Student Dissertation Workshop Shaping Tomorrow’s Epidemiologists—One Dissertation at a Time

A primary objective of SER is to encourage and foster the professional development of students of epidemiology and young investigators. The Student Dissertation Workshop addresses this objective, by providing a forum in which doctoral-level students in epidemiology, in different substantive areas, using a range of epidemiologic methods, interact with other doctoral students and experienced epidemiologists.

Mid Year Meeting

Student Dissertation Workshop

February 9-10, 2026
Virtual Participation

Submission Closed

✅ Virtual Presentation

Sep. 1, 2025 – Oct. 24, 2025

Annual Meeting

Student Dissertation Workshop

June 22-23, 2026
Phoenix, Arizona

Apply Here

✅ In Person Presentation

Nov. 5, 2025 – Feb. 6, 2026

Brian Whitcomb, SER President-Elect, will serve as the coordinator for both the Mid-Year and Annual Meeting Dissertation Workshops. The sessions will be led by faculty experts in epidemiology, biostatistics, and related disciplines.

Application & Membership Start Your Journey to SER’s Dissertation Workshop

Applicants must be current members of SER at the time of application. Membership is a requirement for submitting materials and being considered for participation in the Dissertation Workshop.

Apply for Workshop

Submit your application to the SER Student Dissertation Workshop and join a select group of emerging scholars for expert feedback, mentorship, and methodological insight.

Apply Here

Not yet a member? SER supports your professional development all year long. 🔗Membership Benefits

The Mid-Year Workshop (held virtually in February) begins accepting submissions on September 1, with a deadline of October 24. The Annual Meeting Workshop (held in person in June) opens submissions on November 5, with a deadline of February 6.

Workshop Eligibility

Applicants must be doctoral students currently enrolled in a formal degree program in epidemiology or a closely related field, with a dissertation project that is underway but not yet completed. The workshop is designed for students in the second or third year of their training; it is not intended for final-year doctoral students. Students from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups are especially encouraged to apply.

Application Planning Guide Everything you need to apply with confidence

✍️ Personal & Academic Info

Contact Details: Name, Email, Phone
Institutional Info: School Affiliation, Department Chair, Academic Advisor (Name & Email)
Project Info: Title, Current Status
Demographics: Race, Gender

📋 Project Description

Submit a single PDF file that includes:

A 2–3 page description of your dissertation project.
Including the current status of your project (e.g., planned, data collection in progress, analysis underway).
One or more methodologic issues for discussion at the workshop.

🕶️ Anonymous Version

Submit a single PDF file with the same content as the Project Description information, but with all identifying information removed (e.g., name, institution, advisor).

What to Expect Collaborate, Learn, and Grow—Where Ideas Meet Insight.

The SER Annual Meeting Student Dissertation Workshop is a highly selective and enriching experience designed to support doctoral students in epidemiology and related fields. It is not a thesis defense, but a collegial space for scholarly exchange and constructive feedback.

🗓️ Workshop Format

Begins with an informal dinner and keynote presentation the evening before the main session.
The main workshop day includes individual presentations, each followed by structured discussion:
- 5 minutes for the student to present their study design and key issues.
- 5 minutes from a student discussant.
- 5 minutes from a faculty discussant.
- Followed by open discussion, totaling 35 minutes per proposal.

👥 Participation & Preparation

Students are expected to review all submitted abstracts to engage meaningfully in discussions.
Each student is assigned to formally discuss one peer’s proposal, fostering peer-to-peer learning.
Faculty members review three proposals in depth and provide expert feedback.

💬 Environment & Expectations

The tone is supportive, collegial, and non-competitive.
Emphasis is placed on methodological rigor, community engagement, and translational potential of research.
Students benefit from personalized attention, with a faculty-to-student ratio of 1:2 in virtual formats.

📈 Outcomes

Many students report significant improvements in their dissertation work and value the opportunity to engage with seasoned epidemiologists.

Did You Know?

