"Overall, the PHDA 03 course experience was great. The greatest benefit to me was learning about GIS and practicing the learning through lab assignments with ArcGIS."> read full testimonial
PHDA testimonials
PHDA 03 Population Health and Geographical Information Systems
PHDA Overall program/course experience
"I would recommend the program to working professionals, researchers, and graduate students.
The program had many strengths including: excellent, experienced instructors for each of the courses; use of fellow students as peers to give feedback on assignments (this was a particular strength of the PHDA06 course in Health Evaluation and Program Monitoring); and discussion forums that promoted exchange of information amongst students using real life examples".
PHDA 03 Population Health and Geographical Information Systems
"I found PHDA 03 (Population Health and Geographic Information Systems) very interesting as it provided applicable GIS uses for health services research. I plan on increasingly incorporating GIS analyses in my health services research in order to understand another dimension of care accessibility during the end-of-life phase. "
PHDA Overall program/course experience
"Allowing students to gain hands on experience remotely with software packages such as ArcMap, SAS, and Mplus while having the flexibility to work full time is invaluable. Also having the opportunity to use Population Data BC’s administrative data with these packages offered a type of learning experience that I could not have had anywhere else."
PHDA full testimonial
- How did you learn about the program and what motivated you to enroll?
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I saw a poster for the programme advertised on my campus, and found the course selection to be highly relevant to my doctoral studies.
- Tell us about your course experience. What skills did you develop and which courses provided the greatest benefit to you?
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The variety of courses provided learning opportunities for various software programmes, e.g., SAS and ArcGIS, while also teaching fundamentals of epidemiological statistics and other relevant bases for public health research. The use of geographical information systems in two courses was also of immense benefit.
- How have you been able to (or how do you plan to) apply your new skills in your work/research?
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The skills learned in this programme are highly and directly relevant to my doctoral research, and are being used on a near-daily basis. For example, I use both SAS and GIS to analyse various administrative datasets, and have found that the statistical background gleaned from this programmes has enabled me to read more critically and use more sophisticated analyses in my own work.
- What do you think were the strengths of this program? Please provide examples.
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The diversity of courses is an immediate strength, as is the online format. Every instructor was highly engaged and enthusiastic, and was happy to have discussions about course material and further topics via e-mail.
- Would you recommend this program to others? If so, what recommendations/suggestions would you give those interested in applying to this program?
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I would (and already have) recommended the PHDA programme to colleagues and young researchers. However, I would emphasise setting aside time to do the readings and work carefully through code. Also take the opportunity to learn as much from the instructors as possible. The papers and lessons are useful references for the future as well. I wish I had kept them on paper!
- Any additional comments you would like to add about the program or ways we can improve the educational experience?
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No, but I want to thank the administrative staff for managing such an excellent programme. Also, I am very happy that they offer a graduate student rate! Many thanks!
University of British Columbia, 201-2206 East Mall, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z3
Health Data Research Network Canada (HDRN) member
International Population Data Linkage Network (IPDLN) member
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