Health Informatics
Important Note: This is the archived version of the 2012–2014 Graduate Catalog. The information on these pages was archived on August 22, 2012 and will not be updated as requirement and/or program changes are approved.
Admission Requirements- Master of Science
- MS in Health Informatics/MS in Nursing (Administrative Studies)
- MS in Health Informatics/Doctor of Pharmacy
- Master of Science
- MS in Health Informatics/MS in Nursing (Administrative Studies)
- MS in Health Informatics/Doctor of Pharmacy
Mailing Address:
Office of Graduate Programs (MC 530)
Biomedical and Health Information Sciences
College of Applied Health Sciences
University of Illinois at Chicago
1919 West Taylor Street, Room 250 AHSB
Chicago, Illinois 60612-7249
Campus Location:
250 AHSB
Program Code: 20FS1303MSU
Telephone: (866) 674-4842
E-mail:admissionsuic@healthinformatics.uic.edu
Web Site: http://healthinformatics.uic.edu
Department Head: Dr. Larry Pawola
Director of Graduate Studies: Dr. Larry Pawola
The Department of Biomedical and Health Information Sciences (BHIS) offers course work leading to an online Master of Science in Health Informatics. Health Informatics is the science of healthcare-related information, encompassing clinical care and clinical, financial, IT, and enterprise management. BHIS participates in two joint-degree programs: the MS in Nursing (Administrative Studies) / MS in Health Informatics and the Doctor of Pharmacy / MS in Health Informatics. An online postmaster’s IBHE-Approved Certificate in Health Informatics is available for healthcare and IT professionals who already have a master’s degree. BHIS also offers the MS in Biomedical Visualization, as well as an online post-baccalaureate certificate in Health Information Management (HIM), and an on-campus and online undergraduate bachelor degree in HIM.
Admission Requirements
Applicants will be considered on an individual basis by the BHIS Committee on Academic Affairs. Individuals determined to be deficient in one or more areas may be recommended to the Graduate College for admission upon the condition that any deficiencies are remedied through appropriate course work.
In addition to the Graduate College minimum requirements, applicants must meet the following program requirements:
Master of Science
- Baccalaureate Field No restrictions.
- Grade Point Average At least 3.00/4.00 for the final 60 semester (90 quarter) hours of undergraduate study or for all terminal graduate degrees. In addition to the previous requirements, the cumulative GPA for any graduate-level course work must be at least 3.00/4.00.
- Minimum English Competency Test Score
- TOEFL If the applicant has taken the paper-based TOEFL, minimum scores in the range of 585–600 will be considered; in addition, the applicant must take the Test of Written English and submit scores in the range of 5–6. Applicants taking the iBT Internet-based TOEFL must have a minimum score of 95, with subscores of Reading 24, Listening 22, Speaking 24, and Writing 24. OR
- IELTS 7.0, with subscores of 6.5 for all four subscores.
- Letters of Recommendation Three required using the program’s forms.
- Personal Statement Required. The statement should address the applicant’s goals for graduate study and career development.
- Resume Applicant should submit a resume that highlights education and work experience (applicant should have at least two years of work experience in industries that can directly translate to health informatics, such as health care, IT, health information management, consulting, or law. This excludes academic student jobs).
- Other Requirements Prior academic work must include a course in basic computing skills (or comparable experience) and one course in graduate-level basic statistics taken within the last five years for students in the project research and thesis tracks. The latter may be taken upon matriculation. The following prerequisites for the health informatics program may be taken upon matriculation, as equivalent course work, or as healthcare experience: HIM 486—Foundations in Health Information Management and BHIS 406—Medical Terminology in Health Information Management.
MS in Health Informatics/MS in Nursing (Administrative Studies)
To be admitted to the joint program, a student must meet the admissions criteria of each individual master’s degree program. The program of study may be completed on a full- or part-time basis. Because there is some crossover of course credit across the health informatics and nursing programs, students are encouraged to apply as a joint program student before 16 credit hours of UIC graduate credit are completed.
MS in Health Informatics/Doctor of Pharmacy
To be admitted to the joint program, a student must meet the admissions criteria of each individual degree program. Students are considered for admission to the PharmD program with a minimum of 62 semester hours of accrued undergraduate credit; however, the MS in Health Informatics requires an earned bachelor’s degree. For students who apply to the PharmD without a baccalaureate degree, the program provides a course planner showing the sequence of course work that meets the intent of the previously earned bachelor’s degree admissions requirement for the MS. Students will be permitted to take BHIS 460, available to upper-level undergraduate students, in the fall of their second year in the PharmD curriculum. They will be accepted to the MS in Health Informatics the spring of their second year, at the point in the PharmD curriculum in which they will have accrued 128 semester hours—the baccalaureate equivalent.
