PhD in Clinical and Translational Sciences at Pennsylvania State University

Students electing to pursue this program through participating departments will earn a degree with a dual-title at the Ph.D. level, i.e., Ph.D. in (major program name) and Clinical and Translational Sciences.

The following graduate programs offer a dual-title degree in Clinical and Translational Sciences: Anatomy, Biobehavioral Health, Biomedical Sciences, Food Science, Human Development and Family Studies, Kinesiology, Neuroscience, Nursing, Nutritional Sciences, Pathobiology.

The College of Medicine provides academic leadership of the CTS dual-title graduate degree program. It is administered jointly on the University Park and Hershey campuses through the College of Health and Human Development and the College of Medicine, respectively, in conjunction with Penn State's Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) and in coordination with the student's primary graduate program. The CTS Education Committee maintains the program's definition and goals, identifies faculty and courses relevant to the CTS dual-title graduate program, and recommends policies and procedures for the program's operation.

The dual-title graduate degree program in CTS is designed to provide students with the aptitudes and skills necessary to expand research in their major field of study to impact clinical medicine and public health. The dual-title graduate degree program will provide opportunities to synthesize expertise across disciplinary boundaries and to evaluate the effectiveness of research to create improved clinical and/or health outcomes. This program enhances training in the major field of study by providing value-added skill sets in patient-oriented, epidemiological, behavioral, and outcomes and health services research that transition scientific findings from the laboratory to the clinical setting to best practices in the community. Clinical and translational sciences are expanding, with career paths in academic, medical and industrial settings.

Because the dual-title Ph.D. complements the primary program of study, CTS program representation must be included at all phases of graduate study, including the qualifying exam, Ph.D. committee, comprehensive exam, and final oral examination (dissertation defense).

1. Know: Students will demonstrate knowledge of the core concepts of clinical and translational science, including an understanding of study design, methods, results, and significance in their major program area, integrating this comprehension/understanding in a translational context, and relating it to problems in biology, medicine, and public health.
2. Apply/Create: Students will be able to synthesize the research findings in their specialty area and generate ideas for a novel research project that includes one or more translational elements. They will be able to articulate the rationale for the proposed research project, clearly describe a specific hypothesis to be tested, apply best-practices in research design, test the hypothesis and complete the project successfully.
3. Communicate: Students will be able to convey ideas or arguments in clear, concise, well-organized papers and proposals as well as in formal, oral presentations. They will be able to discuss clinical and translational research findings with scientists from diverse disciplines, health professionals, and the lay public.
4. Critical thinking: Students will master the ability to critique the primary literature in their major program area and place it in a translational context.  They will successfully identify research questions, experimental design and conclusions in scientific articles in the field.  They will be able to recognize and summarize the strengths and weaknesses of relevant literature from multiple disciplines and to apply their knowledge of bioinformatics, epidemiology, statistics and experimental design to critique methodology and conclusions.
5. Professional practice: Students will demonstrate knowledge and comprehension of research integrity which are relevant to the field of clinical and translational science, including working with animals, humans, and communities; ethical principles related to authorship; plagiarism; and conflicts of interest. They will be able to work effectively in multidisciplinary teams. They will expand their understanding of the profession through internship(s) and contribute to the profession through service.