The overall objective of this two-part workshop is to develop a set of specific competencies for doctoral students in epidemiology. Competencies refer to a set of topics that doctoral students in epidemiology programs should demonstrate some mastery of prior to completing their training. There exist formal competencies for graduate programs in public health, but there are no standardized criteria for topics to include in doctoral training programs in epidemiology. We aim to develop expert consensus on topics that PhD students in epidemiology “must know” before graduating. The end-goal of this workshop is to create a document to be submitted for publication and dissemination to standardize best practices in epidemiology education. This fits in with SER’s emphasis on institutional equity and diversity: high quality training in epidemiology should be accessible to students at all institutions. This workshop will take place in two parts. The first part will be conducted virtually and will focus on creating a master-list of specific topics for doctoral students in epidemiology via open forum discussion and topic-specific breakout groups. 

The second part will be conducted in person at SER2023 as a roundtable discussion focused on discussing, synthesizing, and revising the initial set of competencies from the virtual workshop. The workshop facilitators will lead breakout groups focused on building consensus and ranking the priority of topics to be included in the competencies. Separate registration is required to attend the in person, part two workshop. Please note: participation in part one is NOT required to participate in part two.