection, and group discussion that is essential to creating an interdisciplinary team of faculty and scholars.
Complete guidelines and requirements for progression and completion are outlined in the Academic Performance and Progress in a PhD Program section of this catalog.
Required Courses
| HPE 610 | THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS OF TEACHING AND LEARNING IN THE HEALTH PROFESSIONS | 3 |
| HPE 615 | FOUNDATIONS IN STATISTICS FOR SOCIAL SCIENCES | 3 |
| HPE 620 | EVALUATION AND SYNTHESIS OF LITERATURE | 3 |
| HPE 625 | INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES AND ASSESSMENT IN HPE | 3 |
| HPE 660 | MEASUREMENT, ASSESSMENT, AND EVALUATION | 3 |
| HPE 710 | LEADERSHIP IN HIGHER EDUCATION | 3 |
| HPE 715 | OUANTITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS 1 | 3 |
| HPE 720 | OUANTITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS 2 | 3 |
| HPE 725 | QUALITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS | 3 |
| HPE 805 | IMPACT INSTITUTE | 2 |
| HPE 810 | IMPACT INSTITUTE 2 | 2 |
| HPE 840 | EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM EVALUATION | 3 |
| HPE 850 | ADVANCED TEACHING SEMINAR | 3 |
| HPE 851 | RESEARCH SEMINAR 1 | 6 |
| HPE 898 | PRE-CANDIDACY RESEARCH | 1 TO 6 |
| HPE 899 | DISSERTATION RESEARCH | 12 |
Electives
| MHS 607 | WRITING FOR SCHOLARLY JOURNALS | 3 |
HPE 860
| TEACHING IN ONLINE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS | 3 |