Doctoral Programme in Epidemiology and Public Health

In general, the Master's studies that provide access to this Programme without supplementary training are: Master of Public Health by USC or any of the Master's degrees in Public Health from CIBERESP agreement. Access without supplementary training is also open to students with research competence or holders of the Diploma of Advanced Studies obtained through previous doctoral programmes in Public Health by the USC.

In the case of candidates with profiles different to those mentioned above, the Academic Committee evaluates each case individually. The possibility of requiring supplementary training will be considered (maximum 15 ECTS).

In the case of profiles of prospective students who have not taken a Master's course, they will need to provide proof of equivalence in training in research credits, at least equal to those of the Master's degree which provides direct access, which are 60 ECTS. These credits will be recommended preferably in the area of Public Health by the Academic Committee.

Students with an unaccredited foreign degree can apply for admission to doctoral studies provided they can certify a level of studies equal to the Spanish official University Master's Degree and authorises the holder to access Doctoral level studies in the issuing country. This admission will under no circumstances entail the accreditation of the previous degree nor its recognition for purposes other than to access these courses.

• Admission profile

  No additional training:

  - In general, this doctoral programme is aimed at students who have taken a master's degree in the fields of Medicine and Dentistry, Pharmacy and Nursing.

  - Students who have taken a master's degree in Public Health are also eligible.

  - Students with the DEA degree obtained through the ‘Environmental and Behavioural Medicine’ and ‘Public Health’ programmes at the USC will also have access.

  Other profiles:

  - In the case of other profiles that have not taken a master's degree, a training equivalence in research credits will be required, equal at least to those of the master's degree that gives direct access, which will be 60 ECTS.

  - For any other profile, the CAPD will study each case individually, and may or may not admit students and establish complementary training if necessary. These complements may not exceed 15 ECTS.

• Requirements

  Access

  1) In general, access to a doctoral programme requires the possession of a Spanish bachelor's degree, or equivalent, and a university master's degree.
  2) Access shall also be open to those who are in one of the following situations:
  a) To be in possession of a Spanish university degree or from another country belonging to the European Higher Education Area that qualifies for access to the master's degree in accordance with the provisions of Article 18 of R.D. 822/2021 and to pass a minimum of 300 ECTS credits in the university studies as a whole, of which at least 60 must be at master's degree level.
  b) Hold a Spanish graduate degree, the duration of which, in accordance with Community law, is at least 300 ECTS credits. These graduates shall be required to take the additional training required by the programme, unless the syllabus of the corresponding bachelor's degree includes research training credits equivalent in training value to the research credits from the master's degree.
  c) University graduates who, having obtained a place in training in the corresponding entrance examination for access to specialised health training places, pass with a positive evaluation at least two years of training in a programme for obtaining a degree in one of the specialities in Health Sciences.
  d) Holding a degree obtained in accordance with foreign education systems, without the need for its recognition, after verification by the university that it accredits a level of training equivalent to that of the Spanish university master's degree and that it entitles the holder to access doctoral studies in the country issuing the degree. This admission shall not imply, under any circumstances, the homologation of the previous degree held by the interested party nor its recognition for purposes other than that of access to doctoral studies.
  e) Be in possession of another Spanish doctoral degree obtained in accordance with previous university regulations.
  f) Be in possession of a university degree that has obtained the correspondence to level 3 of the Spanish Qualifications Framework for Higher Education, in accordance with the procedure established in Royal Decree 967/2014, of 21 November, which establishes the requirements and procedure for the homologation and declaration of equivalence to degree and official university academic level and for the validation of foreign higher education studies, and the procedure for determining the correspondence to the levels of the Spanish Framework of Qualifications for Higher Education of the degrees of Architect, Engineer, Graduate, Technical Architect, Technical Engineer and Diploma.
  3) Doctoral students who begin their doctoral programme in accordance with previous university regulations may access doctoral education after admission, in accordance with the provisions of the USC Doctoral Studies Regulations. In any case, they must meet the requirements established in general terms in the aforementioned legislation for access to doctoral studies.
  4) Access to doctoral studies is open to graduates, architects or engineers who hold a Diploma of Advanced Studies obtained in accordance with the provisions of Royal Decree 778/1998, of 30 April, or who have attained research proficiency as regulated in Royal Decree 185/1985, of 23 January.
  5) Access to doctoral studies is open to graduates, architects or engineers who hold a master's degree in accordance with Royal Decree 56/2005 or Royal Decree 822/2021, or who have passed 60 ECTS of master's studies.
  6) Access is also open to graduates, technical engineers or technical architects who can prove that they have 300 ECTS credits in their university studies as a whole, of which at least 60 must be at master's degree level.

• Specific requirements

  1) A feasibility report issued by a lecturer within the framework of the line of research to which it is linked.
  2) The student must have a minimum level of English equivalent to level B1. The level of English will be accredited with the corresponding official certification of those included in the list of accreditations recognised by the Centro de Lenguas Modernas (CLM) of the USC for the different levels of the Common European Framework: https://www.usc.gal/es/servizos/clm/acreditacion/index.html.
  3) Students whose native language is not Galician or Spanish must accredit a B2 level in any of these languages or in English.

