The Distinct Advantage: Why a PhD in HEOR is Purpose-Built for the HEOR Function in Industry

As the pharmaceutical industry increasingly prioritizes real-world evidence, patient-centricity, and value-based care, the Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR) function has emerged as a cornerstone of drug development, market access, and evidence-based decision-making.

Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with outstanding professionals from various academic backgrounds, epidemiology, public health, biostatistics, clinical pharmacy, and health services research. Each of these disciplines brings valuable skills to industry. However, when it comes to the core responsibilities of the HEOR department, there is clear alignment and readiness in professionals who hold a PhD specifically in HEOR.

Let’s break down why.

Understanding the Academic Foundations

PhD in HEOR: A Purpose-Built Degree

A doctoral degree in HEOR is designed from the ground up to support industry research needs. These programs offer specialized training in:

• Health economic modeling (cost-effectiveness, budget impact, cost-utility)
• Real-world data (RWD) generation and analysis
• Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) and quality of life research
• Systematic literature reviews and evidence synthesis
• Payer engagement and value communication

In addition, most PhD-trained HEOR professionals hold prior clinical degrees, most commonly in pharmacy (PharmD or BPharm). This dual training offers a unique blend of clinical understanding and methodological expertise, making these individuals immediately relevant to the challenges faced by HEOR teams in pharma.

HEOR doctoral graduates are not only methodologists, but they are also trained to translate evidence into access strategy, which is a rare and high-value skill set.

PhD in Epidemiology, Biostatistics, or Public Health: Valuable but Different Focus

These degrees offer rigorous and critical training in:

• Disease surveillance and etiology (Epidemiology)
• Advanced statistical methods and causal inference (Biostatistics)
• Population health improvement, policy, and prevention (Public Health)

These disciplines excel at studying disease patterns, clinical outcomes, and interventions at the population level. Their graduates often begin their careers in academia, government agencies (e.g., CDC, NIH), NGOs, or public health consultancies, with career goals reflecting those domains. Some with statistical and epidemiology background do end up in the pharmaceutical industry supporting their respective departments.

While individuals from these backgrounds can, and often do, transition into industry HEOR roles, their skill sets typically require adaptation to meet the economic modeling, payer-focused communication, and value demonstration needs that are central to pharmaceutical HEOR work.

Alignment with Industry HEOR Roles

Let’s take a closer look at how these educational tracks align with industry HEOR needs:

Comparative Overview: PhD in HEOR vs. Other Related Fields

PhD in Health Economics & Outcomes Research (HEOR)

Primary Focus:

• Health economic modeling (cost-effectiveness, budget impact, etc.)
• Real-world evidence generation
• Patient-reported outcomes (PROs)
• Literature reviews and evidence synthesis
• Health technology assessment (HTA) strategy
• Payer-focused research and value demonstration

Common Backgrounds:

• Pharmacy (PharmD, BPharm)

Career Intent:

• Purpose-built to work in pharmaceutical HEOR departments
• Career-long focus on market access, product value, and evidence generation
• Direct alignment with industry objectives (payer, patient, policy)

PhD in Epidemiology

Primary Focus:

• Study of disease patterns, etiology, and risk factors
• Observational study design and execution (case-control, cohort studies)
• Public health surveillance

Typical Strengths:

• Methodological rigor in population-based research
• Strong in real-world data (RWD) use, especially for safety/epidemiologic studies

Limitations for HEOR:

• Limited exposure to economic modeling, PROs, or market access strategy
• Less familiarity with product value messaging to payers

PhD in Public Health

Primary Focus:

• Broad view of health promotion, policy, and community-based interventions
• Health systems, global health, behavioral sciences

Typical Strengths:

• Policy-oriented thinking
• Community-based program development

Limitations for HEOR:

• Often lacks direct training in industry-centric HEOR methods
• Less emphasis on payer evidence, modeling, and product-specific strategies

PhD in Biostatistics

Primary Focus:

• Statistical methodology and application to health data
• Clinical trials and observational study analytics

Typical Strengths:

• Advanced analytics and statistical computing
• Support across all quantitative functions in pharma

Limitations for HEOR:

• Rarely trained in economic modeling, PROs, or strategic value frameworks
• Typically plays a support role in HEOR teams rather than leading strategy

Summary

While all disciplines bring important skills to the table, a PhD in HEOR is uniquely designed to:

• Lead HEOR functions in the pharmaceutical industry
• Integrate clinical, economic, and humanistic outcomes
• Speak the language of access, reimbursement, and product value

Professionals with a PhD in HEOR not only bring methodological expertise but also have a foundational understanding of clinical context and industry alignment, especially those with a pharmacy background. This makes them especially well-suited to drive outcomes research that resonates with both payers and regulators.

Commitment Matters: Career Intent and Fit

Individuals who pursue a PhD in HEOR typically do so with a clear goal: to work in HEOR in the pharmaceutical or life sciences industry. Their thesis work, internships, fellowships, and mentorships are all aligned to this purpose. That level of alignment is not incidental; it is strategic and intentional to meet the requirements of the HEOR job in the industry.

