Last modified: 22 Jul 2026 13:42
This course in applied epidemiology gives an introduction to disease measurement at a population level, basic epidemiological study design and analysis, and provides an understanding of key methodological issues needed to apply when designing – or critically appraising – an epidemiological study.
| Study Type | Postgraduate | Level | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | First Term | Credit Points | 15 credits (7.5 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Offshore | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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Teaching and learning for this course will involve a combination of preparatory work for class, podcast lectures, in-class workshops, self-study and revision, a group assignment, and tutorials (self-directed). You will receive approximately 20 hours of pre-work activities and 20 hours of face-to-face synchronous sessions which will provide you with the theoretical background for each topic and opportunity to engage with and apply epidemiological concepts. Typically, you are expected to spend around a further 60 hours in private study and 50 hours preparing for assessments.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 20 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
Class Test 1 worth 20% of the overall grade. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Apply | Identify, define and contextualise basic epidemiological terminology. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Interpret results from epidemiological studies, recognising the strengths and limitations of different observational study designs. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Understand the concepts of chance, bias, confounding, validity and reliability when critically appraising epidemiological finding. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Analyse screening data and evaluate the strengths and limitations of screening programmes. |
| Conceptual | Understand | Distinguish between observational study designs and understand the appropriate circumstances in which to use each design. |
| Factual | Analyse | Calculate and interpret basic epidemiological measures e.g. odds ratios, relative risk etc. |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 40 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
Class Test 2 worth 40% of the overall grade. |
|||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Apply | Identify, define and contextualise basic epidemiological terminology. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Understand the concepts of chance, bias, confounding, validity and reliability when critically appraising epidemiological finding. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Analyse screening data and evaluate the strengths and limitations of screening programmes. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Interpret results from epidemiological studies, recognising the strengths and limitations of different observational study designs. |
| Conceptual | Understand | Distinguish between observational study designs and understand the appropriate circumstances in which to use each design. |
| Factual | Analyse | Calculate and interpret basic epidemiological measures e.g. odds ratios, relative risk etc. |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 40 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
Critical Appraisal worth 40% of the overall grade. |
|||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Apply | Identify, define and contextualise basic epidemiological terminology. |
| Conceptual | Apply | Consider the assessment of cause and effect and the use of epidemiological research in decision making. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Interpret results from epidemiological studies, recognising the strengths and limitations of different observational study designs. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Analyse screening data and evaluate the strengths and limitations of screening programmes. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Understand the concepts of chance, bias, confounding, validity and reliability when critically appraising epidemiological finding. |
| Conceptual | Understand | Distinguish between observational study designs and understand the appropriate circumstances in which to use each design. |
| Factual | Analyse | Calculate and interpret basic epidemiological measures e.g. odds ratios, relative risk etc. |
| Assessment Type | Formative | Weighting | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
Online Quizzes, formatively assessed. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
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| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 100 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
2-hour resit exam worth 100% of the course grade. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
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||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Analyse screening data and evaluate the strengths and limitations of screening programmes. |
| Conceptual | Apply | Identify, define and contextualise basic epidemiological terminology. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Understand the concepts of chance, bias, confounding, validity and reliability when critically appraising epidemiological finding. |
| Factual | Analyse | Calculate and interpret basic epidemiological measures e.g. odds ratios, relative risk etc. |
| Conceptual | Apply | Consider the assessment of cause and effect and the use of epidemiological research in decision making. |
| Conceptual | Understand | Distinguish between observational study designs and understand the appropriate circumstances in which to use each design. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Interpret results from epidemiological studies, recognising the strengths and limitations of different observational study designs. |
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