MASTER OF MEDICAL SCIENCES IN GLOBAL HEALTH DELIVERY
FAST FACTS
• Our faculty lead global health research and implementation projects worldwide
• Students are supported to develop a research in their area of interest
• Our rigorous curriculum develops the skills and tools needed to perform social and delivery science and policy research in resource-limited settings
• Alumni have continued to positions in academia, hospitals, NGOs, and government agencies around the world
Dear Friends,
The need for global health equity was reinforced by the COVID-19 pandemic. This and other health problems demonstrate that social forces and structures are more correlated with life and death than with genetics or microbes.
The Master of Medical Sciences in Global Health Delivery at Harvard Medical School was founded by physician and medical anthropologist the late Dr. Paul Farmer, former Chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, who taught us that only by developing a deep, bio-social understanding of health challenges is it possible to deliver care to the most vulnerable.
To follow this path, our students develop skills in ethnographic, qualitative, and quantitative methods, implementation science and explore the history and political economy to develop and carry out fieldbased research. This innovative approach to global health centers on the lived experience of patients and caregivers to develop
innovative strategies to improve health care delivery and health equity. The Master of Medical Sciences in Global Health Delivery educates the next generation of global health leaders on how to understand, evaluate, and improve care delivery around the world.
Sincerely,
JOIA S. MUKHERJEE, MD, MPH Director, MMSc-GHD Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School Chief Medical Officer, Partners In Health
Dr. Mukherjee’s scholarly work at Harvard Medical School focuses on the provision of health as a human right and on the implementation of complex health interventions in resource-poor settings. Since 2000, Dr. Mukherjee has served as the chief medical officer of Partners In Health, a nonprofit focused on reducing global health disparities by strengthening health systems through public sector support and community-based programs.
Program Overview
MASTER OF MEDICAL SCIENCES IN GLOBAL HEALTH DELIVERY
Improving health care delivery to achieve health equity
The Global Health Delivery program is a two-year master’s program that provides education in bio-social research, program design, and management. During the first year of this two-year program, students complete coursework in research methods, implementation science, management, and social medicine and work with mentors to develop a research project. During the second year of the program, students complete their research projects and write a thesis. These thesis projects contribute directly to improving health care in resource-limited settings and to the growing academic literature in global health equity.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of our program, you’ll be able to:
• Design and complete rigorous research studies using qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods.
• Identify and address key issues affecting health worldwide
• Plan and lead programs to improve health for people in many settings, including those with limited resources.
Our graduates are well-suited to pursue roles in global health including:
• Executive Director
• Chief Operating Officer
• Chief Programs Officer
• Senior Medical Director
• Medical Director
• Chief of Mission at an NGO
• Program Director
• Senior Clinical Program Manager
• Research Scientist for a Ministry of Health
• Entrepreneur
The program equipped me with a skill set and a toolbox essential for analyzing complex global health issues and for transforming robust scientific evidence into policy actions and programmatic interventions.
— ●Zarni Htun, Class of 2016
This program allowed me to delve into social medicine and health equity...I am grateful for the in-depth exploration of the political economy of healthcare systems, which has broadened my understanding of how these systems function worldwide.
— Marie Claire Milady Auguste, Class of 2025
Welcome to the community.
When you enroll in a master’s program at Harvard Medical School, you join one of the world’s premier learning communities. Harvard University is home to an unbelievable wealth of talent, creativity, and curiosity. We’re eager to have you not only benefit from that tradition, but also contribute to it.
LEARN. EXPLORE. APPLY.
You’ll study alongside peers with wide-ranging life experiences, belief systems, and perspectives as you build the skills to advance your career. To help you make the most of your experience, our faculty and staff advisers—whose ranks include some of the most respected experts in the field—provide close guidance and support at every step of the way.
Outside the classroom, Harvard hosts countless virtual and in-person events over the course of the year that provide
intellectual, academic, and cultural enrichment. You will hone your professional practice through interactions with the thousands of leading clinicians and researchers in the area.
After completing your program, you’ll continue to benefit from one of the greatest alumni networks in the world. Wherever your path leads, you’ll always be part of Harvard’s community.
Course of Study
Core Curriculum
The Global Health Delivery core curriculum introduces students to the key challenges and methodologic approaches relevant to global health delivery research. Courses are offered through Harvard Medical School and across Harvard University.
Electives
Options to augment the core curriculum include courses from across Harvard University, including Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Harvard Divinity School, and MIT.
