This certificate exposes students to a range of historical, cultural, and philosophical factors that impact health and influence people's decisions about their healthcare. Courses examine aspects of healthcare systems throughout history and the world, and illuminate ways that people's experiences of illness and healthcare implicate far more than biology, such as social, legal, religious, and ethical factors, to support health and wellness.
How to Get in
Certificate Declaration Requirements
Students who have completed or who are enrolled in a Health and the Humanities Certificate course are eligible to declare the certificate.
Students should declare as early as possible in order to plan the required coursework. Students are encouraged to meet with the Health and the Humanities academic advisor to discuss certificate requirements and ensure it fits with their academic goals.
Students who are ready to declare the certificate may do so via the Health and the Humanities website.
Students who declare the Health and the Humanities Certificate are not eligible to declare the Global Health major or the Global Health Certificate.
Requirements
Students must complete at least 15 credits for the certificate.
Core Course
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Complete one course from: | ||
| ANTHRO 265 | Introduction to Culture and Health | 3 |
| ART HIST 107 | The Body, Sex, & Health in Art | 3 |
| ENGL 156 | Literature and Medicine | 3 |
| HIST SCI 133 | Biology and Society, 1950 - Today | 3 |
| HIST SCI/MED HIST 212 | Bodies, Diseases, and Healers: An Introduction to the History of Medicine | 3 |
| HIST SCI/AFROAMER 275 | Science, Medicine, and Race: A History | 3-4 |
| MED HIST/ANTHRO 231 | Introduction to Social Medicine | 3 |
| RELIG ST 102 | Exploring Religion in Sickness and Health | 3 |
Health and Illness in Social Context
Complete two courses with a specific focus on health and illness in social context. One course must be at the Intermediate or Advanced level. The second course can be an additional Intermediate or Advanced level course, or a course from a list of designated alternatives.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Intermediate or Advanced Courses | ||
| Complete one course from: | ||
| AMER IND/C&E SOC/SOC 578 | Poverty and Place | 3 |
| ANTHRO 365 | Medical Anthropology | 3 |
| ASIAN/RELIG ST 460 | The History of Yoga | 3 |
| CLASSICS/GEN&WS/HIST SCI/ILS 355 | Sex, Gender, & the History of Medicine | 3 |
| COM ARTS 317 | Rhetoric and Health | 3 |
| ENGL/ASIAN AM/GEN&WS 463 | Race and Sexuality in American Literature | 3 |
| FRENCH 464 | Literature and Medicine in French-Speaking Cultures | 3 |
| GEN&WS 340 | Topics in LGBTQ Sexuality | 3 |
| GEN&WS 370 | Topics in Gender and Disability | 3 |
| GEN&WS 523 | Framing Fatness: Gender, Size, Constructing Health | 3 |
| GEN&WS 533 | Special Topics in Gender and Biology | 3 |
| GEN&WS/HIST SCI 537 | Childbirth in the United States | 3 |
| GEN&WS 538 | Special Topics in LGBTQ+ Health | 3 |
| HIST SCI 404 | A History of Disease | 3-4 |
| ILS 325 | Topics in Health and the Humanities | 3-4 |
| JOURN/COM ARTS/LSC 617 | Health Communication in the Information Age | 3 |
| LITTRANS/MEDIEVAL 255 | Black Death and Medieval Life Through Boccaccio's Decameron | 3 |
| LITTRANS 302 | What is Life? Biological Life in Literature and Culture | 3-4 |
| MED HIST/PHILOS 505 | Justice and Health Care | 3 |
| MED HIST/HIST SCI/HISTORY 508 | Health, Disease and Healing II | 3-4 |
| MED HIST/HIST SCI 509 | The Development of Public Health in America | 3 |
| MED HIST/PHILOS 515 | Public Health Ethics | 3 |
| MED HIST/AFROAMER/HIST SCI 523 | Race, American Medicine and Public Health | 3 |