The SER Student Dissertation Workshop has supported over 500 students and 180 faculty since 1977—offering a trusted space for mentorship, feedback, and growth in epidemiology.

2025 Faculty

Workshop Chair: Wendy Nembhard

Julie Buring, Harvard University
Matthew Fox, Boston University
Mahasin Mujahid, University of California, Berkeley
Sunni Mumford, University of Pennsylvania

2025 Participants

Alpamys Issanov, University of British Columbia
Sahar Khademioore, McMaster University
Apollo Kivumbi, Drexel University
Andrea Molino, University of Washington
Anthony Nixon, Washington University in St. Louis
Divine-Favour Ofili, McGill University
Samantha Rees, University of Buffalo
Anthony Roberts, Brown University
Alena Sorensen D’Alessio, University of North Carolina
Kaylin White, Emory University
Jessica Wong, University of Pennsylvania
Yangyupei Yang, University of Michigan
Zi-Ping Zhang, Aarhus University
Dougie Zubizarreta, Harvard University

2024 - 2020
2024
Faculty
Workshop Chair: William Miller
Traci Bethea, Georgetown University
Jo Freudenheim, University of Buffalo
Brenda Heaton, University of Utah
Timothy Ihongbe, Texas Tech University
David Lopez, UT Southwestern

Participants:
Natalia Coriano-Diaz, Northeastern University
Erin Ferguson, University of California, San Francisco
Andres Gonzalez-Santa cruz, Universidad de Chile
Emma Hymel, University of Nebraska Medical Center
Justing Jones, Drexel University, Dornsife School of Public Health
Sachelly Julian-Serrano, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Mascha Kern, Health Data Sciences PhD Program, Institute of Public Health, Berlin
Katherine Kurgansky, John’s Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Sam Neally, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Mariame Oeudraogo, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Edgard Ortiz Brizuela, McGill University
Mehrnaz Siavoshi, Walden University
2023
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Yvette Cozier
Anjum Hajat, University of Washington
Matthew Lamb, Columbia University
Katie Lesko, Johns Hopkins University
Jeff Wing, Ohio State University

Participants:
Alessandra Andreacchi, University of Toronto
Chloe Bennett, Northeastern University
Mia Charifson, New York University Grossman School of Medicine
Victor Florez, University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee
Lauren Giurini, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Eskira Kahsay, University of Michigan, School of Public Health
Tanya Libby, University of Washington
Adoma Manful, Vanderbilt University
Gina Nam, UCLA Jonathan and Karin Fielding School of Public Health
Domonique M. Reed, Columbia University, Mailman School of Public Health
Bricia Trejo, Drexel Dornsife School of Public Health
Qi Zhang, Emory Rollins School of Public Health
2022
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Onyi Arah
Tarik Benmarhnia, University of California, San Diego
Elizabeth Rose Mayeda, University of California, Los Angeles
Eric Polley, University of Chicago
Shawnita Sealy-Jefferson, The Ohio State University

Participants:
Shalmali Bane, Stanford University
Xing Gao, University of California Berkeley
Kevin Martinez-Folgar, Drexel University
Erika Meza, University of California, San Francisco
Leah Neff Warner, University of Washington
Colleen Reynolds, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health
Tyler Smith, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public HealthCatharine Chambers, University of Toronto
Brooke Staley UNC-Chapel Hill
Adino Tesfahun Tsegaye, University of Washington
Sarah-Truclinh Tran, Oregon Health & Science University/ Portland State University- School of Public Health
Elizabeth Williams, University of Montana
2021
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Jennifer Ahern
Patrick Bradshaw, University of California, Berkeley
Sidra Goldman-Mellor, University of California, Merced
Chanelle Howe, Brown University
Caroline Thompson, San Diego State University

