Updating the Curriculum of Ph.D by Research Training Courses in Medical Sciences in Iran

Ph. D by research is one of the highest post-graduate education degrees in Iran. There are educational and research-based courses in this program. There was a need for revision in these courses because of some controversies in running the program. This study aimed to determine the required courses، their credit and objective of each course in the program. The study was done by the Delphi approach in two rounds. In the first round، the current program was evaluated by an internet survey and an expert panel. The expert panel consisted of professors and PhD by research students of medical sciences universities in Iran. At the end of the first round، the curriculum of the program was prepared. The curriculum consisted of course titles، credits، objective and core or non-core curriculums. In the second round، the curriculum was sent to PhD by research supervisors and students and their feedbacks were collected via e-mail. At the end of the study، the list of current courses (per credit) was confirmed. Advanced statistics (3)، advanced research (2)، ethics in research (1) and documentation (2) were considered as core courses. This was suggested to change project management (2) and research projects (4) to non-core courses. The electronic data management (2)، knowledge transfer (2)، laboratory techniques (2) and course thesis were suggested to consider as non-core courses. The essential courses that students need for their research were considered as core and the courses which require the educational center point of view were considered as non-core courses.