Title: Public Health master and Ph.D. programs in Germany: Systematic mapping of academic programs and stakeholder perspectives

Funding Body: initially funded by the VW-Stiftung (01.07.2022-31.08.2022) and currently funded by the Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung through the Philipp-Schwartz Initiative (PSI) (01.09.2022-31.08.2025)

Funding Period: 2022-2025

Objectives:

• The overall goal of the project is to provide a comprehensive overview of public health and other population-level health science master and Ph.D. programs in Germany. A particular focus will be on characteristics of public health programs, including core curricula, target competencies and connection of programs to public health stakeholders and industry within the public health landscape.

Background:

• The availability of public health education at master and Ph.D. level has evolved in Germany over the last four decades. However, the public health education landscape in Germany is scattered. Relevant programs may come with different titles, core curricula and target competencies as well as heterogenous networks and coordination with public health stakeholders and institutions. To date, no comprehensive overview on currently available public health programs in Germany is available. Mapping these programs and understanding the perspective of stakeholders towards these programs is important for the German public health education system as it may help to identify both strengths and potential gaps but may also provide learning opportunities for emerging public health education systems in other countries. 

Methods: 

• Through the systematic mapping we will

i) map the landscape of all master and Ph.D. level programs available in Germany in the field of population level health sciences such as public health, health science, epidemiology, health economics, healthcare management, and health policy; 

ii) determine what constitutes a typical curriculum of public health master and Ph.D. programs (core subjects and electives); 

iii) systematize information on targeted core competencies to be transmitted to students within these master and Ph.D. programs as stated by these programs.

• Through the qualitative interviews we will 

i) determine the network of connections between the academic and non-academic world of public health institutions and other players (i.e., who are they connected with?);

ii) investigate how the connections with the non-academic world of public health institutions and other players are managed and fostered (e.g., cooperations, guest lectures, internships) to prepare graduates for the job market; 

iii) reveal best practices of management and scientific coordination of public health master and Ph.D. programs and challenges faced by stakeholders.

Impact

• The project will provide an overview of the current state and priorities of public health higher education in Germany create the possibility for the better interconnection, development of shared teaching contents, objectives, and target competencies across programs, as well as it can be extremely beneficial for other countries experiencing a need to improve public health sector developing public health programs. It could play a role in fostering improved functioning and interaction between the academic and scientific networks of the public health sector in Germany and internationally.