Degree Requirements
In addition to the Graduate College minimum requirements, students must meet the following program requirements:
Master of Science
- Minimum Semester Hours Required 45.
- Course Work Required Courses for All Tracks: BHIS 437, 499, 503, 505, 510, 511, 515, 520, 525, 537, and 593.
- Required Courses for Project and Thesis Research Tracks: BHIS 500 and 595.
- Required Courses for Course-Work-Only Track: BHIS 530.
- Electives: Choice of electives to reach the minimum 45 hours should be guided, in consultation with the advisor, by the area of interest and the student’s professional experience. BHIS 508, 509, 517, 527, 528, 538, 543, 546, or 580 are recommended electives for those in the course-work-only track.
- Comprehensive Examination None.
- Thesis, Project, or Course-Work-Only Option
- Thesis: Students must earn at least 8 hours in BHIS 598.
- Project: Students must earn at least 4 hours in BHIS 597.
- Course Work Only: Requires course work as indicated above and electives to total a minimum of 45 credit hours.
- Other Requirements Continuous Registration: Students who have completed all degree requirements except the thesis / project must register for zero credit hours to maintain continuous registration.
MS in Health Informatics/MS in Nursing (Administrative Studies)
- Minimum Semester Hours Required 65.
- Course Work Core Courses in Nursing: NURS 525, 526, 527, 528, 529, and 597 or 598.
- Specialty Courses in Nursing: NUSP 501, 502, 503, 504, and 505; NUPR 513.
- Required Courses in Health Informatics: BHIS 437, 503, 505, 510, 511, 525, 537, 593, and 13–15 hours of BHIS electives. BHIS 515, 517, and 520 are recommended electives for the Informatics Nurse Certification Exam.
MS in Health Informatics/Doctor of Pharmacy
- Minimum Semester Hours Required 153–157.
- Course Work Core Courses in Pharmacy: PHAR 321, 322, 323, 324, 331, 332, 333, 341, 342, 343, 344, 345, 346, 352, 353, 354, 355, 356, 365, 400, 401, 402, 403, 404, 405, 406, 407, and 408; PHYB 301 and 302.
- Clerkship Courses in Pharmacy: 24 hours.
- Core Courses in Health Informatics: BHIS 437, 500, 510, 511, 525, 537, 580; BHIS 597 or 598.
- Elective Courses in Health Informatics: BHIS 515, 520, and 530.
- Thesis, Project, or Course-Work-Only Option Thesis or project. No other options are available.
Technical Requirements
- Computer Literacy All students enrolled in this program are expected to have working knowledge of the following: microcomputer operating system, word processing, spreadsheets, electronic mail, Internet browsers.
- Technology Recommendations The student should have access to a computer with the following minimum requirements:
PC USERS
- Processor Minimum Pentium 4
- Memory 1GB RAM minimum
- Hard Drive 160 GB or more with 40 GB free space preferred
- Modem A cable or DSL connection
- CD-ROM A CD-ROM reader
- Sound Card SoundBlaster 32-bit compatible
- Video Card SVGA 1024 x 768 resolution--Higher resolution recommended
- Monitor 17-inch SuperVGA color monitor
- Operating System XP, Vista, Windows 7
- Software
- An active antivirus program and an office suite such as Microsoft Office 2007.
- BHIS courses 437, 515, 520 require the use of Microsoft Visio Pro (professional version) as the drawing tool.
- Adobe Acrobat Reader 9.3 or later http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html
- Internet Explorer 7.x or later OR Mozilla Firefox 3.x
- Flash plug-in (latest version)
- Java plug-in (latest version)
- High speed broadband access Wireless networks are acceptable for static Web pages but are not sufficient for working in a learning management system.
MAC USERS
- Processor Intel processor running OS 10.5 (or higher)
- Memory Minimum of 1 GB RAM
- Hard Drive 160 GB HD
- Software
- An active antivirus program and an office suite such as Microsoft Office 2007.
- BHIS courses 437, 515, 520 require the use of OmniGraffle Pro as the drawing tool.
- Adobe Acrobat Reader http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html
- Safari 5.x OR Mozilla Firefox 3.x
- Flash plug-in (latest version)
- Java plug-in (latest version)
- High speed broadband access Depending on the bandwidth requirement for coursework applications, wireless networks may or may not be sufficient for working in a learning management system.
