Course description
Demographic Methods I
This Module provides an introduction to the technical basis of demography. It focuses on concepts and methods underpinning demographic analysis and provides a practical introduction for those professionally engaged with demographic work (in government departments, for example) as well as for MSc and doctoral students in a wide range of cognate disciplines.
The module is numerical but not highly mathematical so that some prior familiarity with quantitative methods is an advantage but not required. Extensive use is made of Excel worksheets.
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Outcome / Qualification etc.
Credits: 5 ECTS
Learning Outcomes
Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:
- Identify principal sources of demographic data and assess their strengths and weaknesses.
- Apply the cohort-component method to compute your own population projection.
- Identify the components of population change, including the effects of changing birth, death and migration rates, and demonstrate their influences on age structures.
- Specify and calculate the principal demographic measures, and standardise these measures for comparison and interpretation.
- Construct and interpret single-decrement life tables.
- Describe the rationale for the use of demographic models and to be able to use such models for practical purposes.
- On successful completion of this module, you will be able to discuss the demographic significance of age structures and the implications of variations in age structure.
- Define and interpret key concepts used in demographic methods.
Training Course Content
Sources of demographic data, population size and growth, age-sex structures, principles of demographic measurement, key demographic rates and measures, direct and indirect standardisation, life tables, current methods for making population estimates, period and cohort perspectives.
Course delivery details
The course is offered over 5 working days and attendance is required for all sessions. There are worked examples throughout as well as take-home exercises, which can be used for revision at the end of the course.
Key materials including textbooks and papers are all provided electronically so that all can be accessed remotely after the end of the course.