• Admission rules

  - Academic record: Up to 50%.

  - Previous research experience and results: Up to 25%. Supporting documentation must be submitted.

  - Professional experience: Up to 15%. Supporting documentation must be submitted (certificate of employment, copy of contracts, grants, etc.).

  - Other aspects accredited in the candidate's CV: Up to 10%. Research stays, courses taken and courses given related to the programme's lines of research will be valued. Knowledge of a foreign language at C2 level or higher and knowledge of languages other than the mother tongue, etc. Supporting documentation must be submitted.

• Title extinction

  El programa de doctorado podrá extinguirse por alguna de las siguientes causas:

  Que no supere el proceso de renovación de la acreditación establecido en el artículo 10 del RD 99/2011.

  • Que no acredite el cumplimiento de los requisitos establecidos por la normativa estatal o autonómica vigente.

  • Que se formule una propuesta de extinción del programa al amparo de los procesos de revisión y mejora del título de acuerdo con el procedimiento aprobado por la universidad.

  • Que concurra cualquier situación excepcional que impida el correcto desarrollo del programa de doctorado.

  La extinción producirá los siguientes efectos:

  • Comportará la pérdida de su carácter oficial y la baja en el RUCT.

  • No se podrá matricular nuevo alumnado en el programa de doctorado.

  • En cualquier caso todo el alumnado afectado deberá ser informado de la extinción y de las consecuencias en lo relativo al desarrollo de sus estudios.

  La Universidad adoptará las medidas necesarias para garantizar los derechos académicos del estudiantado que esté cursando dichos estudios en los términos establecidos en la resolución de extinción del plan de estudio, y aprobará el procedimiento de extinción de los programas de doctorado en el seno de la universidad.

• Epidemiology of chronic diseases and evaluation of sanitary services

  Teachers	Area
  Agustin Montes Martinez	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Alberto Ruano Raviña	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Maria Leonor Varela Lema	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Monica Perez Rios	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Julia Rey Brandariz	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Cristina Candal Pedreira	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Cristina Fernandez Perez	Preventive Medicine and Public Health

• Pharmacoepidemiology

  Teachers	Area
  Adolfo Figueiras Guzman	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Francisco Caamaño Isorna	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Mª De La Almudena Rodríguez Fernández	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Angel Salgado Barreira	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Maruxa Zapata Cachafeiro	Preventive Medicine and Public Health

• Health determinants

  Teachers	Area
  El Bahi Takkouche Souilamas	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Francisco Caamaño Isorna	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Agustin Montes Martinez	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Alberto Ruano Raviña	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Lucía Moure Rodríguez	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Maria Leonor Varela Lema	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Monica Perez Rios	Preventive Medicine and Public Health
  Narmeen Mallah Nasrallah	Preventive Medicine and Public Health

A doctoral programme in Epidemiology and Public Health in Galicia is of vital importance for, on the one hand, maintaining research in public health, which would contribute to improving the quality of life of the population, and health administration and management.

On the other hand, it would also contribute to the training of new faculty in order to guarantee the generational sustainability of the Public Health research group, through the training of new researchers, which would contribute to scientific production and lines of research in the future.

In fact, and considering the very likely professional profile of most of the students who will take the PhD, public health professionals and residents, it is planned to include in the offer a higher percentage of places for students who wish to take the programme on a part-time basis.

• Basic skills

  • Systematic understanding of a field of study and mastery of the skills and research methods related to that field.
  • Ability to conceive, design or create, implement and adopt a substantial research or creation process.
  • Ability to contribute to expanding the frontiers of knowledge through original research.
  • Ability to carry out critical analysis and evaluation and synthesis of new and complex ideas.
  • Ability to communicate with the academic and scientific community and with society in general about their areas of knowledge in the modes and languages commonly used in their international scientific community.
  • Ability to promote, in academic and professional contexts, scientific, technological, social, artistic or cultural progress within a knowledge-based society.

• Other competencies

  Promote scientific and technological progress in epidemiology and public health in today's society.
  • Acquire skills in the management of the epidemiological method applied to the elucidation of health problems.
  • Evaluate the efficacy, effectiveness, efficiency, usefulness, safety, territorial, social, ethnic or gender equity of health interventions.
  • Assess the distribution of environmental, biological and cultural risks.
  • Synthesize the current knowledge available on the impact of health interventions of interest.

This doctoral programme will enable the training of researchers in the field of health who will be able to develop their posterior professional activity in the following areas, and who will, without a doubt, contribute to the improvement of the life quality of the population:
- Administration and health management
- Support to research in research departments in hospitals.
- Methodological support to research groups within health institutions.
- Incorporation to pharmaceutic laboratories and CRO (Contract research organization) as clinical trial controllers
- Incorporation to academic life (University teaching and research staff)

The main objective of this Masters degree is to train professionals and researchers in aquaculture; professionals with a solid recognised training at job level and researchers whose training allows them to carry out their research, with cutting-edge technologies, while keeping abreast of problems in production processing.