Next course: 19 October to 13 November 2026
This is a new hybrid online course developed by methods and statistics experts in Cochrane. Designed for healthcare professionals, researchers, policy makers, and guideline developers, the course teaches the principles and practice of network meta-analysis (NMA) in a structured and accessible way. It is particularly suited to those without a background in statistics or programming.
Learning objectives
By the end of the course you will:
Understand the concept and core principles of NMA and its assumptions
Explore different models for NMA and be able to interpret their outputs
Learn how to assess the certainty of evidence generated by an NMA
Identify key reporting features of NMA protocols and reviews
Understand how to interpret and disseminate the findings of an NMA
The course mixes online content on Cochrane’s Learning Experiences Platform (LXP) with Discussion Boards and live sessions with our expert tutors.
Content
The following information on course content was correct for the course running in February 2026, however it is subject to change for future intakes.
Pre-course materials
The following pre-course materials will be released to participants on the Monday of the week before the course starts:
Welcome video
‘Let’s start’ video - an introduction to the course on the LXP
Foundations of NMA online course – housekeeping document
Introduction to the course tutors – brief bios
Quiz – how much do you know about network meta-analysis?
Recommended reading
Module 1: Basics
Recorded lectures:
‘Introduction to NMA’
‘Protocol considerations in NMA’
‘Key principles in NMA: transitivity’
‘Key statistical principles in NMA: consistency’
Quizzes to test understanding of lectures
Exercise: Exploring a published Cochrane NMA
Recommended reading
Live Q&A session with tutors
Discussion board
Module 2: Statistics
Recorded lectures:
‘Overview of statistical models for NMA’
‘Outputs from an NMA’
Code and outputs from an example presented in the ‘Outputs from an NMA’ lecture
Quizzes to test understanding of lectures
Exercise: Using NMA Studio
Recommended reading
Live Q&A session with tutors
Discussion board
Module 3: Assessing the certainty of NMA estimates
Recorded lectures:
‘Assessing the certainty of the evidence – the CINeMA approach’
‘Using the GRADE approach to assess the certainty of evidence from network meta-analysis’
Quizzes to test understanding of lectures
Exercises based on the GRADE and the CINeMA approach
Recommended reading
Live Q&A session with tutors
Discussion board
Module 4: Reporting and disseminating an NMA
Recorded lectures:
‘Reporting an NMA’
‘Disseminating an NMA’
Quiz to test understanding of lectures
Exercise: Interpreting a Summary of Findings table
Recommended reading
Live Q&A session with tutors
Discussion board
Final course assessment
Schedule
Course schedule to be confirmed.
Tutors
Emma Axon: Evidence Synthesis Methodology Editor, Methods Support Unit, Cochrane Central Executive Team
Romina Brignardello-Petersen: Associate Professor, Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact, McMaster University, Ontario, Canada
Harry Dayantis: Head of Communications, Cochrane Central Executive Team
Afroditi Kanellopoulou: Statistics Editor, Cochrane Central Executive Team
Adriani Nikolakopoulou: Assistant Professor of Medical Statistics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece
Rachel Richardson: Methods Support Unit Lead, Cochrane Central Executive Team
Sofia Tsokani: Statistics Editor, Cochrane Central Executive Team
Who is this course for?
We welcome people who have a good understanding of traditional systematic reviews and would like to deepen their understanding of network meta-analysis.
What our learners say
Thank you very much to everyone - all the tutors and organisers - really enjoyed the course and it will be very useful for my work.
Overall, this was a very well-designed and engaging course. The content was clearly structured and provided a solid introduction to the principles and applications of network meta-analysis. The expertise of the teaching team, together with the contributions from invited speakers involved in important methodological developments, made the course particularly enriching. It will certainly be helpful for interpreting and critically appraising network meta-analysis in research and evidence-based practice.
Thank you to all the organisers and trainers! It was a very pleasant to attend course, carefully tailored to accommodate everybody's needs.
A lot of hard work must have gone into the preparation for this course - I didn't think about it at the time but on reflection there must have been a lot of work for it to all work so seamlessly. I enjoyed all the presentations and the frequent quizzes were really helpful to check that I had grasped the main concepts before moving on to the next presentation. The live sessions were great (and it was good that they were recorded). I was amazed that I managed to run two NMAs on NMAStudio - I didnt think I would ever do this so very grateful to have the guidance and chance to do this - amazing what you can achieve when encouraged.
Thank you very much for this great course!
Price
Standard rate - £650 (+VAT (UK and EU))
Research4Life Group A & B countries, Cochrane Members and Students - £475 (+VAT (UK and EU))
