Joint Master's Programme in Health Informatics

Conditions

2 years. The programme is taught in English.

Introduction

Modern healthcare is dependent on the efficient management of information and knowledge. The development of computer-based systems to support this involves the cooperation of several professional groups. The competence needed for successful results constitutes the subject field of health informatics.

Film and further information

Programme presentation

The Master's Programme in Health Informatics is aimed at students who are interested in information technology and want to apply this to the medicine or health care fields. This programme is given in conjunction with Stockholm University, and you will get a joint degree from both universities. You will learn methods to make health care safer, more efficient and of higher quality through computer based information and knowledge management.

Students may have their initial training in either health care or a technical discipline. During the first semester, students with technical backgrounds take courses in basic medical sciences, health care organisation and management, while students with medical backgrounds learn basic computer and systems sciences. The first semester ends with a joint course in health care information systems.

The second semester covers basic health informatics methods for user needs and requirements engineering, standardisation within health informatics, evaluation and clinical decision support. Parallel to these courses, health informatics related case studies will be discussed in a seminar series, after which the semester ends with a research project course.

The third semester provides an opportunity for in-depth study of health informatics with two required courses in modelling and simulation, as well as a block of elective courses. These elective courses can be taken either at Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm University or at any of the foreign universities that KI has an existing collaboration with. The fourth and final semester consists of a thesis in which students carry out a larger scientific study.

Specific entry requirements

A Bachelor's degree or a professional degree equivalent to a Swedish Bachelor's degree of at least 180 credits in healthcare, biomedicine, medical technology, computer and systems sciences, informatics or the equivalent.

Proficiency in the English language should be documented by an internationally recognized test such as TOEFL: internet based (iBT) with a total score of at least 90 and minimum score of 20 on written test, paper based (PBT) with a total score of at least 575, and minimum score of 4.5 on written test, or IELTS (academic) with an overall mark of at least 6.5 and no band less than 5.5; or other documentation that according to regulations certifies the equivalence of English B at Swedish upper secondary school.

Start of programme

Introductory week in late August. Lectures start early September 2012

Degree

Master of Science (120 credits)

Career opportunities

IT projects in the health care field require people with a solid understanding of both the needs of the medical sector and the strengths and limitations of technology. The health informatician s unique interdisciplinary expertise makes them particularly suited to assume a coordinating and bridging role between these two areas. Many health informaticians work as project managers. Other common roles are IT managers, clinical informaticians, application experts, requirement analysts, system specialists, system developers, interaction designers, evaluators and researchers.

More information

If you have questions about application and admission procedures please visit
ki.se/application or contact admissions@ki.se

Vasilis Hervatis, vasilis.hervatis@ki.se, +46-8-524 822 78

Read more on how this programme is structured today. Note that this might be subject to changes.