In contrast, professionals with degrees in epidemiology, public health or biostatistics may enter HEOR roles due to opportunity, or lack of opportunities in their own field. While they can and do succeed, the learning curve is steeper, particularly in economic modeling, market access communication, and real-world application of HEOR deliverables for regulatory and payer stakeholders.

Why the Industry Needs PhD-Trained HEOR Leaders

As HEOR functions move from being support-based to strategic partners in R&D, commercial, and policy, the need for deeply trained, multidimensional experts is growing.

A PhD in HEOR ensures:

• Fluency in both clinical and economic dimensions
• Strategic thinking aligned with industry timelines and stakeholder needs
• Ability to lead evidence generation across the product lifecycle
• Credibility with internal teams and external payers

These individuals can bridge the gap between data and decision-making, whether in informing clinical trial design, shaping value narratives, or leading global evidence strategy.

Final Thought

This is not a comparison of value or intellect, it is a comparison of purposeful training and strategic alignment.

Every discipline brings value. But when the role is HEOR within the pharmaceutical industry, the PhD in HEOR stands apart as the most well-rounded, clinically informed, and strategically aligned path for success.

#HEOR #PharmaLeadership #RealWorldEvidence #MarketAccess #HealthEconomics #OutcomesResearch #PhDinHEOR #BiopharmaCareers #PatientCentricity #EvidenceGeneration #ClinicalPharmacy #Biostatistics #PublicHealth #Epidemiology

Sources

On HEOR Training & Core Competencies

• ISPOR Good Practices for Outcomes Research – ISPOR

ISPOR regularly publishes best practices on economic modeling, PROs, RWE, and value frameworks that form the backbone of HEOR training. Link: https://www.ispor.org/heor-resources/good-practices-for-outcomes-research-index

• ISPOR Curriculum of Graduate Programs in HEOR – ISPOR Education Council

Defines core competencies expected from PhD programs in HEOR, including economic evaluation, PROs, and decision modeling. Citation: ISPOR Education Council. Curriculum of a Graduate Program in HEOR. ISPOR.

• Garrison LP et al. (2013). A Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR) Framework for Decision Making in the Pharmaceutical Industry.

Highlights the importance of economic modeling, evidence synthesis, and outcomes research in pharma. Journal: Value in Health. 2013;16(6):1004-1011.

• Neumann PJ, Sanders GD. (2010). Cost-effectiveness analysis 2.0.

A foundational commentary on the evolution and industry application of economic evaluation. Journal: New England Journal of Medicine. 2010;362(5):393-395.

On the Role of HEOR in Pharma

• Drummond M et al. (2008). Key principles for the improved conduct of health technology assessments for resource allocation decisions.

Emphasizes the integration of economic evidence into access decisions—HEOR’s central role. Journal: International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care. 2008;24(3):244-258.

• AcademyHealth. Careers in Health Services Research and HEOR

Describes career paths in HEOR and how training aligns with specific industry roles. Link: https://www.academyhealth.org

• Perfetto EM et al. (2015). Framework for Modeling the Value of Health Care.

Provides a conceptual overview of how HEOR professionals use various methodologies in value demonstration. Journal: Value in Health. 2015;18(6):741-752.

Comparing HEOR, Epidemiology, and Biostatistics

• Schneeweiss S et al. (2007). The emerging science of comparative effectiveness and its implications for health care delivery.

While grounded in epidemiology, this paper shows how RWE differs when applied within HEOR vs. public health research. Journal: Journal of Clinical Epidemiology. 2007;60(7):595-602.

• Glasgow RE et al. (2003). Evaluating the public health impact of health promotion interventions.

Illustrates the focus of public health research on interventions and policy vs. HEOR’s focus on product-level value. Journal: American Journal of Public Health. 2003;93(8):1322-1327.

• Brook RH. (1994). The RAND Health Insurance Experiment: A 20-Year Retrospective.

A foundational example in outcomes research showing how methods evolved to support both public health and pharma needs differently. Publisher: RAND Corporation.

On Clinical Background and Industry Fit

• Wettermark B et al. (2020). Real-world evidence linking clinical data to health economics.

Emphasizes the need for clinical knowledge when generating actionable HEOR insights in the pharmaceutical industry. Journal: Drug Safety. 2020;43(2):129-136.

• Cohen JT et al. (2008). Does Cost-Effectiveness Analysis Discriminate Against the Disabled?

Shows the ethical and methodological challenges of HEOR requiring both clinical and economic understanding. Journal: PLoS Medicine. 2008;5(2):e29.

• Kazi DS et al. (2014). Cost-effectiveness and quality of life in cardiovascular medicine: Why HEOR is essential in decision-making.

Demonstrates how HEOR specialists translate data into practical, clinical, and payer-facing messages. Journal: Circulation. 2014;129(25):2639–2648.

• Garrison LP et al. A Health Economics and Outcomes Research (HEOR) Framework for Decision Making in the Pharmaceutical Industry. Value Health. 2013.
• ISPOR. Curriculum of a Graduate Program in Health Economics and Outcomes Research. ISPOR.org
• AcademyHealth. Careers in Health Services Research and HEOR.
• Neumann PJ & Sanders GD. Comparative effectiveness research and the role of HEOR. N Engl J Med. 2010.