This online course will run for two and a half days. All sessions will be live and will consist of a mixture of lectures, practical and discussion/Q&A sessions.

By the end of the course participants should be able to:

1. interpret a MR study, acknowledging the assumptions required and limitations of the study;
2. understand and explain advanced pleiotropy robust methods for MR estimation;
3. conduct and interpret a Multivariable MR;
4. interpret MR studies with time-varying exposures;
5. understand the potential for and limitations of MR using multi-ancestry studies;
6. interpret and conduct a within-family MR analysis;
7. explain the methods for and limitations of MR with a single SNP associated with the exposure; and
8. explain the effect of collider and selection bias on MR studies.

The course is intended for researchers who are already involved in conducting MR studies who wish to understand more about recent developments in methodology and interpretation.

This course will cover:

1. methods for pleiotropy robust MR;
2. methods and interpretation of multivariable MR;
3. interpretation of MR with time-varying exposures;
4. methods for within-family MR;
5. MR with multi-ancestry data;
6. MR with a single SNP as an instrument;
7. the implications of selection bias and collider bias for MR;
8. practical application of pleiotropy robust methods, multivariable MR and within-family MR; and
9. opportunities for wider discussion about MR with tutors on the course.

The tutors on this course are researchers at the MRC Integrative Epidemiology and are leading experts in the development and application of the MR methods covered in the course.

To make sure the course is suitable for you and you will benefit from attending, please ensure you meet the following prerequisites before booking:

Before booking this course, please make sure you read the information provided above about the target audience and prerequisites. It is important that you have access to the relevant IT resources needed for the course and meet the knowledge prerequisites to ensure you can get the most from the course.

Bookings are taken via our online booking system, for which you must register an account. To check if you are eligible for free or discounted courses please see our fees and voucher packs page. All bookings are subject to our terms & conditions, which can be read in full here.

For help and support with booking a course refer to our booking information page, FAQs or feel free to contact us directly. For available payment options please see: How to pay your short course fees.

Participants are granted access to our virtual learning platform (Blackboard) 1 to 2 weeks in advance of the course. This allows time for any pre-course work to be completed and to familiarise with the platform.

To gain the most from the course, we recommend that you attend in full and participate in all interactive components. We endeavour to record all live lecture sessions and upload these to the online learning environment within 24 hours. This allows course participants to review these sessions at leisure and revisit them multiple times. Please note that we do not record breakout sessions.

All course participants retain access to the online learning materials and recordings for 3 months after the course. 

University of Bristol staff and postgraduate students who do not wish to attend the full course may instead register for access to the 'Materials & Recordings' version of this course: Further information and bookings.

100% of attendees recommend this course*.
*Attendee feedback from February 2025.

Here is a sample of feedback from the last run of the course:

"All tutors are highly knowledgeable and experienced. The insights they bring to the course are truly valuable and enhance the learning experience." - Course feedback, February 2025

"The pacing was really good and for the most part made lectures easier to follow. I appreciated the time to work through some of the practicals and liked having a facilitator to ask questions to in the first practical. The content was really useful and speakers were great at explaining complex concepts clearly which I really appreciated." - Course feedback, February 2025

"Lectures were very informative and pitched at the right level." - Course feedback, February 2025

"I thought the practicals were very helpful." - Course feedback, February 2025

"The speakers were excellent and engaging." - Course feedback, February 2025

"Really great lectures and practicals throughout! The team running the course did a great job." - Course feedback, February 2025

"Overall a really nice set of content, well balanced with lots of focus on emerging areas under active methodological development" - Course feedback, February 2025

"I have learned a great deal about the latest developments in MR methods development, how to choose which ones to include in my work, and how to critically interpret results from various approaches." - Course feedback, February 2025

"Good mix of practicals and talks. Also appreciated the shorter days compared to some courses." - Course feedback, February 2025

"The lecturers were good at pointing out practical implications." - Course feedback, February 2025