Participants:
Nedghie Adrien, Boston University School of Public Health
Ariel Beccia, University of Massachusetts Medical School
Renzo Calderon Anyosa, McGill University
Elleni Hailu, University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health
Menolly Kaufman, OHSU-PSU School of Public Health
Katie Labgold, Emory University, Department of Epidemiology
Lydia Marcus, University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee
Clare Meernik, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Shadiya Moss, Columbia University
Sameera Nayak, Northeastern University
Lauren Zell-Baran, Colorado School of Public Health
Xiaoshuang Xun, University of Pittsburgh
2020
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Jay Kaufman
Anjum Hajat, University of Washington
Bill Miller, The Ohio State University
Eleanor Murray, Boston University
Sonja Swanson, Erasmus MC

Participants:
Timileyin Adediran, University of Maryland Baltimore
Wyatt Bensken, Case Western Reserve University
Estela Blanco, University of Chile
Brittney Butler, The Ohio State University
Kristina Dang, University of California San Francisco
Priscilla Lopez, CUNY
Colleen MacCallum-Bridges, Michigan State University
Kaylee Ramage, University of Calgary
Ryan Saelee, Emory University
Kendra Sims, Oregon State University
Morgan Swanson, University of Iowa
Rachel Zmora, University of Minnesota

2019-2000
2019
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Martha Werler
Onyebuchi Arah, University of California, Los Angeles
Richard MacLehose, University of Minnesota
Wendy Nembhard, University of Arkansas
David Savitz, Brown University
Martha Werler, Boston University

Participants:
Claire Adam, University of Montana
Andi Camden, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Mabel Carabali, McGill University
Makella Coudray, Florida International University
Lan Doan, Oregon State University
Isaac Ergas, University of California, Berkeley
Joshua Freeman, University of Massachusetts-Amherst
Rennie Joshi, Drexel University
Basant Motawi, University of Maryland
Alexis Reeves, University of Michigan
Katherine Ross, Emory University
Arthur Sillah, University of Washington
2018
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Enrique Schisterman
Sebastien Haneuse, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Penelope Howards, Emory University
Whitney Robinson, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Brian Whitcomb, University of Massachusetts Amherst

Participants:
Andreea Adelina, University of Montreal
Patrick Carry, Colorado School of Public Health
Catherine Duarte, University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health, Division of Epidemiology
Michael Garber, Emory University Rollins School of Public Health
Eva Graham, PhD Candidate, Epidemiology, McGill University
Tiffany Fitzpatrick, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto
Helen Pitchik, University of California, Berkeley
Luis Rodriguez, University of California, San Francisco
Marcy Schaeffer, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Kaitlyn Stanhope, Emory University
Elizabeth Suarez, UNC Chapel Hill
Jennifer Velloza, University of Washington
2017
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Andrew Olshan
Allison Aiello, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Katherine Keyes, Columbia University
Matthew Fox, Boston University
Thomas Vaughan, University of Washington

Participants:
Sharia Ahmed, Oregon State University
Kristy Arthur, Loma Linda University
Nicole Austin, McGill University
Rebecca Barry, University of Toronto
Matthew Bozigar, University of South Carolina
Katherine Burgess Ziegler, University of Colorado, Denver
Kaitlyn Gam, Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine
Lauren Hurwitz, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Florence Kanu, University of Georgia
Erica Lokken, University of Washington
Magha Mehrotra, University of California, San Francisco
Pam Phojanakong, Drexel University
Holly Stewart, University of California, Berkeley
2016
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Bernard Harlow
Margaret Karagas, Dartmouth University
Jay Kaufman, McGill University
Timothy L. Lash, Emory University
Lisa Signorello, National Cancer Institute
Stephen Schwartz, University of Washington

Participants:
Sarah Buchan, University of Toronto
Kunchok Dorjee, University of California, Berkeley
Cassandra Gibbs Pickens, Emory University
Megan Harvey, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Randi Johnson, University of Colorado
Jessica Knight, Emory University
Matthew Levy, George Washington University
Marissa Seamans, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Marie Stoner, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Caroline Tai, University of California, San Francisco
Christopher Tait, University of Toronto
Xiaoliang (Wendy) Wang, University of Washington
2015
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Diane Lauderdale
Donna Arnett, University of Alabama, Birmingham
Timothy L. Lash, Emory University
Paul Rathouz, University of Wisconsin
Marci Sontag, University of Colorado, Denver
Emily White, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center

