Minor in Medical Humanities

Program Learning Outcomes for the Minor in Medical Humanities

Upon completing the minor in Medical Humanities, students will be able to:

  1. Describe the historical, literary, artistic, and ethical domains of medicine. 
  2. Analyze and evaluate complex texts relating to the social and cultural aspects of medicine through close reading and critical interpretation of arguments, metaphors, and images. 
  3. Explain the history of racism and anti-racism in health and medicine.
  4. Explain how disability shapes the healthcare experience for patients.   
  5. Conduct independent research and communicate their own arguments about medical humanities in research papers, class presentations, and discussions. 

Requirements for the Minor in Medical Humanities

Students pursuing the minor in Medical Humanities must complete:

  • A minimum of 6-7 courses (18-21 credit hours), depending on course selection, to satisfy minor requirements.
  • A minimum of 3 courses (9 credit hours) taken at the 300-level or above.
  • A maximum of 2 courses (6 credit hours) from study abroad or transfer credit. For additional program guidelines regarding transfer credit, see the Policies tab.   

The courses used in the Medical Humanities program examine the social, cultural, ethical, and aesthetic dimensions of medicine in contemporary and historical contexts, and are open to all undergraduate students at Rice from all backgrounds.

The courses listed below satisfy the requirements for this minor. In certain instances, courses not on this official list may be substituted upon approval of the minor’s academic advisor or, where applicable, the Program Director. (Course substitutions must be formally applied and entered into Degree Works by the minor's Official Certifier). Students and their academic advisors should identify and clearly document the courses to be taken.

Summary

Total Credit Hours Required for the Minor in Medical Humanities 18-21

Minor Requirements

Core Requirement
MDHM 201INTRODUCTION TO MEDICAL HUMANITIES 1, 23
Elective Requirements
Select 4 courses from the Electives list below 2, 312
Practicum 1
Select 1 from the following: 23-6
HEALTH, HUMANISM AND SOCIETY SCHOLARS MEDICAL HUMANITIES PRACTICUM 1 (1 YR SEQUENCE)
and HEALTH, HUMANISM AND SOCIETY SCHOLARS MEDICAL HUMANITIES PRACTICUM 2 (1 YR SEQUENCE)
MEDICAL HUMANITIES SPANISH PRACTICUM ABROAD 4
HEALTH, HUMANISM AND SOCIETY SCHOLARS MEDICAL HUMANITIES PRACTICUM (ONE SEMESTER)
TOPICS IN APPLIED MEDICAL HUMANITIES RESEARCH
SPANISH PROFESSIONAL PRACTICUM I 5
Total Credit Hours18-21

Footnotes and Additional Information 

Elective Requirements

To fulfill the Elective Requirements for the Medical Humanities minor, students must complete a total of 4 courses (12 credit hours) from the following Rice departmental course offerings. Students must fulfill the Elective Requirements by completing coursework from at least 2 different subject codes (i.e., ANTH, ENGL, etc.), and must take a minimum of 2 courses (6 credit hours) at the 300-level or above. 

