student working in lab behind microscope

UWM’s interdisciplinary doctoral program in Biomedical and Health Informatics is offered in collaboration between UWM and the Medical College of Wisconsin. It was the state’s first such doctoral program and remains the only one of its kind in Wisconsin.

The robust program combines medical science with information technology and prepares students to use information systems to advance patient care, public health, life sciences research and health professional education.

Nearly all applicants hold master’s degrees in related fields but a few have been admitted who hold bachelor’s degrees in computer science, business or a health field.

Program Type

Doctoral

Program Format

On Campus

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After Graduation

  • Graduates are in high demand by healthcare providers, pharmaceutical companies, medical software companies, public health organizations, insurance companies and academia.
  • UWM’s graduates are pursuing careers in public policy, public health, research for healthcare providers, cancer research, data analytics and higher education.
  • No matter where they’re from, many have found jobs across North America working to improve the quality of healthcare delivery, research and higher education.
Student in dorm room with bike and guitar
A Day in the Life of a PhD candidate

What to Expect

The curriculum includes coursework in human pathophysiology, medical informatics, databases and medical ethics. You will select from one of six tracks:

  • Health Information Systems
  • Health Services Management and Policy
  • Knowledge-Based Systems
  • Medical Imaging and Instrumentation
  • Public Health Informatics
  • Translational Bioinformatics

No matter what track you choose, you will take courses and receive faculty mentorship from across many disciplines at UWM – combining informatics with disciplines of health care and health administration, public health, biology, and medical imaging and instrumentation.

You will be tested on your proficiency in data management, human pathophysiology and medical terminology, ethics, and the main concepts of the discipline.

Most likely, you will publish and present your research. Since 2013, our students have collectively published more than 200 peer-reviewed articles and given more than 40 presentations.

Read an article about how team science is at the heart of UWM’s PhD in Biomedical and Health Informatics

Many students earn Teaching Assistantships (TAs), Research Assistantships (RAs) or Fellowships during their graduate study which helps to fund their education while also building leadership skills. Assistantship decisions are made by the academic departments only after an applicant has been accepted into the program.

More Information

Contact the College of Engineering & Applied Science Graduate Programs Office.

This interdisciplinary program is housed in the College of Engineering & Applied Science and is run collaboratively by a steering committee comprised of faculty representative from the Medical College of Wisconsin, the College of Engineering & Applied Science, the College of Health Professions and Sciences, the Lubar College of Business, the School of Information Studies and the Zilber College of Public Health.

We’re a top tier R1 research university and our students have the opportunity to work with  faculty members engaged in cutting-edge research in areas such as:

  • Clinical outcome prediction or comparison of effectiveness of medical treatments using data from electronic medical records
  • Discovery of new side effects or secondary uses of drugs using data from social media, product reviews, clinical notes or published scholarly reports
  • Automatic assessment of injury status from digital images
  • User studies to assess experts’ acceptance or effectiveness in using technology for clinical decision support or research
  • User studies to assess patients’ acceptance or satisfaction in using health related technology.

Full list of our college’s research labs, centers and institutes.

The program faculty for this interdisciplinary program come from the Medical College of Wisconsin and several academic units at UWM.

Advising

Therese Crary
  • Advisor, Graduate Programs
  • Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Biomedical Health Informatics
Bob Packard
  • Advisor, Graduate Programs
  • Civil/Environmental Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Industrial/Manufacturing Engineering, Materials Science & Engineering
Contact
Computer Science

Contact Info: ceas-cs@uwm.edu

Street Address
College of Engineering & Applied Science
3200 North Cramer Street
Milwaukee, WI 53211

Mailing Address
College of Engineering & Applied Science
P.O. Box 784
Milwaukee, WI 53201-0784