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Hear from some of the students who have completed their MSc programme in Health Economics and Decision Science.
Peter Farmer
Class of 2021
“The MSc in Health Economics and Decision Science provides you with a wide range and strong set of skills taught by a variety of specialist disciplines. This will enable you to apply for relevant jobs and have the confidence that you will have the necessary skills. Additionally, you are being taught by passionate staff who are highly skilled in their field.
The two modules that I found most interesting were Health Economics and Urban Health. I enjoyed the theory explored in the Health Economics module, which gave me depth in my understanding of how economic theory can be applied to healthcare and explained the different health systems and their different components, such as the pharmaceutical industry. Urban Health was great because it was taught in a way that I had not experienced before with us having presentations from an expert on the different topics taught and there often being a discourse around the topic for that week.
I am currently an Assistant Economist for the Department for Work and Pensions. In my current role, I work with a lot of data and it is vitally important that when we analyse the data, we try to be robust and use appropriate techniques. The MSc has given me a great toolkit with this, especially the skills learnt from Medical Statistics and Econometrics.
I recommend that if given the opportunity to study this course you really make the most of it. Try and make the most of your learning because you will reap the rewards from it, but also make sure you have fun! UCL is in the heart of London and has a lot of opportunities for you to join societies and meet people from all over the world.”
Kyle Bassett
Class of 2020
“Having studied MSc Health Economics and Decision Science at UCL in 2020/21, I am now working for a top consulting firm in the Life Sciences industry as a Strategy Consultant. This Master’s programme has not only helped me get a foot in the door of the healthcare industry, but has given me valuable skills and knowledge which I now use day-to-day.
MSc HEDS (as we call it) gave me the opportunity to learn about a variety of interesting topics, from medical statistics, to economic evaluations, to the role of gender in health - all taught by leading experts in their respective fields.
I cannot stress enough how much I recommend this programme! Not only is the content super interesting, but the UCL family will welcome all with open arms. The staff truly care about the students’ personal development, and are constantly on hand offering guidance and support to anybody who needs it.”
Georgia Harris
Class of 2020
"The MSc Health Economics and Decision Science at UCL provides a great overview of the tools required to be successful in Health Economics and Outcomes Research. I chose to study this programme as I wanted to apply my Economics background and analytical skills to an area that contributes to improved outcomes for society.
I particularly enjoyed learning the statistical and modelling skills for calculating cost-effectiveness of new interventions, through the modules "Economic Evaluation of Health Care" and "Bayesian Methods for Health Economics".
Through UCL, I was able to organise an internship with Parexel working on survival analysis of real trial data, which I used for my dissertation. This was a fantastic opportunity to consolidate the skills learnt on my course, and has led to a full-time job role at Parexel.
The Institute for Global Health at UCL is a great department to be a part of. It consists of such a large number of students and academics covering a wide range of health research areas, providing so many opportunities to connect with and learn from other people. The support and admin staff were fantastic in ensuring my time at UCL was enjoyable and the programme ran smoothly.
UCL adapted very well to online teaching with little time to prepare. The systems are already in place to provide the same quality of teaching online as is possible in-person. I have also been impressed at how much support UCL provides to students, enabling everyone to really get the most out of their degree."
Caitlin Thomas
Class of 2018
“The mix of departments involved in developing the MSc Health Economics and Decision Science meant that there was a wide variety of modules and topics to learn about. This included health economics, global health systems, as well infectious diseases modelling. I really enjoyed Modelling for Decision Science and focussed my dissertation in this area. This module is extremely topical given the importance of modelling the spread of COVID-19. I have found it interesting to have an understanding of how they may be modelling this disease.
I now work as a research associate at Evidera, a scientific health research consultancy, within the Patient Centered Research team. Economic Evaluation in Health Care gave me basic knowledge about cost-effectiveness analysis which is relevant to my work. Within my team, we conduct patient preference research, using stated preference methods such as a Discrete Choice Experiment (DCE). Our goal is to find out more about what matters to patients when choosing a treatment and what trade-offs they are willing to make between different treatment features, such as efficacy, risks and convenience. This type of research is based on economic theory and the Microeconomics for Health module was a great basis for learning more about this form of research.
Overall, the MSc provided me with an insight into the types of jobs available in this industry and provided me with the skills necessary for working in this field.”