This doctoral education program aims to develop high level of competence among health professionals in carrying out independent health research for the advancement of science and practice of their specific discipline as well as the broader health sciences. It highlights inter-professional approach and evidence synthesis as essential elements for the advancement of health care practice and education. This is a higher degree program by research.
The British model of doctoral education, that relies heavily on research supervision or apprenticeship, serves as a guide for this PhD program. However, it has some aspects of the American model as there are few pre-determined courses that are mandatory and includes some standard admission procedures (Shin, Postiglione and Ho, 2018). This program includes approximately 76% research and about 24% coursework related activities.
For part-time studies, the PhD in Health Sciences at DLSMHSI can be completed in 5 years, though students can finish the program earlier if all the requirements are fulfilled at the end of the fourth year. For full-time studies, the program is expected to be finished at the end of the third year.