Examination arrangement

Course content

The course is intended to enable the student to deepen their knowledge and focus on a particular topic of interest pertaining to key current issues/questions/debates in global health. This gives the student the opportunity to shape their own learning and prepare for future engagements outside academia. Students can choose one of the following options for this private study elective course:

1. Completion of a professionally relevant internship, traineeship, or volunteer work experience (minimum of 140 hours) during a semester, submission of assigned assignments during the placement (mandatory activity), and give a public lecture at the end of the semester. The lecture is the examination.
2. Assembly of an annotated list of relevant literature (from 20 sources), including scientific articles, reviews and/or book chapters (submission is the manatory assignment), and give an informed public lecture on the topic at the end of the semester. The lecture is the examination.

The topic of private study cannot be identical to the student’s master thesis project topic, although they can be related. In this course, we want the student to demonstrate ability to acquire knowledge beyond the topic of the student's thesis work, and to convey this knowledge in a lecture.

All internships and/or topics must be approved by the course coordinator by the end of the first month of the start of the academic semester in which the course begins.

Learning outcome

Knowledge

After completing the course, the student is expected to:

• make independent decisions during a self-directed project
• reflect on personal development
• think independently, critically, and creatively
• display effective oral communication skills

Skills

Additionally, for those completing the internship:

• connect information and ideas from diverse learning experiences (e.g., from academic to workplace environments, and vice versa)

Additionally, for those completing the annotated literature survey:

• understand and discuss scientific papers in global health, be critical and constructive, and be able to suggest alternative solutions/interventions/study designs

Learning methods and activities

Learning methods

• Private study
• Mentorship/guidance from study program
• Internship/traineeship/volunteer experience or identification, summary, and synthesis of readings
• Activity log and reflection on personal development (for internship option)
• Oral presentation (30 minutes) and open discussion (15 minutes)

Learning activities by project type

Internship + lecture option:

• The students are responsible for identifying and submitting application materials for an internship/traineeship or volunteer experience that can offer a total of at least 140 hours during a semester. The study program will not make the placement, but the course coordinator can be consulted well in advance to give general guidance and tips to the student regarding quality assessment of possible options. The internship must be approved by the course coordinator no later than one month after the semester begins.
• During the internship, it is the student’s responsibility to familiarise themselves with the organisation and to apply their academic/theoretical knowledge and skills in the workplace environment.
• The course coordinator will provide the student with standardized assignments, with submission deadlines, to be completed over the course of the internship (e.g., to define clear and measurable objectives for the internship, to document/report work activities, to reflect on the organisation’s routines and structures, to link theoretical knowledge to the performance of practical tasks). All assignments must be approved in order to pass the mandatory activity, which is required in order to take the exam.
• The student delivers a 30 minute lecture on the internship/volunteer experience, highlighting its relevance to global health, followed by an open discussion with the examiners lasting up to 15 minutes.

Reading list + lecture option:

• The student proposes a study question/topic for detailed self-inquiry. The topic must be approved by the course coordinator no later than one month after the semester begins.
• The student identifies an appropriate reading list, from 20 sources, to deepen their knowledge on the chosen topic (e.g. books, collections of articles, individual articles, reports, other media). The list should include ‘definitive works’ on the topic. The reading list must be approved by the course coordinator by the end of month two in the semester.
• The student prepares a final, formatted reading list, akin to an annotated bibliography, where they describe in concise format (1-3 sentences) the relevance of each academic work to the topic. The final list needs to be submitted and approved in order to pass the mandatory activity which is required in order to take the exam.
• The student delivers a 30 minute lecture followed by an open discussion on the topic usually lasting 15 minutes. The lecture should NOT be a summary, survey or synthesis of literature, but instead a presentation of the chosen study topic/question/debate within global health. Therefore, the student must display knowledge gained through the literature review of academic works but also mastery of understanding of the topic itself. The lecture should highlight the importance of the topic to global health.

Compulsory assignments

• Mandatory activity

Further on evaluation

The exam is the oral presentation, where the student delivers a 30 minute lecture, leaving 15 minutes for a post-lecture discussion with the examiners. The 15 minute discussion will provide an informal opportunity for the student to answer questions related to the lecture and more generally in the field of global health.

The mandatory activity is described under Learning methods and activities. If a student wants to re-sit the exam, the mandatory activity is valid for one subsequent semesters after approval.

Specific conditions

Required previous knowledge

Admission to the MSc in Global Health. Exchange students may be accepted after an individual evaluation.

Course materials

No materials provided; the student selects an appropriate internship or appropriate reading list themselves. These can be based on the student’s own preferences/interests but must be approved by the course coordinator.

After the deadline for course registration is passed, the student will be contacted by a course administrator who will provide information on deadlines throughout the semester.