UMass Boston

Applicants must meet general graduate admission requirements in addition to the following program-specific requirements:

• A completed application form
• Personal statement: An essay of no more than 1,000 words addressing
  • The specific interest and rationale for pursuing a PhD in exercise and health, and career goals after completing the PhD studies
  • Current major research and interests in the fields of exercise or health sciences (we strongly recommend that applicants contact EHS faculty directly concerning their research interests before applying)
• Official transcripts from all schools attended
• Three references
• TOEFL scores, if applicable (UMass Boston's institution code is 3924)
• Résumé

Deadlines: February 1 (priority) and April 1 (final) for fall, October 1 (priority) or December 1 (final) for spring

Application Fee: The nonrefundable application fee is $75. UMass Boston alumni and current students that plan to complete degree requirements prior to graduate enrollment can submit the application without paying the application fee.

Program Cost Information: Bursar's website

Graduate Assistantship Information: The EHS Department offers two types of Graduate Assistantships: Teaching Assistantship (TA) and Research Assistantship (RA). TAs primarily work with faculty instructors who teach undergraduate classes. RAs are generally offered by a specific faculty member who has active research fundings and students primarily work with the specific faculty member on their research projects.

For RAs, it is highly recommended to reach out directly to individual faculty to determine if their research interests match with yours and if there is an opening for a graduate student. Please also include the faculty member who you would like to work with in your personal statement for your application.

BS to PhD Route

Required Master’s Level Courses (15 Credits)

• EHS 625L - Quantitative Research Methods 3 Credit(s)
• EHS 630 - Advanced Health Fitness and Nutrition Assessment 3 Credit(s)
• EHS 655 - Advanced Physical Activity and Health 3 Credit(s)
• EHS 685 - Applied Exercise Physiology 3 Credit(s)
• NURSNG 760 - Introduction to Biostatistics: Biostatistics I 3 Credit(s)

Concentration Courses (6 Credits)

Complete two courses from one of the concentrations below.

Applied Exercise Physiology Concentration

Concentration Courses (6 Credits)

• EHS 680 - Clinical Exercise Physiology 3 Credit(s)
• EHS 682 - Exercise Metabolism 3 Credit(s)

Physical Activity and Health Promotion Concentration

Concentration Courses (6 Credits)

• EHS 656 - Advanced Nutrition and Health 3 Credit(s)
• EHS 670 - Designing Exercise and Health Promotion Interventions 3 Credit(s)

Required Doctoral Level Courses (12 Credits)

• EHS 825L - Advanced Quantitative Research Methods I 3 Credit(s)
• EHS 887 - Advanced Topics in Exercise and Health Sciences 3 Credit(s)

• NURSNG 705 - Health Disparities 3 Credit(s)
  OR
• NURSNG 757 - Social Behavioral Determinants of Health 3 Credit(s)

• NURSNG 770 - Biostatistics II: Advanced Statistical Methods in Healthcare Research 3 Credit(s)

Electives (12 Credits)

Complete four additional courses offered by Nursing or other departments (e.g. Gerontology, Psychology, and Biology).

Dissertation/Research Courses (30 Credits)

Complete 30 credits from below with at least 18 credits of dissertation study.

• EHS 898 - Directed Research in Exercise and Health Sciences 1-6 Credit(s)
• EHS 899 - Dissertation 1-6 Credit(s)

MS to PhD Route

Required Courses (12 Credits)

• EHS 825L - Advanced Quantitative Research Methods I 3 Credit(s)
• EHS 887 - Advanced Topics in Exercise and Health Sciences 3 Credit(s)
• NURSNG 705 - Health Disparities 3 Credit(s)
• NURSNG 770 - Biostatistics II: Advanced Statistical Methods in Healthcare Research 3 Credit(s)

Electives (6 Credits)

Complete two additional courses offered by Nursing or other departments (e.g. Gerontology, Psychology, and Biology).

Dissertation/Research Courses (24 Credits)

Complete 24 credits from below with at least 18 credits of dissertation study and no more than 6 credits of directed research.

• EHS 898 - Directed Research in Exercise and Health Sciences 1-6 Credit(s)
• EHS 899 - Dissertation 1-6 Credit(s)

For more information on curriculum, including course descriptions and degree requirements, visit the Academic Catalog.

BS to PhD Route

Complete 75 credits from at least 17 courses including five required master’s level courses, two concentration courses, four required doctoral level courses, four electives, and 30 credits of dissertation/research courses.

Concentration: Select a concentration in applied exercise physiology or physical activity and health promotion.
Doctoral candidacy: Candidates must pass a written qualifying exam at a time to be designated by the student’s pre-dissertation committee. Content covered in the exam is agreed upon by the major faculty advisor and the student. The exam will be completed over the course of several days within a two-week period. Students must pass all areas on either the first or second try before being allowed to continue in the program and work on their dissertation proposal.
Dissertation: Candidates must propose and ultimately compose and defend a dissertation based on original research. The dissertation document will include an introduction, rationale and hypothesis, review of the literature, description of methods, presentation of results, and discussion of the relevance of the study’s findings to the field at large. The results of the research will be presented in manuscript-ready format, including two or more separate papers that are ready to be submitted to peer-reviewed journals. The student will be required to submit at least one of these papers to a journal prior to orally defending their dissertation; the paper must be under peer review to meet this requirement.

Statute of limitations: Eight years.

MS to PhD Route

Complete 42 credits from seven or eight courses including four required courses, two electives, and one to two dissertation/research courses.

Doctoral candidacy: Candidates must pass a written qualifying exam at a time to be designated by the student’s pre-dissertation committee. Content covered in the exam is agreed upon by the major faculty advisor and the student. The exam will be completed over the course of several days within a two-week period. Students must pass all areas on either the first or second try before being allowed to continue in the program and work on their dissertation proposal.
Dissertation: Candidates must propose and ultimately compose and defend a dissertation based on original research. The dissertation document will include an introduction, rationale and hypothesis, review of the literature, description of methods, presentation of results, and discussion of the relevance of the study’s findings to the field at large. The results of the research will be presented in manuscript-ready format, including two or more separate papers that are ready to be submitted to peer-reviewed journals. The student will be required to submit at least one of these papers to a journal prior to orally defending their dissertation; the paper must be under peer review to meet this requirement.

Statute of limitations: Eight years.

Graduate Program Director Kai Zou
kai.zou [at] umb.edu
(617) 287-7282

Program Assistant Lourdes Ortiz Tapper
lourdes.ortiz-tapper [at] umb.edu
(617) 287-7594

Exercise & Health Sciences Graduate Programs
gradehs@umb.edu