About the course

The MSc in Applied Digital Health is a one-year, full-time course, designed to teach the interdisciplinary knowledge and skills needed to drive innovation in the fast-growing area of digital health.

The MSc is led by the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences (NDPCHS), capitalising on the existing breadth of internationally leading digital health research in the department. In addition, the course draws on the expertise of faculty from across the University to create an interdisciplinary learning experience, spanning medicine, social science, engineering, artificial intelligence and data science.

Aimed at early- or mid-career professionals, entrants to the Applied Digital Health MSc will come from a wide range of backgrounds, including clinical medicine, public health, medical sociology, psychology, statistics, computer science and engineering. While no pre-existing knowledge is assumed, applicants must have an interest in both the social and technical aspects of digital health.

Upon successful completion of the course graduates will be able to:

discuss the drivers, enablers, barriers and challenges to digital health innovation, using real-world examples
summarise the state-of-the-art in digital health tools – including digital therapeutics, digital diagnostics, artificial intelligence, learning health systems and those that facilitate automated care pathways or improved patient (self)management – and both explain and critically evaluate the theories and techniques that underlie them
identify and formulate a response to the ethical, policy, regulatory and practice challenges facing digital health
explain in detail the need for user-focused development, meaningful evaluation and successful implementation of digital health tools, and propose appropriate methods, actions and processes to meet these requirements
describe and apply key qualitative and quantitative research methods used study of digital health care and the evaluation of digital tools, as well as identify the strengths and weaknesses of those research methods.

Assessment

During the first two terms there are a series of formative assessments designed to enable teaching staff to monitor student progress. All students are provided with detailed feedback that will enable them to improve their learning by helping them identify their strengths and weaknesses.

There are also eight summative assessments in the first two terms, one per module. Each of these summative assessments account for 8.75% of the final mark. The assessments vary according to the content of the module but include essays, sets of exercises and presentations.

The dissertation in the third term is worth 30% of the final mark.

Graduate destinations

This course will provide graduates with the skills to creatively and successfully harness digital health tools, be that as researchers, policymakers, technology specialists or health practitioners. For example, some students may go on to roles within health organisations that require digital health expertise, or similar roles in pharmaceutical, consulting or health tech companies. Others may be experienced health professionals who seek to exploit digital health opportunities in their own practice. Some may want to pursue an academic career path and may go on to a doctoral research position or a health policy role within government.