Research Excellence

Research at UW

One of the nation's leading research institutions, the University of Washington is ranked first among public institutions in the nation in receipt of federal research funding.

The Department of Health Systems and Population Health is a leader in health services research. Our faculty have a strong history of funded research, which is used to support and mentor graduate students. We have been successful in obtaining research grants and contracts from the state and federal governments and from private foundations. Multi-disciplinary research opportunities abound within the University and with numerous local industries and government agencies.

Affiliate Research Programs

The Department of Health Systems and Population Health has a number of affiliated research centers that support dissertation work, and has strong collaborative research programs with health organizations in Washington State, including:

• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
• VA Puget Sound Health Care System
• Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute
• Latino Center for Health
• Foundation for Health Care Quality
• Qualis Health (the Washington Professional Review Organization)
• Public Health - Seattle & King County
• Tacoma | Pierce County Health Department
• Washington State Department of Health
• Washington State Department of Labor and Industries
• Washington State Department of Social and Health Services
• Washington State Health Care Authority
• Numerous other health plans, insurers, hospitals and clinics

Interdepartmental Collaboration

At the University of Washington, the spirit of cooperation is evident in interdepartmental collaboration in teaching and research. Health Services research involves knowledge and understanding of a number of different disciplines, and thus our program encourages students to pursue their interests across academic disciplines.

Faculty and students collaborate in the classroom and on research projects with the Schools of Arts and Sciences, Business Administration, Information Technology, Dentistry, Law, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Public Affairs, and Social Work. The Department of Health Systems and Population Health also enjoys strong collaboration with the departments of Anthropology, Geography, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, Bioinformatics, Biostatistics, Economics, Occupational and Environmental Health, Epidemiology, and Global Health.

Our graduates are prepared to investigate real-world issues requiring interdisciplinary collaboration and knowledge of diverse fields.

Student Research

Doctoral students are strongly encouraged to pursue independent studies under faculty supervision or to conduct collaborative research by working as research assistants on faculty projects. These collaborations provide a base of experience from which the doctoral student can form a research question and conduct dissertation research. A student may choose to conduct a dissertation that is an offshoot of a faculty member's research project, or may choose a dissertation topic unrelated to currently funded research, but supervised by faculty interested in the area. In either case, the dissertation is an independent research study conceived and implemented by the student.

Learn more about the doctoral dissertation, and see examples of dissertation titles for recent graduates.

See recent student publications.