Undergraduate
Bachelor's Degree Programs
Medical Humanities and Health Studies
Major in Medical Humanities and Health Studies
The Medical Humanities and Health Studies (MHHS) Program offers an interdisciplinary curriculum to prepare undergraduates to understand the broader role and determinants of health and medicine in today’s world. Humanities courses raise questions of how human beings deal with health, medical intervention, illness and death. Social science courses provide insight into the social, economic and cultural contexts of health, illness and health care. Students benefit from the wealth of faculty in Liberal Arts and across the IU Indianapolis campus who have strong teaching and research interests in the area of health care.
An academic foundation in MHHS can be valuable to students pursuing virtually any career path, including but not limited to social/ economic research, medicine, allied health professions, dentistry, health law, medical social work, nursing, public health, and public policy studies. Our graduates have directly gone on to pursue degrees in pharmacy, medicine, occupational therapy, and other health professions, as well as law and graduate school programs.
Students completing the Medical Humanities & Health Studies B.S. program will achieve the following:
Know
- That human experiences of physical and mental health, disease, illness and healing are defined within the context of social, cultural, economic, historical, religious, and legal contexts, and
- How these factors impact the perception, delivery and effectiveness of medicine and health care.
Understand
- The human dimensions as well as the socio-cultural, economic and ethical complexites that arise both in illness and health care practice, and
- How the humanities and social sciences can be used to apply more effectively the life science and technological advances that address health issues.
Be able to
- Use the humanities and social sciences (e.g., literary narrative, bioethical considerations, socio-economic and historical analysis) to understand the human experience of health, illness and healing;
- Critically read, evaluate and interpret multiple sources of information and competing perspectives to understand health problems and issues more thoroughly, and
- Present such analyses in forms using the conventions and standards of the appropriate academic disciplines.
The Bachelor of Science degree with a major in Medical Humanities and Health Studies (MHHS) requires satisfactory completion of the following:
Degree Requirements
- A minimum of 120 credit hours is required for a B.S. degree in the IU School of Liberal Arts.
- A minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 (C) is required for graduation.
- A minimum of 40 credit hours must be at the 300-400 level.
- A minimum of 30 credit hours must be completed after formal admission to the IU Indianapolis.
- A minimum of 21 credit hours of major coursework in residence in the IU School of Liberal Arts at IU Indianapolis. Course work completed on an IU-administered or IU co-sponsored Overseas Study program counts as residential credit.
- A minimum grade of C (2.0) is required in each major course.
IU Indianapolis General Education Core
A list of accepted courses in the IU Indianapolis General Education Core can be found here.
Core Communication (6 credits)
- ENG-W 131: Reading, Writing, and Inquiry I (3 credits) or ENG-W 140: Reading, Writing, and Inquiry: Honors (3 credits) completed with a grade of C (2.0) or higher
English for Academic Purposes (EAP) sections of ENG-G 131 have been designated for students whose first language is not English.
- COMM-R 110: Fundamentals of Speech Communication (3 credits)
Analytical Reasoning (6 credits)
- College math from List A (3 credits)
- List A or List B course (3 credits)
Computer science course is recommended
Cultural Understanding (3 credits)
Life and Physical Sciences (6 credits)
- A laboratory science component is required
Arts/Humanities and Social Sciences (9 credits)
- Arts & Humanities (3 credits)
- Social Science (3 credits)
- Additional Arts & Humanities or Social Science (3 credits)
Transfer students entering IU Indianapolis from another public university in Indiana who have completed the transferable general education core at their home campus will not need to complete the IU Indianapolis General Education Core.
Liberal Arts Baccalaureate Competencies
First-Year Experience (1-3 credits)
- SLA-S 100: First Year Success Seminar
- Other: First Year Seminar from another school at IU Indianapolis
Transfer students with 18 or more credit hours are not required to take this course.
Writing Proficiency (3 credits), completed with a grade of C (2.0) or higher, chosen from the following:
- ENG-W 230: Writing in the Sciences
- ENG-W 231: Professional Writing Skills
- ENG-W 270: Argumentative Writing
Transfer students may satisfy the writing proficiency by completing course work equivalent to ENG-W 231, ENG-W 230, ENG-W 270, or GEWR-UN 200 with a grade of C (2.0) or higher at another campus or institution.
Transfer students with 80 or more transfer credits may petition for exemption from the Writing Proficiency requirement. Petition available in the Miriam Z. Langsam Office of Student Affairs, Cavanaugh Hall room 401.
