Entry requirements

Academic requirements

A Bachelor's degree, equivalent to a Swedish Kandidatexamen, from an internationally recognised university, with 90 credits in technical-natural science, social science-humanities or medical-pharmaceutical fields.

Language requirements

Proficiency in English equivalent to the Swedish upper secondary course English 6. This requirement can be met either by achieving the required score on an internationally recognised test, or by previous upper secondary or university studies in some countries.

Aims

The programme aims to provide theoretical, empirical and practical knowledge into the design and implementation of impactful health and sustainability initiatives. Students develop capacities to support transformative learning processes and design equitable solutions in collaboration with actors across scales and sectors.

The programme also provides students with the opportunity to contribute to the scientific knowledge in the field and critically reflect on this knowledge production in different research and development contexts. The programme prepares students for independent work in sustainability and health contexts, in qualified professions, such as government administration, aid organisations, and the education sector.

Students with a master's degree in implementation, transformative learning and sustainability will be eligible for PhD studies in interdisciplinary topics such as sustainability science, environmental communication, global environmental health, and planetary health.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding

For the master's degree, the student must: 

*demonstrate a general understanding of the subject area of learning for sustainable development and global health. In this context, in-depth knowledge of implementation science, transformation, governance, and learning processes, including insights into contemporary research and development practice must be demonstrated.

Skills and abilities

For the master's degree, the student must:

* demonstrate the ability to critically and systematically integrate knowledge and to analyse, assess and handle complex phenomena, issues and situations even with limited information.

* demonstrate the ability to critically, independently and creatively identify and formulate issues, plan and with adequate methods carry out qualified tasks within given time frames, and thereby contribute to the development of knowledge and its evaluation.

* demonstrate a methodological, theoretical and analytical ability to contribute to knowledge development in implementation, transformative learning and sustainability, and other relevant research traditions.

* demonstrate the ability to present and discuss insights from dialogue emerging from national and international contexts and across different societal intersections.

* demonstrate a capacity to apply critical systems thinking within economic, social/cultural and ecological sustainability domains, taking into account manifest complexity and goal conflicts.

* demonstrate the skills required to independently undertake qualified work with implementation, sustainability and transformative learning in research and development settings.

Judgment and approach in the first year

For the master's degree, the student must:

* demonstrate the ability to undertake assessments in the subject area of learning for sustainability and global health concerning relevant scientific, social and ethical aspects and show awareness of ethical aspects in research and development settings,

* show insight into normal science's possibilities and constraints, its role in society and human responsibility for its use, and

* demonstrate the ability to identify their need for additional knowledge and to take responsibility for their knowledge development.

Layout of the programme

This distance programme comprises four semesters (120 credits) over a two year period.

At the programme's inception, the students will spend 1 week on campus in Uppsala. During this week students and teachers will get to know each other face to face by engaging in joint activities before they return to home contexts to continue with semester one via distance learning.

The first 60 credits are assessed via various oral and written assignments in the first year, individually and in groups. The students will be encouraged to take active responsibility for their learning. Students will be involved in co-creating seminars, workshops and participating in peer review processes.

Programme Courses including their order:

Planetary Health, 15 credits (semester 1)

This course explores planetary health, an emerging area of research and practice focused on promoting the health of human communities and all life on Earth while staying within the just and sustainable limits of the planet.

Power, Equity and Transformation, 15 credits (semester 1)

This course examines social and health inequities, and the role of power in distorting the implementation of just and transformative health and sustainability actions.

Implementation Methods and Design, 15 credits (semester 2)

This course explores a range of implementation frameworks and approaches. Explorative methods allow for co-inquiry, co-design and testing of health and sustainability actions without having real world consequences.

Governance for Sustainability, 15 credits (semester 2)

This course analyses the formation of appropriate institutional support, in the context of enabling governance approaches, to support the implementation of methods promoting sustainable development, planetary and global health.

Research Methods, 15 credits (semester 3)

This course in research methods provides a background on theory and research methods including qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods approaches suited to health and sustainability questions.

Elective period, 15 credits (semester 3)

Students can choose from one of two options (1) an internship at an organization working on health and/or sustainability questions, or (2) freestanding courses.

Thesis, 30 credits (semester 4)

The thesis provides students with the opportunity to apply and integrate knowledge developed across the programme, demonstrating independent capacity for research and critical analysis within the areas of implementation, health and sustainability.

The teaching consists of lectures, seminars, and assignments carried out individually and in groups. The programme uses a distance format, which involves a combination of both synchronous (scheduled) and asynchronous (independent) activities. The students present their knowledge continuously during the education through oral presentations, discussions and writing of scientific papers.

The design of the master's programme draws on pedagogical principles of transformative learning, which includes active student participation and close contact and co-creation of knowledge with the surrounding society. The teaching draws on collaborative learning and student-activating pedagogy, where the student's previous experience of research perspectives and education are considered central.

Degree

The programme leads to a master's degree in medicine (Masters Degree of Medicine, 120 credits) in the main field of learning for sustainability and global health.