| MED HIST/GEN&WS/HIST SCI 531 | Women and Health in American History | 3 |
| MED HIST/HIST SCI/RELIG ST 331 | Science, Medicine and Religion | 3 |
| MED HIST/GEN&WS/HIST SCI 532 | The History of the (American) Body | 3 |
| MED HIST/PHILOS 558 | Ethical Issues in Health Care | 3 |
| MED HIST/HIST SCI/HISTORY 564 | Disease, Medicine and Public Health in the History of Latin America and the Caribbean | 3 |
| MED HIST/C&E SOC/PHILOS 565 | The Ethics of Modern Biotechnology | 3 |
| PHILOS/MED HIST 534 | Ethics and the Brain | 3 |
| RELIG ST/JEWISH 340 | The American Jewish Life of DNA | 3 |
| RELIG ST/FOLKLORE 352 | Shamanism | 3 |
| RELIG ST 475 | Religion, Global and Public Health | 3 |
| RELIG ST/ASIAN 505 | The Perfectible Body in Religions, Medicines, and Politics | 3 |
| S&A PHM/HIST SCI 401 | History of Pharmacy | 2 |
| SOC/C&E SOC 532 | Health Care Issues for Individuals, Families and Society | 3 |
| SOC/C&E SOC 533 | Public Health in Rural & Urban Communities | 3 |
| SOC 575 | Sociological Perspectives on the Life Course and Aging | 3 |
| Additional Health and Illness in Social Context Course | ||
| Complete either a second Intermediate or Advanced level Health and Illness in Social Context course, or complete one course from: | ||
| ASIAN/RELIG ST 218 | History of Medicine in South Asia | 3 |
| CLASSICS 205 | Greek and Latin Origins of Medical Terms | 3 |
| FRENCH 288 | Doctors without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières) | 3 |
| GERMAN/GNS/JEWISH 240 | Health and Hotels in Central Europe | 3 |
Cultural Competency
Complete one course aimed at understanding the social, cultural, and linguistic needs of patients.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Complete one course from: | ||
| AFRICAN 201 | Introduction to African Literature | 3 |
| AFRICAN 230 | Introduction to Yoruba Life and Culture | 3 |
| AFRICAN 231 | Introduction to Arabic Literary Culture | 3 |
| AFRICAN/AFROAMER/HISTORY/POLI SCI 297 | African and African-American Linkages: An Introduction | 4 |
| AFRICAN/ASIAN/RELIG ST 370 | Islam: Religion and Culture | 3-4 |
| AFRICAN 412 | Contemporary African Fiction | 3 |
| AFROAMER 151 | Introduction to Contemporary African American Society | 3-4 |
| AFROAMER 155 | They: Race in American Literature | 3 |
| AFROAMER/GEN&WS 222 | Introduction to Black Women Writers | 3 |
| AFROAMER 225 | Introduction to African American Dramatic Literature | 3 |
| AFROAMER 227 | Introduction to African American Literature | 3 |
| AMER IND 100 | Introduction to American Indian Studies | 3 |
| ANTHRO 104 | Cultural Anthropology and Human Diversity | 3 |
| ASIAN AM 101 | Introduction to Asian American Studies | 3 |
| ASIAN AM/AFROAMER/AMER IND/CHICLA 102 | Introduction to Comparative US Ethnic, American Indian, and Indigenous Studies | 3 |
| ASIAN AM 240 | Topics in Asian American Studies | 3 |
| CHICLA 201 | Introduction to Chicanx/e and Latinx/e Studies | 3 |
| CHICLA 210 | Chicanx/e and Latinx/e Cultural Studies | 3 |
| CHICLA/COM ARTS 347 | Race, Ethnicity, and Media | 3 |
| COM ARTS 565 | Communication and Interethnic Behavior | 3 |
| GEN&WS 101 | Gender, Women, and Cultural Representation | 3 |
| GEN&WS 102 | Gender, Women, and Society in Global Perspective | 3 |
| GEN&WS/AFROAMER 323 | Gender, Race and Class: Women in U.S. History | 3 |
| GEN&WS/CHICLA 332 | Latinas: Self Identity and Social Change | 3 |
| GEN&WS 423 | The Female Body in the World: Gender and Contemporary Body Politics in Cross Cultural Perspective | 3 |
| RELIG ST 311 | Sects and Cults | 3 |
| RELIG ST 406 | The Amish | 3 |
| SOC 125 | American Society: How It Really Works | 3-4 |
| SOC 134 | Sociology of Race & Ethnicity in the United States | 3-4 |
| SOC 138 | The Sociology of Gender | 3-4 |