Computer Proficiency (0-3 credits)
Computer science and computer technology courses intended to develop the student’s problem-solving ability and promote the understanding and use of logical structures of thought. Computer courses must focus on programming or data manipulation. Below is a list of accepted courses (see advisor if you have questions about a course not on this list):
- BUS-K 201: Computers in Business
- CSCI 23000: Computing I^ (pre-requisite or co-requisite: MATH-I 153)
- CSCI-N 200: Principles of Computer Science^
- CSCI-N 201: Programming Concepts^
- CSCI-N 207: Data Analysis Using Spreadsheets^
- CSCI-N 211: Introduction to Databases^
- INFO-I 101: Introduction to Informatics^
- INFO-I 210: Information Infrastructure^
- SPEA-V 261: Computers in Public Affairs
Note: courses with ^ listed by them may be shared with the IU Indianapolis General Education Core Analytical Reasoning List B requirement.
Arts and Humanities (3 credits) Courses in one’s first major field of study cannot be used to fulfill this requirement
100 or 200 level course from the following disciplines.
- Africana Studies (AFRO)
- American Studies (AMST)
- American Sign Language (ASL) excluding World Languages courses
- Classics (CLAS) excluding World Languages courses
- Communication Studies (COMM-R, excluding COMM-R 110, and COMM-T only)
- East Asian Languages and Cultures (EALC) excluding World Language courses
- English-Creative Writing or Writing and Literacy (ENG-W), excluding courses in the Writing Proficiency area.
- English Literature (ENG-L)
- Film Studies (FILM)
- Folklore (FOLK) excluding FOLK-F 101
- German (GER), excluding World Language courses
- History (HIST) excluding HIST-H 105, HIST-H 106, HIST-H 108, HIST-H 109, HIST-H 113, HIST-H 114
- Latino Studies (LATS)
- Museum Studies (MSTD)
- Native American and Indigenous Studies (NAIS)
- Philosophy (PHIL)
- Religious Studies (REL)
- Spanish (SPAN) excluding World Language courses
- Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS) excluding WGSS-W 105
- World Languages and Cultures (WLAC)
Social Sciences (3 credits) Courses in one’s first major field of study cannot be used to fulfill this requirement
100 or 200 level course from the following disciplines.
- Africana Studies (AFRO)
- Anthropology (ANTH)
- Communication Studies (COMM-C and COMM-M only)
- Economics (ECON)
- English-Linguistics (ENG-Z)
- Folklore (FOLK)
- Geography (GEOG)
- Global and International Studies (INTL)
- History (HIST) excluding HIST-H 105, HIST-H 106, HIST-H 108, HIST-H 109, HIST-H 113, HIST-H 114
- Journalism and Public Relations (JOUR)
- Latino Studies (LATS)
- Native American and Indigenous Studies (NAIS)
- Political Science (POLS)
- Psychology (PSY)
- Sociology (SOC)
- Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies (WGSS)
International Dimension (6 credits)
2 courses chosen from the list below.
- AFRO-A 152: Introduction to African Studies
- AFRO-A 303: African Diaspora Studies
- ANTH-A 104: Cultural Anthropology
- CLAS-C 101: Ancient Greek Culture
- CLAS-C 102: Roman Culture
- CLAS-C 209: Med Terms in Greek & Latin
- ECON-E 303: International Economics
- JOUR-J 414: International Newsgathering
- ENG-L 245: Caribbean Literature
- ENG-L 301: English Literature Survey I
- ENG-L 302: English Literature Survey II
- ENG-L 348: 19th Century British Literature
- GEOG-G 110: Human Geographyƒ
- GEOG-G 130: World Geography
- HIST-H 108: Perspectives on World to 1800
- HIST-H 109: Perspectives on World 1800 to present
- HIST-H 113: Western Civilization I
- HIST-H 114: Western Civilization II
- HIST-H 227: African Civilizations
- INTL-I 100: Introduction to International Studies
- INTL-I 300: Topics in International Studies
- PHIL-P 307: Classical Philosophy
- PHIL-P 314: Modern Philosophy
- PHIL-P 334: Buddhist Philosophy
- PHIL-P 349: Philosophies of China
- POLS-Y 217: Comparative Politics
- POLS-Y 219: Introduction to International Relations
- REL-R 212: Comparative Religions
- REL-R 257: Introduction to Islam
- WLAC (any course offered by World Languages and Cultures, excluding American Sign Language and English Interpreting courses)
Additional courses may be accepted with approval from Associate Dean of Students.
Life & Physical Science
At least 30 credit hours of Science, Math, or Computer Science coursework is required, to include at least one course with a laboratory component. Only 15 credits of 100-level coursework may be used to satisfy this requirement. All courses in the IU Indianapolis General Education Core Life & Physical Science list are accepted, along with advanced coursework in the disciplines below:
- Anthropology (ANTH-B 370, 426, 468, 474)
- Biology (BIOL)
- Chemistry (CHEM)
- Computer Science (CSCI)
- Economics (ECON-E 335 and 470)
- Forensic & Investigative Science (FIS)
- Geography (GEOG-G 336, 337, 338, 436, 438, 439, 488)
- Geology (GEOL)
- Informatics (INFO-I 101 or higher)
- Kinesiology (HPER-P 391 and HPER-P 409)
- MATH (MATH-M 118 or higher)
- Physics (PHYS)
- Public Health (PBHL-B 300, 325, 385, 420, 430; PBHL-E 322)
- Psychology (PSY-B 301, 305, 307, 320, 398)
- Statistics (any 200-400 level Statistics course)
Additional courses may be accepted with approval from Associate Dean of Students.