Elective Requirements
Select 4 courses from the following: 12
Anthropology
PLAGUES AND PEOPLE
ILLNESS NARRATIVES: RE-WRITING HEALTH INEQUALITIES
SOCIAL LIFE OF DNA
ETHNOGRAPHIES OF CARE
ILLNESS, DISABILITY, AND THE GENDERED BODY
GLOBAL HEALTH JUSTICE: HEALTHCARE INEQUALITIES IN CONFLICTS
MEDICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
BODY, TECHNOLOGY, AND ENHANCEMENT
ANTHROPOLOGY OF REPRODUCTION
BLACK FEMINIST SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY STUDIES
ANTHROPOLOGY OF RACE, ETHNICITY AND HEALTH
ANTHROPOLOGY, PSYCHIATRY, AND MADNESS
SPECIAL TOPICS 1
Asian Studies
GENOMIC GOVERNANCE IN ASIA
Biosciences
CONCEIVING AND MISCONCEIVING THE MONSTROUS IN FICTION AND IN ART, IN MEDICINE AND IN BIOSCIENCE
CURRENT BIOSCIENCES AND HEALTH POLICY TOPICS
EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY AND THE FUTURE OF MEDICINE
Chinese
SPECIAL TOPICS: ADVANCED CHINESE I 1
English
LITERATURE AND MEDICINE
MEDICINE AND MEDIA
MEDICAL MEDIA ARTS LAB
TRANSLATIONAL HUMANITIES METHODS: MEDICINE, ENVIRONMENT, RACE, TECHNOLOGY
Environmental Studies
JUSTICE IN THE FOOD SYSTEM
CULTURES AND MEDIA OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
German Studies
GERMAN FILM (IN ENGLISH)
POLITICS OF THE FLESH IN GERMAN LITERATURE, THOUGHT AND FILM
SPECIAL TOPICS
Health Sciences
CONSUMER HEALTH AND THE MEDIA
PRINCIPLES OF PUBLIC AND COMMUNITY HEALTH
UNDERSTANDING CANCER
VIOLENCE IN AMERICA: A PUBLIC HEALTH PERSPECTIVE
DISPARITIES IN HEALTH IN AMERICA
History
RACE AND MEDICINE IN AMERICAN HISTORY
THE BODY IN GLOBAL HISTORIES OF MEDICINE
ENVIRONMENT, MEDICINE AND PUBLIC HEALTH IN LATIN AMERICA
DISABILITY AND U.S. LAW
HISTORIES OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN ASIA
HISTORY OF MEDICINE: FROM ART TO SCIENCE
Latin American and Latinx Studies
WRITING TO HEAL: U.S. LATINE NARRATIVES ON MENTAL HEALTH
Medical Humanities
SPECIAL TOPICS
INTRODUCTION TO DISABILITY STUDIES
TOPICS IN CREATIVE WRITING FOR MEDICAL HUMANITIES: WRITING AND READING (NEAR) DEATH EXPERIENCES
TOPICS IN HEALTH INEQUITIES
MEDICAL HORROR IN FILM AND LITERATURE
IMMUNITY IN MEDIA, SCIENCE, AND CULTURE
PERSPECTIVES IN HEALTH AND HUMANITIES
TOPICS ON EXPERIENCES OF HEALTH AND ILLNESS
ETHICAL DEBATES IN MEDICINE: DIGNITY AND WELFARE
TECHNOLOGIES OF HEALTH
GLOBAL HEALTH HUMANITIES
RESPONSIBLE AI FOR HEALTH
TOPICS IN MENTAL HEALTH
ETHICS AND THE HUMAN BODY
UNMASKING MADNESS
Philosophy
ETHICS IN PANDEMICS
DEATH AND DYING: METAPHYSICS AND ETHICS
MEDICAL ETHICS
PHILOSOPHY OF SEX AND LOVE
THE PHILOSOPHY OF MEDICINE
ADVANCED TOPICS IN ETHICS
Religion
THE COLORS OF LIFE AND THE END OF LIFE
KNOWING BODY/GLOWING MIND: BUDDHIST ARTS OF CONTEMPLATION AND ANALYSIS
MEDICINE AND THE MUSEUM: CLINICAL AESTHETICS AND THE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, HOUSTON
SEMINAR ON THE END OF LIFE
DEMONS, MENTAL ILLNESS AND MEDICINE
THE HUMANITIES OF CARE & END OF LIFE
RELIGION AND SCIENCE
Sociology
SOCIOLOGY OF MENTAL HEALTH
MEDICAL SOCIOLOGY
HEALTH DISPARITIES IN THE UNITED STATES
SOCIAL AUTOPSIES: HOW SOCIETY KILLS US
GENDER AND HEALTH
Spanish
SPECIAL TOPICS: ADVANCED SPANISH II 1
SPANISH PROFESSIONAL PRACTICUM I 2
CURRENT HEALTHCARE ISSUES IN LATINE COMMUNITIES
DISABLED BODIES: ILLNESS AND LITERATURE IN LATIN AMERICA
Footnotes and Additional Information

Policies for the Minor in Medical Humanities 

Program Restrictions and Exclusions

Students pursuing the minor in Medical Humanities should be aware of the following program restriction:

  • As noted in Majors, Minors, and Certificates, i.) students may declare their intent to pursue a minor only after they have first declared a major, and ii.) students may not major and minor in the same subject.

