BITS Pilani to offer PhD in Data Sciences for Global Health

NEW DELHI: The Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS), Pilani and the Washington based One Health Trust have agreed to launch a PhD programme in Data Sciences for Global Health.

The programme is expected to train graduates and postgraduates on current global health issues and cutting-edge research methodology, with rigorous fieldwork and data analysis, the institute said.

“The unique full-time interdisciplinary degree will provide advanced education in global health along with expertise in statistical, quantitative and qualitative skills to future students,” the BITS Pilani said.

G Sundar, senior professor and director of BITS Pilani, Hyderabad campus, said: "The rigorous research and data analysis expertise of OHT will serve to greatly strengthen data driven public health policy making in the country, and thus raise the levels of overall well-being".

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The application process for admission to the doctoral programme will close on March 31, 2023. The first cohort will begin coursework in July 2023.

Students will attend the courses and conduct research at both BITS Pilani, Hyderabad, and at the Nimai Valley Center of the One Health Trust, set to open in January 2024.

"This program is ideal for students who are seeking new roles as public health data scientists in government, nonprofit, and for-profit organizations in the public health and biomedical fields and working professionals already employed in such organizations who would like to use data more effectively to advance their missions," the BITS Pilani director said.

Qualified applicants will be accepted from all geographic, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds, with no age restriction.

"The future of the health of our planet and its inhabitants depends on a better understanding of the underlying processes that connect us using data sciences. The PhD programme will emphasize cutting edge skills in data sciences, and generate tomorrow's leaders in solving the major challenges of global health by working with communities in India who are most affected by them," said Ramanan Laxminarayan, founder and president of the One Health Trust.