Assessment 1

Project Outline

In this assessment, you will produce a 2,000‑word project outline that proposes a strategically designed public health project addressing a clearly defined public health issue of your choice. You will be required to formulate advanced planning, budgeting, and monitoring approaches appropriate for the selected context, demonstrating informed judgement in evaluating risk, sustainability, and ethical implications.

Your outline should begin with a concise problem definition supported by relevant data sources and literature, followed by a clear justification for the need for the project. You will then articulate a coherent project plan that includes aims and objectives, key activities, timelines, resource requirements, and anticipated outputs. As part of this, you must discuss budget allocation and justification, risk identification and mitigation strategies, and approaches to monitoring and evaluating project progress.

Accordingly, your project outline must also demonstrate the purposeful use of digital tools for project tracking, data analysis, or reporting (e.g., Gantt charting software, Trello, Asana, Excel dashboards, or equivalent platforms). You are expected to draw on advanced project management frameworks and relevant public health policy guidance, using high‑quality academic and professional sources to justify your decisions.

Rationale

This assessment develops advanced application and problem‑solving skills by requiring you to translate public health project management concepts into a feasible and contextually appropriate project plan. It mirrors the responsibilities of public health professionals who must design, justify, and oversee complex projects that address health challenges in diverse communities. Through the integration of risk assessment, budgeting, sustainability, ethics, and digital literacy, the assessment aligns with Level 7 expectations for strategic thinking, informed judgement, and evidence‑based decision‑making.

Assessment 2

Reflection

For this assessment, you will produce a 1,000‑word reflective analysis that examines your personal leadership style, professional skillset, and the way these competencies informed your approach to developing the project plan in Assessment 1. You will be expected to demonstrate advanced professional development by critically analysing how leadership, coordination, stakeholder engagement, communication, and decision‑making shaped your project planning process.

Your reflection should draw on an appropriate reflective framework (e.g., Gibbs, Rolfe, Driscoll), making explicit connections between theory and your lived experience of engaging with the project management task. You should consider the influence of your values, behavioural tendencies, interpersonal skills, and leadership approach in relation to project planning, implementation, and evaluation. Additionally, you should reflect on how your digital literacy, time management, and collaborative competencies contributed to or challenged the development of your project outline.

The reflective analysis should demonstrate your capacity to evaluate your strengths and limitations, identify opportunities for growth, and articulate how your leadership capabilities will shape your future practice in public health project management.

Rationale

This assessment is designed to foster high‑level reflective practice and personal development, both of which are essential competencies for effective project leadership in public health. It encourages you to critically examine your professional identity, behaviours, and decision‑making processes, enabling you to develop greater self‑awareness and capability in managing complex public health projects. The reflective practice is expected to be analytical, theoretically informed, and explicitly connected to future improvement. This assessment, therefore, supports your progression toward becoming a reflective, adaptive, and capable public health project leader.

Principles of project management
Project life cycle in public health
Budgeting and resource allocation
Risk assessment and mitigation
Monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning frameworks
Stakeholder engagement strategies
Digital tools for project management
Data-driven decision-making in projects
Reporting and documentation standards
Ethics and governance in projects
Sustainability planning
Leadership in project implementation

1. Formulate advanced planning, budgeting, and monitoring approaches for public health project management, demonstrating informed judgement in evaluating risk, sustainability, and ethical implications.

Programme Learning Outcome: Application & Problem Solving

2. Apply digital platforms to support project tracking, data analysis and reporting, demonstrating methodological rigour, accuracy and informed judgement in generating evidence to guide public health project decision making.

Programme Learning Outcome: Digital Literacy

3. Demonstrate advanced professional development by applying leadership, coordination, stakeholder engagement and reflective practice to effectively plan, deliver and evaluate public health project activities and outcomes.

Programme Learning Outcome: Personal Development & Entrepreneurship

4. Critically reflect on personal leadership style, professional behaviours and decision making, demonstrating insight into strengths, limitations and their implications for effective coordination and delivery of public health projects.

Programme Learning Outcome: Reflection

Lectures on key concepts will be delivered in-person on campus for both the full time and part-time cohorts while the distance learning cohorts will be delivered online. This will be complemented by online group discussions among the students to explore key issues and their relevance in practice. Interactive sessions and critical appraisal of data and policies would be employed. Students will also engage in independent, self-directed learning activities and drop-in support sessions, where needed, will be provided.

Johnson, S. and Walshe, K., (2024). Health Services Management: Leadership, Planning and Delivery. 4th ed. London: Routledge.

Leggat, S., Smith, J. and Stanton, P., (2023). Leading and Managing Public Health Systems. 2nd ed. London: Routledge.

Peters, D.H., Tran, N.T. and Adam, T., (2022). Implementation Research in Health: A Practical Guide. Geneva: World Health Organization.

Fottler, M.D., Savage, G.T. and Malvey, D.M., (2021). Project Management for Healthcare. 2nd ed. New York: Springer.

Tasic, H. and Furber, S., (2021). Managing Public Health Projects: A Guide to Planning, Implementation and Evaluation. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

What does it take to turn a great idea into a successful public health intervention across diverse global contexts? This module positions project management as a vital skill for public health practice, enabling you to design and deliver initiatives that adapt to cultural, economic, and political realities. From coordinating Ebola response in West Africa to maternal health projects in South Asia or digital health platforms in Europe, you will learn to plan, budget, and monitor effectively while addressing risk, ethics, and sustainability. Practical use of digital tools will enhance tracking and reporting, and strategies for stakeholder engagement will ensure inclusivity and impact. By the end, you will design robust project charters, develop monitoring and evaluation frameworks, and critically reflect on governance and leadership, which are essentials for managing complex health projects in dynamic environments.