About the course

This course in total includes 180 hours of learning experience as follow: 56 hours  of online learning, 24 hours of in-person workshops and 100 hours of in-person internship. This course is considered, in value, equal to a 9-credit course.

Learning objectives

After completion of this course, you will be able to:

• Develop and evaluate qualitative research proposals/ protocols with specific focus on discourse analysis
• Submit research protocols to the University of British Columbia Research Information Services (UBC RISe)
• Collect qualitative data using naturalistic observation, unstructured, semi-structured and structured interviews and focus groups
• Analyze your data using thematic and linguistic discourse analysis techniques, develop your model of making sense of your data and plan for change.
• Use ATLAS ti qualitative data analysis software to manage, analyze and report your data, as well as in writing variety of memos in your research; you will need to buy and download Windows version of ATLAS ti software package on your computer.
• Use Mendeley Reference Manager for citation management in your write up. You will need to download this software on your computer for your course.

Learning model and STRUCTURE of the course

This is a research methodology course that is delivered using a Blended Learning Model (BLM). Participants in the course go through three stages: (A) online learning , (B) in-person applied workshops and (C) in-person internship.

A) Online learning

Online learning provides theoretical foundations for this course. This learning includes 14 learning sessions (4 hours each and 56 hours in total) that happens via the IIHR Learning Management System (LMS). At the end of each session, you are asked to answer a set of questions about that lesson.

At this stage, students are paired with IIHR faculties who help students tailor their learning journey to their individual needs. This stage takes 2-8 weeks to be completed; however, this time varies depending on students’ individual pace. Extensions are available if request is placed in a timely manner (usually one week from the start of your courses).

The online learning stage of the course focuses on two main topics of qualitative research and discourse analysis. After setting foundations for qualitative research methodology, the online learning focuses on “language in use”. Successful completion of online learning (stage A) is a prerequisite for admission to next stages that include in-person workshops and internship (stages B and C).

B) In-person workshops

In-person workshops are held in Vancouver at the University of British Columbia (UBC)- Robson Square or at IIHR. These workshops train students about skills they need for conducting research. These workshops include 3-4 one-day workshops that provide, in total, 24 hours of skill-based training and hands-on practices. Successful completion of all workshops is a prerequisite to qualify the IIHR Research Internship.

C) The IIHR Research Internship

This is the final stage of the IIHR Applied Research course. This part of the course happens at IIHR and includes 20 days of in-person research practicum (100 hours in total) under direct supervision of IIHR faculty.

During this stage, learners develop and implement a simple research project under direct supervision of their supervisor; alternatively they participate in an existing research project at IIHR lab. This period is an intensive research experience that requires active engagement of the students. The Internship empowers students about all stages of research, from conception of research ideas to knowledge production and Knowledge Translation (KT). Students who have outstanding outcomes may qualify for CAD 500 for KT award to present results of their research in conferences. At the end of Internship, students participate in graduation ceremony.

Participants

Target groups for this course include: (1) Health  professionals (such as public health, health education and health promotion, health psychology) and Healthcare professionals (such as physicians, nurses and allied health professionals) (2) Business administration professionals (all management and leadership levels) with main focus on health (care) field, and (3) Marketing and advertisement professionals.

Time

This course happens all over year and registration is always open. Each cohort of students will need 2-3 months to finish the entire course. Online education is expected to be finished in 2-8 weeks depending on your own pace. The in-person workshop and internship will need one to month and half to be completed.

Evaluation

Evaluation for online part of the course includes multiple online quizzes. Evaluation of the in-person workshops is based on analyzing data. The Internship is evaluated based on your capability for conducting and leading a simple research project, producing presentation(s) and manuscripts publication(s) as well as criticizing research articles.

Course outline

Clink on the this link to see the course outline for online learning:IIHR_Qualitative research and discourse analysis course outline

How to start

To start the course, after registration, you will need to take the online course first. After completion of this course, you will receive your IIHR Report Card as well as Certificate of Achievement with a unique code (that is verifiable by any organization in the link that will be included in the Certificate for your online course) all in your personal IIHR profile/ dashboard. Next, you will be asked if you want to continue your course by participating in the in-person workshops and internship. If you choose to do so, you will be asked to pay for the rest of the course and will receive an email invitation for in-person sessions that will include in-person workshops and in-person internship both in Vancouver.