About this programme
This one-year Post Graduate Diploma in MEL (Health) is designed as a foundation stage for Monitoring and Evaluation Practitioners. This course is designed to help leaners improve health programming through Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL). The program will provide intensive training in the concepts of program monitoring and evaluation, and the designs and techniques for monitoring and evaluating impact for health interventions. It is designed to build significant capacity of learners to practice the discipline of Monitoring and Evaluation in the field of health. MEL is increasingly recognized as the cornerstone for effective program management and is critical for organisational sustainability. A continuously increasing need for suitably skilled MEL project managers has been identified as a priority area by various stakeholders active in different sectors and industries, such as globally- funded sponsorships often require evidence of effective monitoring and evaluation systems prior to awarding funds. The objective is close the gap of lack of sufficient basic exposure to concepts of MEL by the incoming students.
Upon completion of this programme, learners will be able to:
- Identify the basic purposes and scope of M&E and differentiate between monitoring functions and evaluation functions in health sector.
- Describe the functions of an M&E plan and identify the main components of an M&E plan for health programs -HIV/AIDS, MCH, FGP, etc.
- Identify and differentiate frameworks-conceptual frameworks, results frameworks, and logic models and describe how frameworks are used for health M&E planning. Identify criteria for the selection of indicators and describe how indicators are linked to frameworks.
- Identify types of data sources and describe how information can be used for decision making to improve health programming.
How you will learn
Being a virtual university, the NIU will run this programme purely online by using online live classes through video conferencing, online weekly quizzes and tutorials posted on the courses’ e-learning platform, online simulation tools for practical demonstrations, individual reading assignments, among others.
What you will learn
This program consists of a total of 35 Credit Units that are to be covered in one (1) full academic years of 9 months. Each Academic Year at NIU is made up of 3 terms of 14 weekseach (12 weeks of Learning, one Recollection Week and One Week of Examination). After each Term features a recess period ranging from 3 weeks to 1 month. During the Academic term, students shall be allowed to take a minimum of five (5) Credit Units and a maximum of Sixteen (15) Credit Units for each year of study. This translates into a minimum of one module and a maximum of three modules in each term. Each module will be conducted in inform of live classes for 2 hours each week, online materials will be made available to the students as well as online discussions between the facilitators and the students. Additionally, the students are obligated to propose a PGD project that will be supervised. At the end, the student submits a project report that is defended at a panel set by the School of Public Health and Health Sciences.
You will study:
Institutional Requirements (Mandatory)
- Critical Thinking and Decision Making
- Research Methodology
Core courses
- Introduction to Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning
- Designing and Managing a MEL system
- Learning, Documentation and Knowledge Management
- Principles and Practice of Public Health
- Monitoring and Evaluation for Healthcare Service Delivery Programs
- PGD Project
Learning System Requirement
Every student on the program will be required to possess or have access to a device with an internet connection such as a Personal Computer (PC), a laptop or a tablet, students online learning experience will be dependent on their device. Once s/he is connected to the internet, they will have access to our study portal, which is NIU’s virtual classroom. When logged in, students can access all the tools and resources they need to study their chosen module online. From study materials and schedules, to careers support and chat forums. There may be no need to buy books and other traditional study materials. Instead, everything they could possibly need to succeed in their studies can be found conveniently in one place.
