A recent winner of the Education Impact Award, the initiative has become a world-renowned educational platform in global health, infectious diseases and health equity
First launched in 2015, the McGill Summer Institutes (SI) in Global Health began as five short, in-person courses.
Since then, they have grown into an internationally recognized educational platform for advancing knowledge and collaboration in global health, infectious diseases and health equity. Over the past 11 years, it has welcomed more than 8,280 learners from around the world.
Hosted by the Department of Global and Public Health in the School of Population and Global Health (SPGH), the SI foster capacity building and networking between policy makers, academic researchers and industry participants. Crucially, they focus on reaching and including practitioners, community leaders, patients and advocates from low- to middle-income countries (LMIC) and low resource settings.
This year brought new successes. In May, the SI received an Education Impact Award from the Office of the Vice-Dean, Education and Community Engagement. They also featured 17 hybrid and online courses through May and June – their largest courseload to date.
Madhukar Pai, MD, PhD, Chair of the Department of Global and Public Health, served as the program’s original academic lead and architect. Reflecting on its beginnings, he says: “I knew we were offering great education to students at McGill, but what about learners, especially working professionals and practitioners, in low- and middle-income countries? They too deserve access to affordable and quality education.”
“So, it occurred to me that we could open our university to people around the world by offering short, non-credited, summer courses.”
Initially offering in-person courses on McGill’s campus, the SI were postponed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although COVID-19 posed challenges, it also proved to be a defining moment for the initiative. After a pivot to fully online courses in 2021, the program’s reach expanded to attract 1,516 participants, 57% of whom were from LMICs. Offering both online only and hybrid courses since 2022, this percentage has grown to 70% in 2025.
“It gives me great satisfaction that each year, about half of all participants are from low- and middle-income countries, and that we support many with scholarships and fee waivers,” says Dr. Pai. “Our focus on equity is what makes our Summer Institutes stand apart from other universities.”
In a letter of support, Robert Platt, PhD, Director of the SPGH, wrote: “Within our School, the Summer Institutes have become a defining educational initiative, integrating interdisciplinary scholarship, global engagement, and responsible resource management into a coherent and enduring platform.”
“Their contribution to the Faculty’s educational mission is both measurable and sustained. Other units across the University are now seeking to replicate the SI model, reflecting its innovation and success.”
Jonathon Campbell, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Global and Public Health, has taken over as Director of the SI this year. Contemplating their future, he hopes to keep up momentum while sustainably growing its hybrid offerings.
“There’s something different when you’re in a room with 15 to 25-plus people attending a course: being able to chat, those happenstance encounters you have on the breaks, the new people, opinions and life experiences you get that you don’t get from an online course,” he says.
Prof. Campbell also highlights an emerging challenge: while demand for in-person learning remains high among attendees from other countries, many cannot attend due to having their visa applications denied or delayed. One option under consideration is hosting in-person events outside Canada.
“It ends up making it very challenging to offer these courses in a place where structural barriers might prevent people who otherwise want to learn,” he explains. “So, I think it’s an important equity thing for us to investigate ways to offer courses in person outside of Canada.”
The success of the Summer Institutes is the result of a tremendous collaborative effort involving an exceptional team, engaged participants, committed faculty, and generous sponsors who share a commitment to advancing global health.
Congratulations to Dr. Pai, Prof. Campbell and Ms. Guadalupe Cruz Orozco, Project Officer and SI manager, in the Department of Global and Public Health!
This article is part of a series profiling the five winning projects awarded Education Impact Awards. Enjoy the first instalment, about a nurse practitioner clinical training project.
For more information about the Education Impact Award, please visit the Office of the Vice-Dean, Education and Community Engagement website.