Participants:
Anna Bauer, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Ebonee Nicole Butler, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Evan Carey, University of Colorado, Denver
Lu Chen, University of Washington
Jennifer Ersek, University of South Carolina, Columbia
Christine Harden, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Scott Kelly, George Washington University
Nour Makarem, New York University
Sophia Newcomer, University of Colorado, Denver
Mary Playdon, Yale University
Diana Younan, University of Southern California
Chenan Zhang, University of Chicago
2014
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Timothy L. Lash
Maurice Alan Brookhart, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Yvette Cozier, Boston University
Sascha Dublin, Group Health Research Institute
Joel Kaufman, University of Washington

Participants:
Erika Braithwaite, McGill University
Lorena Canales, Colorado State University
Lindsey Fernandez-Rhodes, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Shannon Grabich, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Laura Harrington, University of Washington
Christine Hockett, University of Colorado
Ashleigh McGirr, University of Toronto
Elizabeth Rogawski, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Dinela Rushani, McGill University
Katherine Sapra, Columbia University
Rachel Savage, University of Toronto
Kirstine Sogaard, Aarhus University Hospital
2013
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Germane Buck Louis
David Celentano, Johns Hopkins
Patricia Hartge, NCI/NIH
Richard MacLehose, University of Minnesota
Michelle Williams, Harvard University

Participants:
Jillian Ashley-Martin, Dalhousie University
Monica D’Arcy, University of North Carolina
Megan Herr, University of Rochester
Kirstin Huiber, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Jeremy Labrecque, McGill University
Lindsey Lesher, University of Minnesota
Irene Berita Murimi, University of Florida
Peter F. Rebeiro, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg SPH
Sean Rundell, University of Washington, Seattle
Sonja Swanson, Harvard School of Public Health
Jessica Trimis, University of Southern California
Cindy Ke Zhou, George Washington University
2012
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Sandro Galea
Thomas Koepsell, University of Washington
Ari Nandi, McGill University
Mary Beth Terry, Columbia University
Stephen Walter, McMaster University

Participants:
Shaneda Andersen, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Jessie Buckley, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Benjamin Chaffee, University of California, Berkeley
Brittany Charlton, Harvard School of Public Health
Leila Family, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Rebecca Graff, Harvard School of Public Health
Cassidy Henegar, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Elizabeth Kantor, University of Washington
Michael Passarelli, University of Washington
Alison Rustagi, University of Washington
Leah Smith, McGill University
Tasha (Nicole) Stehling-Ariza, Columbia University
2011
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Polly Marchbanks
Julie Buring, Harvard Medical School
Deborah Del Junco, University of Texas Health Science Center
Martha Slattery, University of Utah
Yutaka Yasui, University of Alberta

Participants:
Jennifer Albrecht, University of Maryland
Kathleen Clark, University of South Carolina
Serene Joseph, McGill University
Samira Kamrudin, University of Texas
Megan Lefebvre, University of Toronto
Se Li, Boston University SPH
Michael Lowe, University of Utah
Jennifer L. Lund, University of North Carolina
Jean McDougall, University of Washington
Shoshana Rosenberg, Harvard School of Public Health
Diana Withrow, University of Toronto
2010
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Mary Haan
Mahasin Muhajid
Beate Ritz, University of California, Los Angeles
Noel Weiss, University of Washington
John Witte, University of California, San Francisco

Participants:
Leona Bessonova, University of California, Irvine
Yan Du, University of Pittsburgh
Noha Sharaf El-Din, University of Alberta
Abdulrahman El-Sayed, University of Oxford
Peter James, Harvard School of Public Health
Jessica Jensen, University of North Carolina
Gaia Pocobelli, University of Washington
Melinda Powers, Harvard School of Public Health
Kristen Rappazzo, University of North Carolina
Janie Shelton, University of California, Davis
Jonathan Snowden, University of California, Berkeley
Erica Warner, Harvard School of Public Health
2009
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Arthur Reingold
Jennifer Ahern, PhD, University of California, Berkeley
Susan E Hankinson, ScD, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Katherine J Hoggatt, University of Michigan
Jonathan M Samet, MD, MS, University of Southern California

