For health science researchers, it doesn’t get much bigger than the notion of global health – both in terms of scope and potential impact. No matter what your expertise and research interest, there are meaningful ways to apply your work in a global health setting. Yet for all of its promise, the field can be daunting, requiring know-how, networks and resources that extend around the world. How do you get started?
The Global Health Research Certificate Program is intended to help faculty, fellows and residents incorporate global health into their research portfolios, creating a foundation for meaningful collaborative relationships and research in the global health setting, and ultimately paving the way to successfully compete for extramural funding for global health research. Through a combination of mentorship and monthly seminar events, participants will gain the tools to develop their own research activities abroad, including the skills to seek extramural funding for global health projects.
Participants may come from any of the U-M health science schools, and there is no tuition cost.
Eligibility
The program is open to any U-M faculty (MD or PhD), fellow, resident, or PhD candidate interested in establishing or expanding their research activities in an international setting. The program is managed through the University of Michigan Medical School, but participants are welcome from other U-M health science schools.
Requirements & Competencies
Participants will work through a customized curriculum that will include the following.
- Active participation in at least 70% of monthly seminars for the 2023-24 session. Most seminars will be virtual with some opportunity for in-person networking within the cohort.
- Participating in other U-M/UMMS global health programming/seminars (e.g., Global Health Initiative seminars organized by Global REACH).
- Engaging in mentorship with local and international mentors.
In addition to the requirements above, participants upon program completion should have a demonstrated understanding of the following key competency areas. The following competency domains are broad in nature, framed as questions participants should be able to answer. They will be customized by the faculty presenters to complement their skills and address the needs of the program learners.
- What is global health?
- What are the challenges and optimal approaches for collaborating with international research partners?
- How can one prepare to understand the local context in order to practice cultural humility?
- How do health systems vary internationally in terms of their financing, governance, and organization structures?
- What are some of the significant topics/trends in global health that are current focuses of inquiry and funding (i.e., global burden of diseases; access and universal health care, including access to trauma, surgical management; quality and safety in healthcare settings; maternal and child health; infectious diseases; non-communicable/chronic diseases)?
- What are common information sources and potential data sets available to global health researchers?
- What are some research skills that are particularly useful in global health (i.e., secondary data analysis, qualitative and mixed-methods research, implementation science)?
- How can funding opportunities be identified and successfully pursued?
- How can one develop and nurture a 'community of practice' regarding global health research?
- What are the optimal models for blending global health research in a domestic-based career?
Enroll
The application period for the 2023-24 session is now closed. Check back in the summer of 2024 for the next enrollment period.
Participating Scholars
2023-24
Dhanalakshmi Thiyaga
Obstetrics & Gynecology
Elisabeta Karl
Dentistry
Abdullah Alwaleedi
Kinesiology
Brigit Baglien
Surgery
Jacqueline Kaufman
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Michelle Sun
Ophthalmology
Sundas Saboor
Public Health
Jian-Guo Geng
Dentistry
Bela Parekh
UMMS
Lauren Ward
Public Health
Samia Abdelnabi
Nursing
Katie Beres
Nursing
Chantal Simons
Urology
Leadership
The Global Health Research Certificate Program is managed and administered by Global REACH under the leadership of Professor of Internal Medicine and Health Behavior & Health Education Michele Heisler, MD, MPA, Cheryl Moyer, PhD, Associate Professor of Learning Health Sciences and Ob-Gyn, and Joseph Kolars, MD, MACP UMMS Senior Associate Dean. The program is managed by Global REACH Program Manager Jiawei Ribaudo, PhD.
For more information, email program manager Jiawei Ribaudo.
