MSc Control of Infectious Diseases

This course aims to bridge the disciplines of epidemiology, laboratory sciences and public health and policy for training and retraining of students who wish to work directly on a multidisciplinary practical approach to the control of infectious diseases, and to equip students with specialised skills that will facilitate a career in the control of infectious diseases as staff of health ministries, health departments, national or international disease control agencies, aid organisations or universities.

Graduates from this course take up scientific or managerial positions in national and international government agencies, aid agencies, or join specific intervention projects or research projects to improve global health.

Objectives

At the end of this course students should be able to: investigate the transmission of endemic and epidemic infections; select appropriate methods of control; design, implement and evaluate co-ordinated control methods; assess constraints of local public health delivery systems; manage available resources in the context of the control of infectious diseases, and focus their efforts on particular geographical regions or specific diseases.

Programme specifications - showing which of the various elements of the Course support and achieve each of these specific Objectives.

Term 1

After orientation, students attend a core module which focuses on: (i) the life cycle and characteristics of infectious disease agents according to their principal transmission routes; (ii) the principal intervention strategies used to combat infectious diseases; (iii) examples of successes, partial successes and failures in intervention programmes against infectious diseases. This module is integrated with a compulsory module on basic statistics, and either with a) study modules on basic epidemiology; health economics, and health policy, process and power, or with b) study modules on extended epidemiology and health economics or health policy, process and power. An interdisciplinary approach is emphasised which takes account of the social, political and economic context in which health systems operate.

Terms 2 and 3

Students take a total of six study modules, one from each timetable slot. A typical selection is given here:

C1: : Health Care Evaluation; Primary Health Care in Developing Countries; Vector Sampling, Identification & Incrimination.

C2: Conflict & Health; Clinical & Public Health Bacteriology; Economic Analysis for Management and Policy.

D1:  Communicable Disease Control in Developed & Middle Income Countries; Designing Disease Control Programmes in Developing Countries.

D2:  Epidemiology & Control of Communicable Diseases

E1: AIDS; Methods of Vector Control; Mycology; Modelling & The Dynamics of Infectious Diseases; Population and Development.

E2: Control of Sexually Transmitted Diseases; Epidemiology & Control of Malaria; Antimicrobial Chemotherapy; Tropical Environmental Health.

Further details for the course modules can be found here.

Project Report

Students complete a research project studying aspects of an intervention programme. If appropriate, this may take the form of an optional period in a relevant overseas location. Most students on this course undertake projects overseas. Students undertaking projects overseas will require additional funding of up to £1,500 to cover costs involved.

Titles of some of the recent summer projects completed by students on this MSc.

Course Duration

Full-time for one year or split study over two years. Students taking the course by split study over two years attend full-time for part of Year 1, and then undertake the remainder of the course in Year 2. The split can occur anytime between the Christmas break and the end of the formal teaching in May, by prior arrangement with the Course Director. Paper 1 may be taken at the end of Year 1 or at the end of Year 2. Paper 2 must be taken at the end of Year 2. Interested applicants should indicate their choice on the application form.

Entrance Requirements

Either a Second-class Honours degree from a recognised university in a scientific, social sciences or humanities field, or a degree in medicine. Applicants with an appropriate technical qualification and work experience, or equivalent qualifications, are also welcomed.