School of Public Health
Department for Population Medicine and Health Services Research
Project background and overview
Over the past decades, global health research has grown in scope and complexity – demanding not only interdisciplinary knowledge, but also new ways of thinking about the world and of working together across sectors, settings and roles. Greater clarity is needed about the kinds of competencies (knowledge, skills and attitudes), that are essential for global health researchers, and how these can be systematically developed through professional education and training.
From 2022 to 2025, the AG2 collaborated with the Global Health Academy, an initiative of the German Alliance for Global Health Research (GLOHRA), to develop the Catalogue of Competencies in Global Health Research at Doctoral and Postdoctoral Level. The project was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
The Catalogue of Competencies in Global Health Research was developed as a shared framework to support professional development and collaboration in the field. The Catalogue aims to identify, structure and present key competencies required for researchers at the doctoral and postdoctoral level working in the interdisciplinary and collaborative field of global health.
Overview of the Catalogue of Competencies
The Catalogue presents seven competency domains and 19 individual competencies, each described at three levels of progressive development (Basic, Skilled, and Advanced). Researchers in global health aim to deepen their existing disciplinary competencies (Domain 0) while developing a broad, global perspective (Domain 7), as well as essential competencies for all researchers (Domains 1-6) adapted for work in the field of global health.
The Catalogue is intended to support curriculum development, the design of evaluation criteria and to facilitate interdisciplinary dialogue and collaboration in global health research. It can also be used to support reflection and mapping at individual level to support career choices and pathways. More broadly, the Catalogue can serve as a reference point for the advancement of research, education and training, as well as financing for global health research in Germany and beyond.
Want to know more?
The Catalogue is hosted on the GLOHRA website and features an interactive structure, allowing you to explore the domains and competencies digitally, or download the full document:
Project aims and partners
- Project aims
The overarching aim of the project was to develop a Catalogue of competencies in global health research at doctoral and postdoctoral level for the Global Health Academy, a GLOHRA initiative. The project explicitly aimed to capture and reflect the disciplinary breadth of global health as well as different levels of competencies, to ensure that the resulting framework is inclusive and adaptable to various research contexts.
This Catalogue is primarily targeted to individuals involved in global health research, including doctoral and postdoctoral researchers, as well as those who support them—such as curriculum developers, programme coordinators, teachers, trainers, and supervisors. Researchers at all career stages may find it useful for guiding their research, teaching, supervision, and related activities.
- Project team and cooperation partners
The project was funded by the Global Health Academy, an initiative of the German Alliance for Global Health Research, and was undertaken by the AG2 Bielefeld University team in cooperation with the Health Equity Studies & Migration Section at Heidelberg University Hospital.
The core project team included: Prof. Dr. Kayvan Bozorgmehr (Principle Investigator), Victoria Saint (Project Lead), Bianka Detering, Hannah Eger and André Franke.
How the Catalogue was developed
The development of the Catalogue of Competencies was informed by evidence, discourse and current good practice examples related to competencies in global health, doctoral research and especially global health research. The project included four work packages (WP), outlined below. Further details on methods are provided in the full Catalogue (download PDF here).
- WP 1: Literature review of key competencies
A systematic review of literature on key competencies for global health research in Germany and internationally. The review aimed to identify, map, and synthesise existing evidence and information on key competencies for global health researchers, including content and didactic or pedagogical approach. Through a two-reviewer screening process, 84 articles were included in the review for preliminary analysis, 40 of which were marked as highly relevant for deeper analysis. Based on a coding framework, codes and themes were identified to inform orientation and structure for the Catalogue.
- WP 2: Mapping of existing competency catalogues and models
Ten existing competency catalogs and conceptual models related to global health research competencies were identified and mapped. Three models in particular informed the structure of the final Catalogue: (i) The PhD Competence Model, created by the Dutch Medical Centers, from which six core competency domains were adapted or replaced to align with the objectives and findings; (ii) The Dreyfus and Dreyfus Five-Stage Model of Skill Acquisition, which provided the basis for the competency acquisition levels (basic, skilled, and advanced); and (iii) Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives and Assessment to provide cognitive and affective domains and informed language reflecting progressive competency development.
- WP 3: Secondary analysis of outputs from previous GLOHRA project
Secondary analysis of outputs from a previous GLOHRA Academy-funded project, related to global health research education and training and which resulted in a repository of training opportunities related to global health (research) in Germany. Specifically, data from seven key informant interviews and interim and final reports from the project were re-analysed to identify relevant global health research competencies. The results were linked with the findings of WP1 to inform the Catalogue.
- WP 4: Consultations with GLOHRA and international experts
A consultation was held with 27 global health experts, including members of GLOHRA and its Steering Committee and Academic Advisory Board, as well as international experts. The goal was to gather input and feedback, and build consensus, on the draft Competency Catalogue, and identify areas of consensus or divergence in the consultation dialogues.
Contact
For further information please contact
Prof. Dr. Kayvan Bozorgmehr (Principle Investigator)
kayvan.bozorgmehr@uni-bielefeld.de
Victoria Saint (Project Coordinator)