1-year MSc in Health Economics – targeted prioritisation in the healthcare system
SDU is developing new master's degree programmes as a result of the Master's Degree Reform. The 1-year MSc in Health Economics brings together specialised analytical skills in a compressed format, enabling graduates to support prioritisation and decision support in a healthcare sector under pressure.
A clear need
There is a great need for health economic analysis competences in the healthcare sector. Søren Rud Kristensen, Professor at the Danish Centre for Health Economics under the Department of Public Health and Head of Studies, points out that there has long been a demand for more health economists.
The need is related to a significant cross-pressure in these years. There are more elderly people in need of treatment, more people living with chronic diseases, and there is a shortage of staff. At the same time, new medical treatments are being developed, many of which are expensive, so difficult decisions must be made about which treatments should be prioritised and which should wait. In short, it's about utilising resources in the most efficient way.
The new 1-year MSc in Health Economics, which starts in September 2026, is designed for this type of prioritisation and assessment tasks.
Health economics as decision support
– We see health economics as decision support. Economists don't make the decisions but help ensure that political decisions and objectives can be translated into practice through analyses of effects, costs and priorities, explains Søren Rud Kristensen.
These are the types of analyses that regions and municipalities demand in their prioritisations, but also ministries, agencies and, for example, the Danish Medicines Council. In addition, there is a private clientele, especially consultancies and pharmaceutical companies that work with documentation of the effects and costs of new treatments.
A different format with a sharp focus
The 1-year master's Programme is 75 ECTS compared to the 2-year master's programme's 120. Fewer ECTS means fewer teaching hours and less overall scope, but it does not mean lower academic requirements.
– The Master's Degree Programme has a clear academic direction. Economists are generalists, but health economists are moving towards specialisation. You could call health economists specialised generalists, says Søren Rud Kristensen.
There are fewer of the general competency subjects that are typically included in a classic master's degree in economics. Instead, the MSc in Health Economics focuses on elements directly related to health, such as health economics, health econometrics and evaluation of teaching.
Students encounter teaching close to the current issues and working methods of the academic environment from the beginning, and the content, teaching and methods of assessment are rooted in active research.
Purpose of the programme and graduates' profile
Most people working in health economics today have a generalist education. They are economists by background but must build the health part on top of their education. Health economics graduates, on the other hand, receive a targeted specialisation already at master's level.
– The programme addresses the big questions in the sector, such as how to measure the value of health, how lives can be valued in analyses, and how costs in the field are calculated and compared with effects. This type of thinking and assessment is trained from the beginning, emphasises Søren Rud Kristensen.
The ambition is that employers perceive the graduates' competences as directly relevant and that the graduates can contribute strong, analytical perspectives early on. While generalists often must learn the characteristics of the healthcare sector first, graduates from health economics have a head start through knowledge of how regions work, how municipalities work with health, and what the local healthcare system and pre-hospital care entail.
The goal is graduates with a solid knowledge of the healthcare system and a deep understanding of the economic issues in the field, so they can go straight to the analytical tasks.
Read more about the programme here
https://www.sdu.dk/da/uddannelse/kandidat/sundhedsoekonomi/opbygning
The Master's Degree Programme in Health Economics will start as early as autumn 2026.
Master’s Degree Reform and SDU's new graduate landscape
From 2028, the Master's Degree Reform will change the master's degree landscape. At SDU, this means more ways to complete a master's degree programme without SDU compromising on its requirement for high, research-based quality. SDU is therefore developing new master's degree formats, including the one-year master's degree and industrial master's degrees, where study and relevant employment are more closely linked. The Faculty of Engineering will begin as early as 2026 with six industrial master's programmes as a pilot project and will use the experience gained to expand from 2028.