Prove Your Public Health Chops

Epidemiological Study Design & Analysis

Elective. Design a real study: research question, study type, population, sampling strategy, outcome measures, bias considerations. Analyse a real publicly available dataset (WHO, CDC, ONS, or equivalent) with documented methodology and results. Reviewed by a public health practitioner or epidemiologist who challenges the study design choices.

3 milestones

1. 1Formulate a PICO research question and select study design
2. 2Design the study protocol with bias analysis
3. 3Defend the protocol in a simulated expert review

Public Health Data Communication

Elective. Create a data visualisation communicating a real public health finding to a non-technical audience. Proof: published URL or uploaded file + underlying dataset with documented source + explanation of design choices for the target audience. Dataset must be real, not synthetic.

3 milestones

1. 1Collect and clean a public health dataset for analysis
2. 2Produce 5 data visualisations communicating different public health insights
3. 3Write a data-driven public health report for a lay audience

Public Health Intervention Design

Elective. Design a real public health intervention for a named community or population: logic model, implementation plan, evaluation framework, budget rationale. Reviewed by a public health practitioner with intervention design experience. Must be for a real population — no hypothetical communities.

3 milestones

1. 1Define the target population and the health problem
2. 2Design the intervention using a recognised behaviour change framework
3. 3Present the intervention design to a public health or clinical audience and revise

Systematic Review & Literature Synthesis

Elective. Apply PRISMA methodology to a real health question. Proof: PRISMA flow diagram + documented search strategy (database names, search terms, date ranges, inclusion/exclusion criteria) + synthesis table of included studies. Reviewed by a researcher or academic with systematic review experience. The search must be reproducible from the documented strategy.

3 milestones

1. 1Register a systematic review protocol and conduct the search
2. 2Screen studies and assess risk of bias
3. 3Synthesise the evidence and produce a review summary

Health Policy Brief

Elective. Write a 4-page health policy brief for a named decision-maker (specific government department, health board, or NGO). Problem statement with epidemiological evidence + ≥2 policy options with trade-offs + a recommendation with implementation and budget considerations. Reviewed by someone with health policy experience. Generic briefs on abstract topics are not accepted.

3 milestones

1. 1Select a health policy problem and synthesise the evidence base
2. 2Write the policy brief with recommendations
3. 3Present the brief to a public health or policy audience and receive critique