Master of Science in Clinical Research: Specialty Tracks
Trainees pursuing the Master of Science in Clinical Research must choose a specialty track. Four tracks are available:
- Clinical Trials Research Track
- Comparative Effectiveness Research Track
- Health Services Research Track
- Translational Research Track
The descriptions below include a partial list of relevant courses for each track. Trainees must complete the specialty track requirements. The list of elective courses is intended only as a suggestion of other courses that may be of interest. Trainees may work with their advisors to select other relevant courses that are offered in the schools of the health sciences.
Clinical Trials Research Track
Director: Charity G. Moore, PhD, MSPH
The Clinical Trials Research Track provides training related to the design, performance, and analysis of clinical studies and relevant principles of pharmacology. Trainees are encouraged to develop a protocol for a study involving human subjects and then to direct the study and analyze the results. A project such as this could be developed in conjunction with the research endeavors of the Pittsburgh Clinical Research Network. The mentor and graduate committee appointed to work with each trainee will provide guidance in the identification of an appropriate project.
| Course number | Course title | Credits | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| CLRES 2080 | Master's Thesis Research | 1–3 | All Terms |
| CLRES 2120 | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis in Health Care | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2800 | Fundamentals of Clinical Trials | 1 | Spring |
| CLRES 2810 | Statistical Methods and Issues in Clinical Trials | 1 | Spring |
| CLRES 2820 | Special Topics in Clinical Trials | 1 | Spring |
| Course number | Course title | Credits | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| CLRES 2021 | ANOVA and Regression | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2022 | Logistic Regression | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2023 | Survival Analysis | 1 | Spring |
| CLRES 2026 | Analysis of Correlated Data | 1 | Spring |
| CLRES 2107 | Comparative Effectiveness Research | 2 | Fall |
| CLRES 2140 | Best Practices in Clinical Research | 1 | Spring |
| CLRES 2320 | Clinical Trials Practicum | 2–3 | Fall/Spring |
| EOH 2302 | Molecular Approaches: Toxicology | 2 | TBD |
| EPIDEM 2850 | Introduction to Pharmacoepidemiology | 2 | Fall |
| MEDEDU 2140 | Medical Writing and Presentation Skills | 1 | Fall/Spring |
| PHARM 2001 | Pharmaceutical Analysis | 3 | TBD |
| PHARM 3027 | Interactions of Drug and Disease: Kinetic and Dynamic Issues | 1–2 | Fall/Spring |
Comparative Effectiveness Research Track
Director: Douglas Landsittel, PhD
The ICRE offers a master's degree in clinical research with a speciality track in comparative effectiveness research (CER).
The CER Track addresses the emerging need for training in key disciplines within CER, including meta-analysis and systematic review, analysis of electronic records, and decision modeling and cost-effectiveness, as well as development of fundamental skills specific to clinical trials and statistical analysis of observational data. Required courses include each of these fundamental aspects, with electives to form a specialization. A final overview course will lead trainees through the development of a CER project and will tie together fundamental principles of CER.
| Course number | Course title | Credits | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| CLRES 2080 | Master's Thesis Research | 1–3 | All Terms |
| CLRES 2107 | Comparative Effectiveness Research | 2 | Fall |
| CLRES 2108 | Patient Registries and Electronic Health Records in CER | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES XXXX* | Design of CER Studies | 1 | Summer |
| CLRES 2120 | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis in Health Care | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2121 | Clinical Decision Analysis | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2300 | Introduction to Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2800 | Fundamentals of Clinical Trials | 1 | Spring |
* This course is under development.
Health Services Research Track
Director: Mark Roberts, MD, MPP
The Health Services Research Track uses components of the training program developed under the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) Innovation Award and the fellowship program in the Division of General Internal Medicine to offer courses in health services research methodology.
| Course number | Course title | Credits | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| CLRES 2080 | Master's Thesis Research | 1–3 | All Terms |
| CLRES 2021 | ANOVA and Regression | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2022 | Logistic Regression | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2023 | Survival Analysis | 1 | Spring |
| CLRES 2026 | Analysis of Correlated Data | 1 | Spring |
| CLRES 2107 | Comparative Effectiveness Research | 2 | Fall |
| CLRES 2120/HPM 2220† | Cost-Effectiveness Analysis in Health Care | 1 | Fall |
| Course number | Course title | Credits | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| CLRES 2121/HPM 2217 | Clinical Decision Analysis | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2122/JPM 2215† | Advanced Methods in Decision and Cost-Effectiveness Analyses | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2124 | Directed Study in Decision and Cost-Effectiveness Analyses | 1–3 | Fall/Spring |
| CLRES 2130 | Health Services Research Using Secondary Data: Didactic Course | 1 | Spring |
| CLRES 2131 | Health Services Research Using Secondary Data: Project Course | 3 | Spring |
| CLRES 2400 | Qualitative Research Methods | 1 | Spring |
| BCHS 3002 | Health Survey Methods | 3 | Spring |
| HPM 2028 | Microeconomics Applied to Health | 3 | TBD |
| HPM 2105 | Health and Medical Care Organization | 2 | Fall |
| HPM 2125 | Health Economics | 3 | Fall |
| HPM 2135 | Health Policy | 2 | Fall |
| MEDEDU 2140 | Medical Writing and Presentation Skills | 1 | Fall/Spring |
† Must take one of these two courses.
Translational Research Track
Director: Carol Feghali-Bostwick, PhD
The Translational Research Track is appropriate for trainees interested in how discoveries and findings from basic research can be turned into studies of human subjects. Discoveries in basic sciences, especially the sequencing of the human genome and microbiologic advances, offer extensive opportunities for applications related to new and improved strategies for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases.
| Course number | Course title | Credits | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| CLRES 2080 | Master's Thesis Research | 1–3 | All Terms |
| CLRES 2021 | ANOVA and Regression | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2022 | Logistic Regression | 1 | Fall |
| CLRES 2700 | Fundamentals of Bench Research | 2 | Summer |
| CLRES 2725 | Translational Research Practicum | 1–2 | All Terms |
| CLRES 3140 | Introduction to Translational Research in the Health Sciences | 2 | Fall |
