This course gives you a perfect overview at introductory level. The course units and time spend on different aspects are balanced, the material used is supportive, and I enjoyed the way the teaching staff engaged in this course. A next interesting step could be how to deal with all the new developments in science (such as open access, FAIR procedures, etc) and their meaning with regards to the quality of reviews.

This course helps to learn basics about systematic review and meta-analysis. I recommend this course to the beginners, who wants to do systematic review in future.

Thank you John Hopkins!

This is a really nice detailed course with tons of examples, if you can afford, please pay them or purchase of the course instead of auditing. I hope I will be able to purchase it.

The lecturers were excellent and learning outcomes were met. Highly recommended for all public health specialists.

learned a lot. Good example to help to understand. very clear

interesting and well organised course

Excellent course for beginners

讲解细致、全面、通俗，对于非英语母语的学生也很友好。

Highly Recommended.

It was a good learning

thank you very much

More on peto maybe

Need updates...

very useful

Excellent

Great

Good

The courses are great but some of them requires prior general understanding. Therefore, as a beginner it's a bit hard for me to get the whole picture.

The slides about PubMed aren't uptodate, the design of the website and some functionalities have changed which could be confusing for students.

i would love to see how to extract data in software and use it for metaanalysis. which is more practical

A good course that lacked practical information on performing a meta-analysis.

The audio quality of a lot of the lectures are quite bad.

A number of the slides seem to be un-organised at times, with repeating information, making them confusing.

While all the information seems to be presented, it feels like it could be done better with more time spent preparing and recording the videos.

Asking me to pay for a course you have listed as free is nuts. Why can't I move to the next without upgrading to submit?

I recently completed the "Introduction to Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis" course offered by Johns Hopkins University through Coursera, and it has been an incredibly enriching experience. The course provided a clear, step-by-step guide to understanding and conducting systematic reviews and meta-analyses. We began with the fundamentals—defining systematic reviews and meta-analyses, followed by learning how to formulate a research question using the PICO framework (Population, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome). From there, I gained insights into performing comprehensive literature searches, collecting and managing data from eligible studies, and assessing the risk of bias in clinical trials. These steps are essential in ensuring the reliability and validity of findings. One of the most critical lessons was how to synthesize collected evidence qualitatively and quantitatively through meta-analysis. The course demonstrated how to interpret forest plots, confidence intervals, and heterogeneity statistics—core elements for analyzing pooled study results. We also explored the importance of minimizing bias and errors throughout each stage of the review process, ensuring that conclusions are grounded in robust and transparent methodologies. Beyond theoretical knowledge, the course emphasized practical steps to initiate and manage a systematic review project: Assemble a Research Team – Collaborate with content and methods experts. Develop a Protocol – Clearly outline your research question, eligibility criteria, and review methods. Data Collection and Screening – Systematically search and screen studies. Data Abstraction and Risk of Bias Assessment – Extract meaningful data and evaluate study quality. Synthesize Findings – Qualitatively or quantitatively combine data and interpret results. Reporting and Updating Reviews – Present findings transparently and update reviews as new evidence emerges. One of the most engaging aspects was analyzing a published systematic review on early vs. late initiation of epidural analgesia during labor. We explored how researchers framed their question, performed searches, assessed study quality, and interpreted meta-analysis results. The course also highlighted advanced topics such as meta-regression, network meta-analysis, and multivariate meta-analysis, pointing us toward essential references like the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions and the Institute of Medicine's Standards for Systematic Reviews. Overall, this course has significantly enhanced my ability to critically appraise published reviews and laid the groundwork for me to contribute to systematic reviews in healthcare. For anyone interested in evidence-based research, I highly recommend this course—it’s an invaluable resource for both beginners and experienced researchers. #LifelongLearning #SystematicReview #MetaAnalysis #HealthcareResearch #EvidenceBasedMedicine