Master of Health Economics and Policy (pdf 1MB)

Specialisations:

• Health Management
• Health Technologies
• Development Economics

Course aims:

The Master of Health Economics and Policy program is designed to provide specialisation in the related fields of health economics, health policy and health care management with a particular focus on international health systems. Graduates will develop the capacity to design health reform programs, analyse policy effectiveness, perform economic evaluations of health care interventions, and identify challenges for policy implementation and governance issues by combining management skills with a sound knowledge of economics and public health policies. The flexible structure of the course allows students to tailor their studies according to their educational background or career aspirations, focussing on the economic, health policy or management aspects of health care delivery and planning in countries at different stages of development.

Careers:

Graduates can expect to find employment in Ministries of Health around the world, health insurance funds, the pharmaceutical industry, management consultancies, academia and international organisations. The program is ideal for professionals in mid-career health policy, planning and management roles or those who plan a career in these fields.

Course duration:

2 years full-time study (4 semesters, 48 units). Part-time – maximum completion time 8 years. Students with an Economics background can apply for up to 12 units credit reducing the program duration to 1.5 years. First intake: Semester 1, 2009 (February 2009)

Entry requirements:

• Bachelor of Economics at University of Adelaide or equivalent
• Students without a Bachelor of Economics degree will have to complete the Graduate Certificate in Economics at the University of Adelaide (4 courses - 12 units, 6 months duration) before being admitted to the Masters program. These courses will fully count towards the Master of Health Economics and Policy program.
• Successful applicants without a Bachelor of Economics degree (including AusAid sponsored candidates) will receive a packaged offer (Graduate Certificate PLUS Master of Health Economics and Policy).

Status, exemption and credit transfer:

• No candidate shall be granted status for courses with a total value of more than 12 units on account of courses presented for any other award except with permission from the course director.
• Exemptions will be granted for up to 12 units of courses where, in the opinion of the course director, the candidate has already presented a course/s for another award that contain(s) substantially the same material as any of the courses in the program. All exemptions granted must be replaced by courses chosen by the candidate from other parts of the program.

Course structure:

1. All participants take the following eight core courses (24 units)

• Health Policy and Public Health Interventions (3)
• Health Economics (3)
• Advanced Health Economic Evaluation and Decision Making (3)
• Challenges Facing Economic Policy Makers (3)
• Public Economics IIID (3)
• Public Finance (3)
• Introduction to Epidemiology (3)
• Applied Econometrics IIID (3)

2. Students choose up to eight postgraduate electives taught in the Faculty of Health Sciences or the Faculty of the Professions (to the value of 24 units)

The wide choice of electives from health sciences, economics and business administration allows students to tailor their course according to their educational background and career aspirations. In addition to a generalist track, there are three options for specialisation in health management, health technologies, or development economics. To fulfil the requirements for specialisation, students have to complete at least 3 prescribed courses (9 units) from one specialisation area.

The prescribed courses for the specialisation programs are:

Health Management

• Fundamentals of Leadership (3) or Management Optimising Human Performance (3)
• Managerial Finance (3) or Accounting Essentials for Decision Making (3)
• Marketing Management (3) or Marketing Principles (3)
• Strategic Management (3) or Strategic Evaluation & Control (3)

Health Technologies

• Health Technology Assessment (3)
• Technology Project Management (3)
• Entrepreneurship and Innovation (3) or Business and Project Creation (3)
• Epidemiological Research Methods (3)

Development Economics

• Development Economics IIID (3) or Economic Development (H) (3)
• International Finance (H) (3) or International Finance IV
• International Trade IIID or International Trade IV
• International Economic History (3) or Economic Theory IIID (3)

Some examples for other available elective courses (this list is not exhaustive):

• Biostatistics (3)
• Social Science Research Methods for Public Health (3)
• Strategic Thinking for Decision Makers (3)
• Decision Making in Real Environments (3)
• Microeconomics (H) (3)
• Macroeconomics A (3)
• Human Resource Management (3)
• Organisational Behaviour and Management (3)

3. Dissertation option (12 units)

Students who have achieved Distinction average have the option of writing a dissertation valued at 12 study units substituting for four elective courses under point 2.

Application:

Application for Master of Health Economics and Policy in Public Health need to be submitted through SATAC http://www.satac.edu.au/ by Friday 5th December 2008.  You also then need to complete the Additional Information Form 2010 (pdf 46kB) and then send this to the Public Health Postgraduate Administration officer by Friday 5th December 2008.

Further information is available from the Course Director:

Professor Christian Gericke, Chair in Public Health Policy
Email: christian.gericke@adelaide.edu.au

or from the Administrative Officer, Ms Angela Noble
Email: angela.noble@adelaide.edu.au