MRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, Glasgow
Measuring Health Programme
£13,726 stipend pa
3 years or 1+3 years
Supervisors: Professor Alastair Leyland and Professor Jill Pell
We invite you to apply for a PhD studentship within our Measuring Health programme.
This studentship will develop the use of deaths amenable to health care intervention (that is those deaths that should not occur in the presence of timely and effective health care) as an indicator of equity in health care delivery in Scotland. It will also examine trends over time for individual causes and groups of causes and consider the extent to which mortality amenable to health care intervention is patterned by individual socio-economic status.
The key objectives will be to:
- Gain an understanding of amenable mortality and of social inequalities in health.
- Review the literature on socio-economic gradients in amenable mortality.
- Analyse trends in mortality amenable to healthcare in Scotland, by individual cause and groups of causes.
- Explore the socio-economic gradient in amenable mortality in Scotland, based on the deprivation level of area of residence, and the extent to which this gradient has changed over time.
- Investigate the socio-economic patterning of amenable mortality in Scotland by individual characteristics such as education and occupational social class using the Scottish Longitudinal Survey.
You should have a good (1st or 2:1) Honours degree or a Masters degree in public health, epidemiology, social sciences, statistics, medical statistics, or a related discipline with a substantial element of quantitative methods. You should also have an understanding and experience of regression modelling and be able to demonstrate experience of writing syntax for statistical software such as SAS, Stata, R or SPSS.
Those without a Masters degree will receive a 1+3 years award, with the requirement that they successfully complete a Masters at the University of Glasgow during their first year. We welcome candidates who also have a Masters degree in a relevant discipline to receive a 3 year studentship.
You will be jointly supervised by Professor Alastair Leyland who leads the Measuring Health programme and Professor Jill Pell. Prospective candidates are invited to informally visit the Unit by appointment by contacting Alastair Leyland to arrange a visit.
For full studentship details visit www.sphsu.mrc.ac.uk/jobs and to get an insight into student life at the MRC please visit http://www.sphsu.mrc.ac.uk/about/being-a-phd-student-at-the-unit.
Applicants must be eligible for an MRC Studentship (see MRC Studentship Handbook at www.mrc.ac.uk/Utilities/Documentrecord/index.htm?d=MRC002630).
If you would like to apply, please send a covering letter and CV to Nicola Durkin (quoting REF: AL/JP) stating in your letter why you would like to be considered for this studentship and how you meet each of the criteria listed in the Person Requirements.
Please also supply the details of two academic referees. Closing date for applications: 14th April 2013 at 12 noon. Interviews will be held 3rd May 2013. Please note that appointment will be made subject to eligibility, health and security screening and suitable academic references.