| SOC/GEN&WS 200 | Introduction to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer+ Studies | 3-4 |
| SOC/ASIAN AM 220 | Ethnic Movements in the United States | 3-4 |
| SOC/C&E SOC/URB R PL 617 | Community Development | 3 |
Capstone
Complete one of the following Capstone courses.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Complete one course from: | ||
| DANCE 231 | Introduction to Dance/Movement Therapy | 3 |
| DANCE 232 | Introduction to Dynamics of Dance Therapy | 3 |
| ILS/ENGL 525 | Health and the Humanities | 3 |
| NURSING 511 | Community Supports for People with Dementia | 3 |
| RP & SE 300 | Individuals with Disabilities | 3 |
Elective (if needed)
Complete additional coursework to reach 15 credits from any of the courses listed above or ENGL/HIST SCI/MED HIST 599 Directed Study in Health and the Humanities
Residence and Quality of Work
- Minimum 2.000 GPA on all certificate courses
- At least 8 certificate credits must be completed in residence.
Certificate Completion Requirement
This undergraduate certificate must be completed concurrently with the student’s undergraduate degree. Students cannot delay degree completion to complete the certificate.
Learning Outcomes
- Identify major developments in the history of medicine and the medical profession.
- Describe how the meaning of “health” has varied over time and space.
- Comprehend and evaluate complex arguments about politics, values, healthcare, and health in contemporary society.
- Understand health and illness as grounded in personal experience, develop empathy for others’ experiences and use creative means to reflect on those experiences.
- Develop sensitivity for what health means among differently positioned people (e.g., with respect to race, class, gender, culture, disability, age).
Advising and Careers
The certificate’s academic advisor can help you create a meaningful course plan and stay on track as you complete the certificate‘s courses. Talk with the certificate advisors as early as possible to consult on a variety of topics including declaring the certificate, choosing courses, and other campus resources.
Study Abroad
Learning in Letters & Science emphasizes discovery, growth, understanding different perspectives, and challenging yourself, which makes studying abroad an excellent fit for many L&S students: studyabroad.wisc.edu
As a university with global influence, we have more than 300 study abroad programs in over 80 countries. These vary in length, academic focus, teaching format, language requirements, cost, and level of independence. There are many programs to complement every major and any year of college (including the final semester)—and all meet UW–Madison’s high academic standards. Students admitted into Letters & Science can even choose a short program in the summer before they start college or their whole first year: studyabroad.wisc.edu/launch. Talk with your academic advisor about how studying abroad might fit with your academic plan.
SuccessWorks
SuccessWorks at the College of Letters & Science helps you turn the academic skills learned in your classes into a fulfilling life, guiding you every step of the way to securing jobs, internships, or admission to graduate school.
Through one-on-one career advising, events, and resources, you can explore career options, build valuable internship and research experience, and connect with supportive alumni and employers who open doors of opportunity.
- What you can do with your major (Major Skills & Outcomes Sheets)
- Make a career advising appointment
- Learn about internships and internship funding
- Try “Jobs, Internships, & How to Get Them,” an interactive guide in Canvas for enrolled UW–Madison students