Advanced Courses
Students are required to have 40 credit hours in 300-400 level coursework including courses in their major.
Major Requirements
Core Courses (3 courses/9 credit hours):
- MHHS-M 301: Perspectives on Health, Disease, and Healing (3 credit hours)
- MHHS-M 495: Independent Project/ Seminar in Medical Humanities and Health Studies (3 credit hours)
- Any 200-400 level Statistics course (ECON-E 270, PBHL-B 300, PSY-B 305, SOC-R 359, SPEA-K 300, STAT 30100, SWK-S 372) ~additional courses may be accepted with approval from Medical Humanities and Health Studies program chair
Medical Humanities Core Courses (2 courses/6 credit hours), chosen from the following:
- COMM-C 392: Health Communication
- ENG-L 478: Illness Narrative -or- MHHS-M 492: Topics in Medical Humanities & Health Studies-Narrative Medicine
- HIST-H 364: History of Medicine and Public Health
- PHIL-P 393: Biomedical Ethics
- REL-R 384: Religion, Ethics, and Health -or- REL-R 395: Religion, Death and Dying
Health Social Science Core Courses (2 courses/6 credit hours), chosen from the following:
- ANTH-B 468 Bioarchaeology -or- ANTH-E 445: Medical Anthropology
- ECON-E 387: Health Economics Issues
- GEOG-G 410: Medical Geography
- REL-R 368: Religion and Healing
- SOC-R 381: Social Factors in Health and Illness or SOC-R 382: Social Organization of Healthcare
Medical Humanities & Health Studies Electives (3 courses/9 credit hours), chosen from the following:
Note: electives must be upper-level MHHS courses (not MHHS-M 301 or MHHS-M 495), or come from at least two 2 different departments/disciplines. Courses may not be shared with the Medical Humanities or Health Social Science Core. MHHS-M 492 may be repeated for credit up to 3 times.
- ANTH-B 370: Human Variation
- ANTH-B 426 Human Osteology
- ANTH-B 468: Bioarcheology
- ANTH-B 474: Forensic Anthropology
- ANTH-B 480: Human Growth and Development
- ANTH-E 391: Women in Developing Countries *
- ANTH-E 411: Wealth, Exchange, and Power in Anthropological Perspective *
- ANTH-E 421: The Anthropology of Aging
- ANTH-E 445: Medical Anthropology
- COMM-C 392: Health Communication
- COMM-C 400: Health Provider-Consumer Communication
- ECON-E 307: Current Economic Issues: Health Economics Issues #
- ^ENG-L 431: Topics in Literary Study: Illness Narrative
- GEOG-G 410: Medical Geography
- HIST-H 364: History of Medicine and Public Health
- HIST-H 373: History of Science & Technology I*
- HIST-H 374: History of Science & Technology II*
- MHHS-M 390: A Body of Law: Medicine, Humanities & Law
- HIST-H 418: History of International Humanitarian Assistance
- MHHS-M 410: Addiction Narratives
- MHHS-M 420: Culture of Mental Illness – Literary Representations
- MHHS-M 492: Topics in Medical Humanities and Health Studies
- ^PHIL-P 383: Topics in Philosophy: Death, Dying, & Immortality *; Ethics, Autonomy & Consent*; Reproductive Ethics *
- PHIL-P 393: Biomedical Ethics
- REL-R 323: Yuppie Yogis and Global Gurus
- REL-R 368: Religion and Healing
- REL-R 383: Power, Sex, and Money *
- REL-R 384: Religions, Ethics, and Health
- SOC-R320: Sexuality & Society
- SOC-R 321: Women and Health
- SOC-R 327: Sociology of Death and Dying
- SOC-R 335: Aging and the Life Course
- SOC-R 381: Social Factors in Health and Illness
- SOC-R 382: Social Organization of Health Care
- SOC-R 385: AIDS and Society
- SOC-R 410: Alcohol, Drugs and Society
- SOC-R 415: Sociology of Disability
- SOC-R 485: Sociology of Mental Illness
^Variable title “Topics” courses except MHHS-M 492 are limited to the titles listed above.
*Work in these courses must include relevant health/medicine component. Please see the Medical Humanities and Health Studies program chair prior to selecting this course as an elective.
Medical Humanities and Health Studies Courses
Open Electives
Candidates for a degree in the IU School of Liberal Arts must complete the IU Indianapolis General Education Core requirements, the baccalaureate competencies and the requirements of their major department. Usually, students will still need to complete additional hours in order to reach the graduation requirement of 120 credit hours. These remaining credit hours are known as electives.
Dual Degree Advantage is not available in combination with Bachelor of Science degrees in the School of Liberal Arts.
