Over 3.5 days, this online course will consist of learning activities set by the tutor including lectures (live and asynchronous), small group work, discussions, individual tasks, and computer practical activities. Directed and self-directed learning will include activities such as reading, accessing web-based supplementary materials, critical appraisal and completion of quizzes. All teaching will be conducted online using Blackboard and Blackboard Collaborate.

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

1. describe the principles and assumptions of instrumental variable analyses;
2. discuss the properties of genetic variants that make them suitable to be used as instrumental variables;
3. explain the strengths and limitations of one-sample and two-sample Mendelian randomization for addressing population health causal questions;
4. conduct a (straightforward) one-sample and two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis;
5. describe the concepts behind sensitivity analyses to test for potential violation of the key assumptions of Mendelian randomization;
6. apply up-to-date sensitivity analyses in one- and two-sample Mendelian randomization analyses;
7. critically appraise Mendelian randomization papers and analyses;
8. identify the key features required in writing reproducible and transparent Mendelian randomization papers; and
9. design a Mendelian randomization study of an exposure/outcome pair.

The course is intended for anyone who wants to be able to undertake Mendelian randomization analyses. It is an introductory to intermediate course. The course will not include any genetic epidemiology teaching, nor how to undertake a genome-wide association study. However, genetic epidemiology and the ability to complete a genome-wide association study are NOT a prerequisite for being able to understand this course.

This course will cover:

1. a recap of genetic and epidemiological concepts useful for conducting, understanding and interpreting Mendelian randomization analyses;
2. one-sample and two-sample Mendelian randomization, including their assumptions, application and interpretation;
3. practical experience of how to apply Mendelian randomization methods to real data;
4. a range of sensitivity analyses that explore likely violation of the assumptions of Mendelian randomization;
5. the MR-Base platform and how to use it appropriately;
6. an exploration of recent advances in and future directions of Mendelian randomization and the use of Mendelian randomization in drug discovery and target validation;
7. a critical appraisal of a Mendelian randomization paper;
8. how to write and design a Mendelian randomization study;
9. contextualisation of Mendelian randomization in the broader field of epidemiology with triangulation; and
10. plenty of opportunities to ask questions about Mendelian randomization to experienced tutors working in the field.

Dr Kaitlin Wade - application of Mendelian randomization to understand causal role of the gut microbiome in human health and disease.

Dr Emma Louise Anderson - application of Mendelian randomization to understand causal risk factors of Alzheimer's disease, dementia and cognitive decline.

Dr Eleanor Sanderson - Mendelian randomization methodological development, specifically in the context of pleiotropy-robust methods and multivariable Mendelian randomization.

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 2024.

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

“I think the teaching was excellent and engaging and the content was well paced. Ideas were repeated throughout which really helped to consolidate learning. Also I think there was an especially friendly and personable team of moderators which created a nice atmosphere” - Course feedback, February 2024

“Interactive discussions, plenty of time to ask questions live/on the chat/on padlet, supportive and knowledgable tutors” - Course feedback, February 2024

“Overall I thought that the course was fantastic. It's nice that you introduced lots of concepts, but also repeated the explanations for lots of them across the days, by different people and in different contexts. That really helped to improve my understanding” - Course feedback, February 2024

“Really great course structure and clear lectures. I have never fully understood MR before and feel like it was explained so clearly. Really handy to have all the lectures and recordings and practical info available too” - Course feedback, February 2024

“Really great introduction to the theory behind performing MR analyses as well as the practical application within the practical sessions” - Course feedback, February 2024

“The course content started from the very basics and covered everything to the most advanced recent developments. The description of the advantages of MR compared to traditional epidemiology and its theoretical assumptions was very well covered. Covering the same information several times and repeating things that may have seemed obvious to the tutors was a good choice because it really helps you digest the information and get a good grasp on the basic concepts” - Course feedback, February 2024

“The course was packed with information and I feel like I've learnt (from 0 knowledge and 0 background knowledge) a lot about MR” - Course feedback, February 2024

“The facilitation was amazing” - Course feedback, February 2024

“Clear explanation's of the key concepts and assumptions/limitations underlying the implementation of MR. Quizzes were useful to test understanding of the content presented. Practicals provided a great opportunity to put theory learned into practice” - Course feedback, February 2024

“I have a really good picture of the limitations and considerations of MR and in my mind an ability to checklist these when I conduct studies. I felt kinda thrown in the deep end before this and found in hard to conceptualise why and what to consider but this has made it clear so thank you!” - Course feedback, February 2024

“I really liked the MR critical appraisal and modules on how to design and write up an MR experiment. I think these things are really helpful if just entering the field and is what I have benefited from the most” - Course feedback, February 2024