This class introduces to methods and theory of program evaluation in health policy and social policy. It comprises three main parts:

Module 1: Introduction to Program Evaluation:

• Paradigms and typologies of program evaluation
• Describing and eliciting a Program Theory
• The social and political context of program evaluation
• Planning an evaluation

Module 2: Quantitative methods for Impact Evaluation

• The Potential Outcomes Framework
• Randomized controlled experiment, Matching, IV, Regression Discontinuity, Diff-in-Diff

Module 3: Methods for Economic Evaluation

• Cost-benefit, cost-effectiveness, cost-utility analysis

After this course students are ...

• aware of the importance of the program theory to understand how and why a program works or fails to work,
• familiar with the components of an evaluation plan,
• aware of the importance of the social context of program evaluation,
• familiar with the causality concept in impact evaluation and its prerequisites,
• familiar with different econometric approaches to identify program effects,
• familiar with different approaches how to relate program benefits to its costs and draw conclusions about efficiency,
• able to critically reflect on different methods of impact and economic evaluation in terms of their limitations and benefits.

This being a ‘course with continuous assessment (PI)’, the University requires students to attend at least 80% of the time of the scheduled course units for completing the course successfully. Ideally you attend all units fully. If you are unable to fully attend a unit, please let the Lecturer(s) know in advance. In case online units are scheduled, the same attendance requirements apply.

• Lectures
• Examples
• Group discussions
• Discussion of distributed papers and examples
• Application in statistical software (e.g. Excel/R/Stata), exercises & examples

Assessment Components (relative weights in the final grade)

• 40% (Individual) Written exam
• 50% (Group) project
• 10% (Individual) active participation

Grade Key (point ranges)

• 1: Excellent (90-100 points)
• 2: Good (80-89 points)
• 3: Satisfactory (65-79 points)
• 4: Sufficient (50-64 points)
• 5: Fail (0-49 points)

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Right after class or by e-mail. Meetings can be scheduled upon demand.