The combination of core and elective courses offers students the opportunity to study topics critical to global health delivery including:
KNOWLEDGE-BUILDING COURSEWORK
• Social Medicine
• Implementation and Strategy
• Leadership and Management
• Human Rights and Ethics
• Policy
SKILL-BUILDING FIELDWORK AND COURSEWORK
• Epidemiology
• Quantitative methods
• Qualitative methods
• Mixed methods
• Ethnography
• Longitudinal mentored thesis project
Our faculty look at where all of these individuals are in terms of their own development, their experiences as either researchers or as individuals who are practicing in the field. What really is that individual student’s passion? Where do they want to create their own change? That’s what we use to develop a research question.
- Hannah Gilbert, PhD Lecturer
Learning Methods
Faculty teach using a variety of methods, including workshops, case studies, team projects, and interactive Socratic lectures. Content is presented to reflect real-world scenarios. Most Global Health Delivery students enter the program with significant previous global health experience, so knowledge exchange occurs between faculty and students as well as among the cohort.
Students apply the knowledge gained towards designing and implementing their thesis project. In Year 2, they lead the implementation and management at the research site. They then conduct data analysis and write-up, followed by an internal defense and public presentation. The Program assists students and alumni in publishing their thesis in a peer-reviewed journal.
Why Choose Global Health Delivery
KEY ASPECTS OF THE MMSC-GHD LEARNING EXPERIENCE
• Skills-based learning
• Faculty mentorship
• Bio-social approach
• Expert-led courses
• Thesis project
The Global Health Delivery program is designed for professionals who seek to develop the skills and expertise needed to drive meaningful change in global health systems. The program combines rigorous coursework with hands-on research, preparing graduates for leadership roles in implementation science, health policy, and global health management.
The program’s mentored research component allows students to design and implement impactful projects that address real-world health challenges. With direct faculty mentorship, students gain experience in conducting field-based research and applying evidence-based strategies to improve health outcomes in diverse settings.
Grounded in a bio-social approach, the MMSc-GHD equips students with a deep understanding of how historical, political, and economic factors shape health systems. This interdisciplinary perspective ensures that graduates are prepared to tackle systemic health inequities with a nuanced, context-driven approach.
The Project
The mentored research project gives students significant hands-on experience and allows them to participate in the design, conduct, and evaluation of an innovative global health delivery program. Beyond developing skills in global health delivery, students have the opportunity to contribute to the quality of health care delivery at the sites where they work, to enhance the training available to local clinical staff, and to contribute to the growing knowledge base that is transforming global health.
Students can propose research in a resource-limited setting or with a vulnerable population in any country.
The program equipped me with the skills to critically analyze data for evidence-based decision-making, guiding health program implementation, resource mobilization, and project evaluation to bridge gaps in global health delivery.
—Afom Tesfalem Andom Class of 2021 “
Examples of Past Thesis Projects
“Understanding Factors Associated with Low Tuberculosis Case Detection in Low Resource Settings: A Mixed-Methods Study in the Kingdom of Lesotho” by Afom Andom, MD, MMSc ’21
“Biosocial Analysis of Neonatal Mortality Among Maya Kaqchikel Communities in Rural Guatemala” by Anahi Venzor Strader, MD, MMSc ’23
“Examining Barriers and Facilitators of HPV Vaccination in Lagos and Ogun, Nigeria, in the Context of an Innovative Delivery Model” by Odunayo Talabi, MD, MMSc ’22
“Confronting Pervasive Under-Five Stunting in the Philippines: Insights from Nutrition Aid-Recipient Communities” by Janine Robredo, MD, MMSc ’24
“Exploring the Outcome of Justice-involved Patients Treated for Substance Use Disorder (SUD) at a Bridge Clinic in Boston, MA” by Oluchi Ndulue, MD, MMSc ‘23
Professional Impact
Launched in 2012, the Global Health Delivery program has successfully educated individuals to implement research as well as to evaluate and improve global health programs. Our graduates have continued to positions in academia, in hospitals, and at non-governmental organizations in over 27 countries worldwide, from Haiti, India, Lesotho, and Malawi to Mexico, Myanmar, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and the United States.
The program seeks to educate the next generation of leaders in global health delivery.
The MMSc-GHD program helped me adopt a social justice lens to critically examine how these forces influence the epidemiology of diseases in different contexts and, most importantly, to develop strategies for delivering quality care to all. The training has profoundly shaped my thinking and approach to program implementation in resource-limited settings.
Melino Ndayizigiye, Class of 2014 Chief of Party, QEHSSSP Project, Partners In Health-Sierra Leone
