PHDA testimonials

If you would like to specify which course(s) you would like to see testimonials for, you may do so by selecting the course(s) from the list below and hitting the APPLY filter button. You may select more than one course. Otherwise, the testimonials are listed below, in random order.

PHDA full testimonial

How did you learn about the program and what motivated you to enroll?: I learned about the PHDA program through browsing on web and was motivated to get more training in population health data analysis while working full-time.
Tell us about your course experience. What skills did you develop and which courses provided the greatest benefit to you?: Although the course load was a bit heavy at times, I think I’ve learned a lot and developed hands-on experience in analyzing population health data using SAS and ArcGIS.
How have you been able to (or how do you plan to) apply your new skills in your work/research?: I have not yet had a chance to utilize all the knowledge and skills I’ve gained in my current work, but definitely have a better understanding of results that are analyzed using ArcGIS.
What do you think were the strengths of this program? Please provide examples.: The strengths of this program include: good organization of coursework, exposure to variety of relevant topics, hands-on experience using several analytical software, excellent support and feedback by instructors, and a flexible schedule.
Would you recommend this program to others? If so, what recommendations/suggestions would you give those interested in applying to this program?: I would definitely recommend colleagues and others to take this program for further professional development.
Any additional comments you would like to add?: My program experience has been great and thank you for all the support I received from instructors and staff members in the PHDA program.

PHDA Overall program/course experience

"Allowing students to gain hands on experience remotely with software packages such as ArcMap, SAS, and Mplus while having the flexibility to work full time is invaluable. Also having the opportunity to use Population Data BC’s administrative data with these packages offered a type of learning experience that I could not have had anywhere else."

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PHDA 03 Population Health and Geographical Information Systems

"PHDA 03 and 04 provided useful tools for me. I had always wanted to learn to use ArcGIS software to explore health data, and have both a geography and clinical background, so PHDA 03 and PHDA 04 were especially interesting."

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PHDA Overall program/course experience

"I found a strength of the program to be the engagement of the other students, who are usually all from diverse backgrounds with varying levels of experience with the content. It was helpful to learn from each other. The workload was also quite manageable for those who are working full-time in addition to the courses. The teachers also all seemed knowledgeable and passionate about the topics, and were willing to help students answer their questions or provide assistance for the course projects."

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PHDA full testimonial

How did you learn about the program and what motivated you to enroll?: I was browsing for some relevant programs that would complement my current job as an epidemiologist. This one caught my eye (and I went to UVic in the past) – the courses looked good, particularly the GIS ones which I wanted to learn as it hadn’t been part of my education up to that point.
Tell us about your course experience. What skills did you develop and which courses provided the greatest benefit to you?: It was really good. The coursework was comprehensive but not too time consuming. The GIS courses were fantastic and provided great information, and the other courses were also relevant to my work (the program evaluation course and the working with admin data course).
How have you been able to (or how do you plan to) apply your new skills in your work/research?: Yes – I signed up to learn GIS, and I have been able to use some of those skills in my job.
What do you think were the strengths of this program? Please provide examples.: I liked the method of instruction – videos that walked you through the steps of an assignment accompanied by PDF’s, which I thought helped me learn efficiently.
Would you recommend this program to others? If so, what recommendations/suggestions would you give those interested in applying to this program?: Yes – in fact I have… I recommended this to colleague of mine at another health unit in Ontario who recently got hired as an Epidemiologist. She hadn’t had much education in the area and was looking for good programs so I mentioned this one, and she signed up.
Any additional comments you would like to add about the program or ways we can improve the educational experience?: Great program overall – all very relevant to my profession.

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PHDA testimonials

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