Required Courses (12 credits)
Principles of Demography (APDEM 801)
The objective of this course is to explore fundamental concepts and ideas in the discipline of Demography and selective major U.S. and world population trends. The course content is framed by the definition of Demography which studies the size, composition, and spatial distribution of populations, and the key dynamics processes that explain population change – fertility, health and mortality, internal and international migration, population aging, and family changes.
- Introduction to Demographic Principles
- Population Growth and World Demographic Transition
- Population Distribution
- Transitions in Family Patterns and Household Formation
- Gender Inequality
- Fertility Patterns and Policy
- International Migration
- Internal Migration and Residential Segregation
- Health and Mortality
- Age-Sex Composition and Population Aging
- Economic Well-being, Human Capital, and the Environment
Demographic Techniques (SOC 573)
This methods course provides students with important tools and techniques of demographic analysis including census and vital registration systems, evaluating the quality of demographic data, analysis of demographic data, measures of demographic components, population standardization, rate decomposition, construction of a life table, and population projections.
- Introduction to Demographic Measurement
- Population Growth
- Age and Sex Composition
- Comparing Populations
- Demographic Writing and Presentations
- Mortality and Health
- Fertility and Family
- Construction and Interpretation of Life Tables
- Population Projections
Applied Demography, Data and GIS (APDEM 802)
This course provides an overview of key government and commercial demographic data sets, and their use in addressing applied demography problems. Instruction in the knowledge and application of GIS techniques used by applied demographers is a major course goal.
Applications in Applied Demography (APDEM 803)
Describing and analyzing real world examples of applied demography applications in business, government, public policy, health and non-profit organizations are instructional objectives of this course. Opportunities are presented to discuss approaches to perform applied demography-related problem solving based on a case study approach.
Elective Courses (9 credits minimum, 3 credits each)
Business Demography (APDEM 804)
An overview of important impacts of demographic dynamics, data, and methods on issues in business decision making, including consumer population characteristics, site selection demographics, within-company workforce population dynamics, and population group non-discrimination compliance issues.
Public Sector Demography (APDEM 805)
Applied Demographers are crucial in providing information to policy makers. This courses provides an overview of important impacts of demographic dynamics, data, and methods on public sector, non-profit, and public policy issues, including such topics as the allocation of public program resources, education system planning, workforce and client population dynamics, population-based voting redistricting, and population group representation and non-discrimination compliance issues.
Applied Demography and Health (APDEM 806)
This course provides a wide-ranging coverage of substantive health questions that draw upon data and analytical methods closely associated with applied demography. The course opens with an overview of the substantive connection between health and applied demography. The remainder of the course is divided up into three main parts: (1) Local/Regional Health Assessments; (2) Methods and Case Studies in Mortality and Morbidity; and (3) Emergent Trends in Applied Demography and Health.
Small Area Estimation (APDEM 807)
This course provides students with the skills to produce reliable estimates of socioeconomic and health characteristics at the subnational level. Data availability for ‘small areas’ is often limited by cost and analysis must be able to estimate local area indicators with the available information. It will provide an introduction to the main topics in small areas and describes best approaches for the estimation of small area parameters.
Spatial Demography (SOC 579)
This graduate seminar is designed to focus on substantive demographic research topics while exposing sociologists and demographers to challenges in, and opportunities for, using geographic information systems (GIS), spatial analysis, and spatial statistics in their own research. Substantive foci will include readings and discussions of spatial perspectives on topics such as racial/ethnic segregation, spatial mismatch/entrapment, poverty, crime/delinquency, migration, health inequalities, wellbeing, maternal and child health, environmental justice, and population and environment relations.
External Elective Courses (Up to 6 credits)
- CEDEV 500 Community & Economic Development: Theory & Practice
- CEDEV 509 Population, Land Use, and Municipal Finance
- GEOG 588 GIS for Emergency Management
- GEOD 497 Location Intelligence for Business
- H P A 850 Health Care Marketing
- PADM 535 Policy Analysis & Planning
- PL SC 490 Policy Making and Evaluation
- STAT 501 Regression Methods
- STAT 505 Applied Multivariate Statistical Analysis
- STAT 800 Applied Research Methods
Capstone Project (APDEM 808)
This culminating experience provides students with an opportunity to apply their knowledge of applied demography to a research project. The choice of research project topic and exact form will be mutually determined by the faculty mentor and the student. The student will work with a faculty mentor/advisor on a capstone project that will be written up as a capstone report. Students are expected to utilize methods acquired during other courses in the M.P.S. in Applied Demography and apply them to a topic of interest.