Biomedical and Health Informatics, MS
Phone: 216.368.3725
Kim Krajcovic - Education Program Manager
informatics@case.edu
Degree: Master of Science (MS)
Field of Study: Biomedical and Health Informatics
Program Overview
The Master of Science in Biomedical and Health Informatics (BHI) program offers non-thesis and thesis-based options. While the usual time to completion with a full-time schedule is 16 months, students have the option of doing the non-thesis program intensively in 11 months. Part-time students are welcome to do the program at their preferred pace!
The BHI program offers pragmatic, interdisciplinary areas of study immediately relevant in contemporary health systems or research enterprises. Our Master’s degree program is unique in that it encompasses both biomedical research and clinical care informatics with applications to precision medicine, accountable care organizations, and reproducible science. Our program provides grounding across multiple disciplines and will be of interest if you seek a career in which you:
- Analyze patient diagnoses, treatments and outcomes, based on electronic health records, to inform best practices in clinical care
- Design or manage studies in the clinical setting to inform quality and safety process improvements
- Collaborate in biomedical research, including the analysis of large genetic and various “omics” studies, integrated with clinical or population data, to advance the understanding of diseases
- Design and manage studies that draw from clinical, cohort or population data to inform the assessment and development of devices, therapeutics or other interventions
We bring together a diverse group of faculty from across Case Western Reserve University—the School of Medicine, clinical faculty from our affiliated hospitals, the Weatherhead School of Management, and the Case School of Engineering—for a cross-disciplinary approach that offers the opportunity to craft tailored areas of study grounded in core competencies:
- Data analytics
- Biomedical, clinical and/or population health research
- Computational and systems research design
For current CWRU undergraduate students: The MS in Biostatistics program is an eligible program for those seeking the Combined Bachelor's/Master's Program, which allows for the completion of both a Bachelor's (any major) and Master of Science in Biostatistics in 4–5 years. This program is intended to be an honors graduate program for highly motivated and qualified Bachelor's students who wish to pursue an advanced degree. Students admitted to the program may, in their junior and/or senior year, take up to nine credit hours of graduate courses that will count toward both Bachelor's and Master's requirements. Students interested in the Combined Bachelor's/Master's Program program must have 75 completed credit hours of coursework to apply.
Important Note: The program information contained on this page is current as of April 1st, 2026. For the most current information, we advise you to review the MS in Biomedical and Health Informatics program handbook.
Graduate Policies
For graduate policies and procedures, please review the School of Graduate Studies section of the General Bulletin.
Program Requirements
Non-Thesis Program
This program requires 27 credit hours of coursework and a 3 credit hour project or internship/practicum, with a report that is evaluated by the student’s mentorship/advisory committee.
Thesis Program
This is for students who may want to continue into a PhD program. It requires 24 credit hours of course work and 6 credit hours developing and presenting a thesis, evaluated by the mentoring/advisory committee.
Course Requirements
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses: | 9 | |
| Introduction to Data Structures and Algorithms in Python | ||
| AI in Medicine: Knowledge Representation and Deep Learning | ||
| Statistical Methods I | ||
| Biomedical and Health Domain Courses: | 3 | |
| Epidemiology: Introduction to Theory and Methods | ||
| Computation and System Design Domain Courses: | 3 | |
| Choose one of the following: | ||
| Analysis of Algorithms | ||
| Database Systems | ||
| Introduction to Bioinformatics | ||
| Advanced Algorithms | ||
| Software Engineering | ||
| Machine Learning & Data Mining | ||
| Geospatial Analytics for Biomedical Health Applications | ||
| Data Analytics Domain Courses: | 3 | |
| Choose one of the following: | ||
| Applied Probability and Stochastic Processes for Biology | ||
| Statistical Methods II | ||
| Categorical Data Analysis | ||
| Longitudinal Data Analysis | ||
PQHS 467 | ||
| Secondary Analysis of Large Health Care Databases | ||
| An Introduction to GIS for Health and Social Sciences | ||
| Elective Courses a | 6-9 | |
| Thesis or Practicum/Internship: b | 3-6 | |
| Thesis M.S. | ||
or PQHS 602 | Practicum | |
| Total Credit Hours | 30 | |
- a
Non-thesis Program requires 9 credit hours of electives. Thesis Program requires 6 credit hours of electives.
- b
Non-thesis Program requires PQHS 602 for 3 credit hours. Thesis Program requires PQHS 651 for 6 credit hours.
Important Note: The program information contained on this page is current as of May 1st, 2025. For the most current information, we advise you to review the MS in Biomedical and Health Informatics program handbook. You can find the most recent Program Handbook here.
Sample Plan of Study
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credit Hours | |
| PQHS 413 | Introduction to Data Structures and Algorithms in Python | 3 |
| PQHS 431 | Statistical Methods I | 3 |
| PQHS 490 | Epidemiology: Introduction to Theory and Methods | 3 |
| Credit Hours | 9 | |
| Spring | ||
| PQHS 416 | AI in Medicine: Knowledge Representation and Deep Learning | 3 |
| Domain Area Course or Elective | 3 | |
| Domain Area Course or Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 9 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| Elective | 3 | |
| PQHS 651 or PQHS 602 or ELECTIVE | Thesis M.S. or Practicum or | 3 |
| Credit Hours | 6 | |
| Spring | ||
| PQHS 602 or PQHS 651 | Practicum or Thesis M.S. | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | |
| Credit Hours | 6 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 30 | |