New PhD courses in pharmacoepidemiology attracting international interest

The Faculty of Pharmacy’s research environment in pharmacoepidemiology has in short time established itself at the forefront of the rapidly expanding discipline. The success of this summer’s EuroDURG 2025 conference further consolidated Uppsala’s position on the map, and now the research team is taking the next step with the launch of new PhD courses Pharmacoepidemiology: Methods and applications and Study design in pharmacoepidemiology.

“Mapping the courses Europe has to offer in Pharmacoepidemiology, it is obvious that there is a need for more at PhD student level to meet future competence needs. . Our Faculty of Pharmacy has the resources and networks required to take this step, and we are proud to welcome PhD students from both Uppsala and the entire academic world to these interdisciplinary courses,” says Björn Wettermark, Professor of Pharmacoepidemiology.

Pharmacoepidemiology: Methods and applications, starting in October 2025, offers an multidisciplinary introduction to pharmacoepidemiology including unique insights into how the subject provides competencies of value for social pharmacy, pharmacovigilance, pharmacoeconomics, global public health, clinical pharmacy and numerous other research areas. The spring semester 2026 will see the premiere of Study design in pharmacoepidemiology, where course participants will receive skills to design, analyze and evaluate their own studies.

“This knowledge is becoming increasingly attractive as global expectations for effective and sustainable use of drugs increase. Our ambition is therefore to engage the leading experts of the field as guest lecturers. Already at the pilot round in October, we are gathering an amazing team of teachers representing a number of EU countries. Looking beyond Europe, we are happy to, in the spring of 2026, welcome Professor Mina Tadrous from the University of Toronto to Uppsala,” says Hossein Hajiebrahimi, Associate professor at the Department of Pharmacy.

The courses are in English, on campus in Uppsala and are open to applications from PhD students across the world. The response is very positive and the application window for Pharmacoepidemiology: Methods and applications is currently closed, but Hossein Hajiebrahimi notes that there is still capacity to accept additional participants. For the course Study design in pharmacoepidemiology starting February 2026, applications are still accepted but with a limited number of places available.

“The fact that these courses arouse such interest even before their premiere, reflects the rapid knowledge growth in pharmacoepidemiology. Now, all that remains is to fine-tune the setup before we greet our first participants, and with the solid foundation we have, We are convinced that we will give the next generation of researchers the tools needed to take central positions in the work to improve the use of drugs in society.”

text: Magnus Alsne, photo: Mikael Wallerstedt a o