Transfer Credit 

For Rice University’s policy regarding transfer credit, see Transfer Credit. Some departments and programs have additional restrictions on transfer credit. Requests for transfer credit must be approved for Rice equivalency by the designated transfer credit advisor for the appropriate academic department offering the Rice equivalent course (corresponding to the subject code of the course content). The Office of Academic Advising maintains the university’s official list of transfer credit advisors on their website: https://oaa.rice.edu. Students are encouraged to meet with the applicable transfer credit advisor as well as their academic program director when considering transfer credit possibilities. 

Program Transfer Credit Guidelines

Students pursuing the minor in Medical Humanities should be aware of the following program-specific transfer credit guidelines:

  • No more than 2 courses (6 credit hours) of transfer credit from U.S. or international universities of similar standing may apply towards the minor.
  • Transfer credit received via the articulation of approved exam credit, such as Advanced Placement (AP) credit, International Baccalaureate (IB) credit, or A-level credit will not be considered towards minor requirements.

Distribution Credit Information

The determination of distribution credit eligibility is done initially as part of the new course creation process. Additionally, as part of an annual roll call coordinated each Spring by the Office of the Registrar, course distribution credit eligibility is routinely reviewed and reaffirmed by the Dean’s Offices of each of the academic schools.  

Faculty and leadership in the academic schools are responsible for ensuring that the courses identified as distribution-credit-eligible meet the criteria as set in the General Announcements. Students are responsible for ensuring that they meet graduation requirements by completing coursework designated as distribution-credit-eligible at the time of course registration. 

Additional Information 

For additional information, please see the Medical Humanities website: https://medicalhumanities.rice.edu/.

Opportunities for the Minor in Medical Humanities

Academic Honors

The university recognizes academic excellence achieved over an undergraduate’s academic history at Rice. For information on university honors, please see Latin Honors (summa cum laude, magna cum laude, and cum laude) and Distinction in Research and Creative Work. Some departments have department-specific Honors awards or designations.

Distinction in Research and Creative Work

Students completing the minor in Medical Humanities are eligible to apply for the university honor Distinction in Research and Creative Work. If awarded, Distinction will be noted on the student's transcript upon graduation and on commencement materials. All applications for Distinction will be judged by a committee of faculty affiliated with the program in Medical Humanities. Work deemed to be "above and beyond" expectation will be considered for Distinction..

  • Applications for Distinction must be submitted via the application portal on or before the last day of classes in the spring semester by 5:00 pm.
  • As part of the application for Distinction, students must submit a single-authored research or creative work, created for a Medical Humanities class, that represents the substantive output of a semester's work (length will vary by discipline).
  • A typical assignment completed for a class will not be competitive for graduation with Distinction. Work that represents at least one semester of rigorous work will be eligible. Only work determined to be of extraordinary quality (and work that goes beyond requirements) will receive distinction.
  • The student's project does not have to be completed, nor in its final format, to apply for Distinction. All final research and creative work materials will be due on the last day of classes.
  • Applications must include a 1-page letter of support from a sponsoring faculty advisor. The faculty member must submit this letter through the application portal; the student may not submit the letter on behalf of the faculty member.
  • Applications and eligibility guidelines are available on the Medical Humanities website at: https://medicalhumanities.rice.edu/distinction-research-and-creative-work

Annual Best Essay and Creative Work Competition

Students who take any approved Medical Humanities core course or elective course may submit an entry to the annual Best Essay and Creative Work competition. For details, see: https://medicalhumanities.rice.edu/annual-essay-competition

Experiential Learning

Advanced students in the Medical Humanities minor have the opportunity to conduct experiential learning and research in our practica and enroll in internships at Houston-area hospitals, archives, and community partner institutions when offered.

Study Abroad

The Rice in Country, offered by the Center for Languages and Intercultural Communication (CLIC), offers a six-week Rice faculty-led summer study abroad program for 6 credit hours in Pamplona, Spain (Rice in Spain), designed for students interested in pursuing a career in medicine or health-related professions. Students complete a total of 6 credit hours, either SPAN 322 and SPAN 324 or SPAN 324 and MDHM 420. SPAN 322 counts as an Elective toward the Medical Humanities minor, and MDHM 420 counts as a Practicum toward the Medical Humanities minor. (NoteSPAN 324 does not count towards minor requirements.) Admission to the program is subject to proficiency level exam and interview. For more information, please see the Rice in Spain website: https://clic.rice.edu/study-abroad/spain.

Additional Information 

For additional information, please see the Medical Humanities website: https://medicalhumanities.rice.edu/.