Participants:
Laura Anderson, University of Toronto
Erin Meyer Baker, University of Cincinnati Division of Environmental Health
Elisabeth Beaber, University of Washington
Christine Ekenga, New York University School of Medicine
Todd Gibson, Yale University
Simone Gray, Duke University
Flojaune Griffin, University of Michigan
Adina Hazzouri, University of Michigan School of Public Health
Erin Kent, University of California, Irvine
Kerry Keyes, Columbia University
Dawn Mackey, University of California, Berkeley
Hazel Nichols, Johns Hopkins
2008
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Malcolm Maclure
Melissa Bondy, PhD, University of Texas
Miguel Hernan, MD, DrPH, Harvard School of Public Health
Charlie Poole, ScD, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Carl Phillips, MPP, PhD, University of Alberta SPH

Participants:
Karminder Gill, University of North Carolina
Susan Hutfless, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Rick Jansen, University of Minnesota
Sheri Lippman, University of California, Berkeley
Emily Martin, University of Washington
Tamra Meyer, University of Texas at Houston
Sarah Nechuta, Michigan State University
Zahinira Pietri, Roswell Park Cancer Institute
Susan Puumala, University of Minnesota
Matt Walsh, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Nora Watson, University of Pittsburgh
Susan Wernimont, Cornell University
2007
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Sherman James
Sandro Galea, MD, DrPH, University of Michigan
Julie R Palmer, ScD, Boston University
David Schottenfeld, MD, MSc, University of Michigan School of Public Health
Donna Spiegelman, PhD, Harvard School of Public Health

Participants:
Kathryn Adeney, University of Washington
Jeannette Beasley, Johns Hopkins University
Mary Hearst, University of Minnesota
Tamara James-Todd, Columbia University
Sharon Kidd, University of California, Berkeley
Christina Mair, University of Michigan
Dana March, Columbia University
Tuhina Neogi, Boston University SPH
Ali Rowhani-Rahbar, University of Washington
Lauren Teras, Emory University
Elizabeth Torrone, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Christine Walters, Medical University of South Carolina
2006
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Michael Bracken
Norman E. Breslow, PhD, University of Washington
Theodore Holford, PhD, Yale University School of Medicine
Audrey F. Saftlas, MPH, PhD, University of Iowa College of Public Health
Noel Weiss, MD, DrPH, MPH, University of Washington

Participants:
Melinda Aldrich, University of California, Berkeley
Gabriella Andreotti, George Washington University
Cheryl Broussard, University of Texas School of Public Health
Lauren E. Cain, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Tapashi Dalvi, University of California Berkeley
Kirstie Danielson, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Margaret A. Gates, Harvard School of Public Health
Andrea Gruneir, Brown University
Erika Hagen, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Kevin Urayama, University of California, Berkeley
Fei Xue, Harvard School of Public Health
Kelly Yu, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health
2005
Faculty
Workshop Chair: Irva Hertz-Picciotto
Stephen Cole, MD, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Nancy Sonnenfeld, PhD, RTI International
Ezra Susser, MD, DrPH, Columbia University
Sholom Wacholder, PhD, NIH/NCI

Participants:
Jeffrey S. Chang, University of California, Berkeley
Jessica Chubak, University of Washington
Dominic J. Cirillo, University of Iowa
Amy B. Dailey, Yale University
Corinne Engelman, University of Colorado
Alexis J. Handal, University of Michigan
Mike Jackson, University of Washington
Christy Mckinney, University of Washington
Jaymie R. Meliker, University of Michigan
Nina Paynter, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health
Whitney R. Robinson, University of North Carolina
Brian W. Whitcomb, University of Maryland