IUPUI is Indiana's premier urban research university. The campus enrolls more than 30,000 students in 21 schools and academic units.
Doctor of Philosophy
in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
Curriculum
The Ph.D. program in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences is based on a curriculum supported by research and teaching and faculty already in place at IUPUI. The minimum requirements for the Ph.D. are 90 credit hours of advanced study, of which 30 credit hours may be transferred from the student’s post-baccalaureate degree of study, as approved by the School Admissions Committee and the University Graduate School. The 90 credit hours for the Ph.D. are distributed as follows:
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Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Core Curriculum (12 credits)
- Rehabilitation Theories and Applications (3 credits)
- Theories of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention (3 credits)
- Health and Rehabilitation Services Delivery (3 credits)
- College Teaching Methodology (3 credits)
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Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Concentration (30 credits)
Students will select one of the three areas of concentration identified by the Institute of Medicine. Areas of concentration include:
- Pathophysiology and Impairment
- Functional Limitations/Functional Participation
- Health Services Research
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Research Core (42 credits)
- Statistics and Research Design courses (9 credits)
- Techniques of Effective Grant Writing (3 credits)
- Writing for Publication (3 credits)
- Critical Inquiry and Research Ethics (3 credits)
- Research Practicum within concentration (6 credits)
- Dissertation to include proposal in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences(18 credits)
-
Electives (6 credits)
Sample Plan of Study
Area of Specialization: Functional Limitation
Each student’s plan of study will be unique, depending upon his or her full-time or part-time status and previous graduate coursework. It is highly likely the students most attracted to the Ph.D. in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences will have graduated from a previous M.S. or graduate professional program related to rehabilitation (e.g. physical therapy, occupational therapy, nutrition & dietetics, athletic training, sports medicine). The course sequence and timing of courses will depend on the mix of entering full and/or part-time students and the scheduling of courses taken from other schools. Students must be registered for a minimum of 8 hours in the fall and spring semesters to be considered full time. In the summer, full time equals 4 hours. Shown below is a sample plan of study for a full-time student who has a graduate physical therapy degree and has entered the Ph.D. in Health and Rehabilitation Sciences program. The sample curriculum is shown for the Functional Limitation area of specialization but similar sample plans could be put forth for the other concentrations.
Courses included in the following table are illustrative and some of their descriptions are not included in this proposal.
First Year
| Courses Accepted from Previous Graduate Work in Physical Therapy (15 credits) |
|
|---|---|
| First Year Fall Semester (9 credits) |
|
| First Year Spring Semester (9 credits) |
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| First Year Summer Session (3 credits) |
|
Second Year
| Second Year Fall Semester (9 credits) |
|
|---|---|
| Second Year Spring Semester (9 credits) |
|
| Second Year Summer Session (3 credits) |
|
Third Year
| Third Year Fall Semester (9 credits) |
|
|---|---|
| Third Year Spring Semester (8 credits) |
|
Fourth Year
| Fourth Year Fall Semester (8 credits) |
|
|---|---|
| Fourth Year Spring Semester (8 credits) |
|
Additional Information
For additional information, please view the Graduate Studies Handbook [PDF].
