This course is comprised of 2 parts each worth 3 ECTS* running across 2 semesters. It is recommended to take both parts but participants can also opt to partake in only one of the two parts. Registration for part 2 will open in the summer of 2025. 

Part 1: Introduction to Global Health

15^th April - 15^th July 2025

Synchronous sessions:

• Tuesday 15th April (16:00 - 17:00 CEST)
• Monday 19th May (16:00 - 18:00 CEST)
• Monday 14th July & Tuesday 15th July (16:00 - 18:00 CEST)

In this section, students will gain a basic understanding of Global Health. Students will discover various different topics in Global Health and collaborate with students from different universities and cultural backgrounds. Topics include:

• the theoretical foundations of global health,
• the effects of globalisation on health and the burden of disease,
• the different determinants of health,
• ethical issues involved in health,
• strategies to improve global health and
• working in an interdisciplinary environment

Participants will also see illustrative examples of current Global Health issues.

Part 2: Global Public Health Essentials - From the Local to the Global 

15^th October 2025 - 28^th January 2026

In this section, students will be introduced to fundamental methodological concepts and key issues in global and public health through an active and student-centered learning approach, including an immersive simulation exercise.

Methods include:

• measures of diseases in populations
• study design and potential source of error in global and public health research

Topics include:

• health care systems
• inequalities in health
• refugees and migrants
• climate change and health

Target group & Prerequisites:

• Master/PhD and students in their 7th semester or higher in undergraduate programmes longer than 6 semesters, and for the second part of the course preferably enrolled in health sciences, public health, epidemiology, medicine, or other professions related to global public health,
• Knowledge of statistical software programming (SPSS, R, SAS, STATA) is an advantage but not a prerequisite for Part 2 of the course.

*students need to confirm with their programme coordinator to make sure this is recognised

For Part 1, the course consists of 4 synchronous and 8 self-paced asynchronous interactive eLearning units with interactive elements on Moodle. During the synchronous sessions, participants will meet online via ‘Zoom’ to form groups and then present their group project. The learned content will be reviewed in interactive tasks on Moodle. As a final assignment, participants will work on a group project which they will present in the final synchronous session.

Assessment: Group project and presentation

For Part 2, the course is designed as a synchronous online course supplemented by self-paced asynchronous eLearning units. Synchronous sessions require students to log in and participate at a specific time. After the required registration for the course, students will receive a course and date overview with the corresponding dial-in data (e.g. for Zoom). Lecture materials are made available for students to download (e.g. from Moodle, before the session). Moodle is used as a free course management system and learning platform.

Assessment: The course combines knowledge transfer with practical exercises. Additional reading is recommended for each session. The course is designed for approximately 90 working hours (3 ECTS), including 30 hours of work with online materials and synchronous online sessions and approximately 60 hours of self-study and game-based learning. Credits must be approved by the student's home institution.

Open