Patients, Practitioners, and Cultures of Care Bridging Disciplines Program Certificate
Department website: https://undergraduates.utexas.edu/academics/bridging-disciplines-programs/programs/patients-practitioners-cultures-care
This program offers a transdisciplinary curriculum to explore health, health care, healing, and social justice issues from a rich variety of humanistic perspectives. Students in the program learn about the global health system’s diverse histories and cultural contexts, the role of narrative in experiences of illness and caring, the impact of the built environment on health and healing, and the challenges of remaining resilient and connected when providing care for others. Guided by an interdisciplinary faculty that includes practitioners and scholars in fields ranging from medicine and social work to literature and anthropology, among many others, this program cultivates skills and orientations central to any humanistic practice of health care. These include empathy, ethical sensitivity, self-reflection, and self-care, as well as historical perspectives, cultural awareness, an engaged approach to health equity and health justice, and an understanding of health care as a human right and communal responsibility. Connecting Experiences extend students’ learning beyond the classroom through research or internships with health clinics, community groups, or other civic institutions and spaces.
Total Hours Required: 19
Requirements
Requirements are listed in the table below. Additional requirements may follow the table, so be sure to read the entire page. Some required courses listed below may also satisfy General Education requirements, including Core Curriculum. Students should also review the University's Undergraduate Minor and Certificate Requirements and Policies.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Hours chosen from: Forum Seminar | 1 | |
| Patients, Practitioners, and Cultures of Care | ||
| Hours chosen from: Foundation | 3 | |
| Culture and Health | ||
| Literature, Health, and Medicine | ||
| Global History of Disease | ||
Hours chosen from: Approved list | ||
| Hours chosen from: Strand | 9 | |
| Practitioners/Patients | ||
| Communicating with Patients | ||
Hours chosen from: Approved list | ||
| Forms of Wellness/Illness/Healing | ||
| Aesthetics of Health | ||
Hours chosen from: Approved list | ||
| Ethics and Justice of Health and Health Care | ||
| Health Care Policy in the United States | ||
Hours chosen from: Approved list | ||
| Approved Hours chosen from: Research or internship Connecting Experiences (see advisor) | 6 | |
| Connecting Research Experience | ||
| Connecting Research Experience | ||
| Connecting Internship Experience | ||
| Undergraduate Minor and Certificate Requirements and Policies | ||
| Total Hours | 19 | |
Additional Requirements and Policy
- A three to four page essay in which students reflect on what they have learned and accomplished through their experience is required. The essay is reviewed and must be approved by a member of the faculty panel in order to complete the certificate requirements
- To create an interdisciplinary experience, students must choose courses from a variety of disciplines. Only one of the strand courses may come from the student's major department(s) or from same as with the student's major department(s). The certificate as a whole must represent a variety of disciplines; the advisor can help ensure that the coursework will meet the certificate requirements for interdisciplinarity.
- In courses taken for a letter grade, the student must obtain a grade of at least C- .
- A cumulative certificate GPA of at least 2.0 is required.
- Only one BDP course, including connecting experience, may be taken pass/fail. Any exceptions will be considered by the faculty panel on an individual basis.
- The student may be able to count courses toward the certificate that are not listed, if enough of the course content relates to the BDP topic. Consult with the advisor to petition a course to count towards the certificate.
- All students must take at least one course designated as focusing on Health and Humanities (-H). Health and Humanities courses may satisfy Foundation or Strand requirements.