OMED1416 Faculty of Education, Health and Human Sciences, Dissertation, University Of Greenwich

Aim and learning outcomes:

Aim: To provide students with the opportunity to conduct an independent research project and synthesise the findings from this project in a dissertation.
Learning outcomes: Students successfully completing this module will be able to

• Choose a research question that is relevant to the fields of public health or health management
• Conduct a literature review of the chosen topic and provide a synthesised, critical discussion of the key literature
•  Outline the key elements in planning a research project and select the appropriate methods to investigate the research question
• Collect and/or analyse data to answer the research question
• Structure a research report communicating the background to the research project, its aims, the methods used, the findings with its interpretation in the context of the relevant literature, and main conclusions
• Critically analyse the ethical dimensions and strengths and weaknesses of your own research work
• Reflect on the processes and personal development related to the dissertation

Rationale for assessment

This assessment is designed to help students complete and report on a research project. The reporting of research findings is at the core of an MSc Global Public Health or Global Health Management and this dissertation project is a report of completed research activity. Guided by a critical literature review, a well- defined
 
research question or hypothesis and carefully constructed methods you will report on a small-scale, unfunded project which you complete from design to execution.
The dissertation reflects your independent development in research and rigorous scientific methods. The completion of a dissertation will provide substantial evidence of the ability to implement and synthesise findings in a meaningful manner. The dissertation demonstrates critical report writing skills for future employment.

Guidelines for the assessment

Your dissertation should be a substantial piece of work and it will be judged based on the level of demonstrated understanding and application of standard techniques to a new set of circumstances.

When writing your essay try to keep in mind that you are writing for an educated person, therefore we expect the use of academic language. As the spheres of Global Public Health and Global Health Management are wide, you must clearly explain any jargon or technical terms within the context of Public Health.
Throughout this dissertation you MUST demonstrate a critical analysis of relevant global public health or health management concerns. You should demonstrate learnings from all other relevant modules taught during the MSc programme. The dissertation will need to make new recommendations as well as contributions to the academic field of study.

For the MSc Global Public Health, there are three main types of dissertations, those involving:

• Reviews: a systematic or scoping literature review, with narrative synthesis and/or meta-analysis
• Secondary analysis of existing data

Collection of primary data (using quantitative and/ or qualitative methods) For the MSc Global Health Management, there are three main types of dissertations, those involving:

• Reviews: a systematic or scoping literature review, with narrative synthesis and/or meta-analysis
•  Policy or practice analysis with a recognisable framework
•   Partial or full economic evaluation

The word count of 12,000 words includes the abstract (~350 words), your reflection statement (~500 words) and references.
You should aim for ~10,000 words for the core components of your dissertation- Chapter 1: Introduction, Chapter 2: Methodology, Chapter 3: Results, Chapter 4: Discussion, Chapter 5: Conclusion.

The thesis should be written in your own words; copying text from other sources is not acceptable. Using anyone else’s work as your own, either published in print or on the Internet, without referencing, is plagiarism. All written material will be uploaded onto the plagiarism software Turnitin.
 

Recommended reading

Please review all content in the OMED1416 Moodle Shell including articles, slides and videos.