Why major in Health Humanities?
Health Humanities is an interdisciplinary major that explores questions and issues related to health and illness from a humanistic perspective. It will help you develop an understanding of the influence of cultural, social, political, and economic contexts on health, healthcare, and medicine.
Your experience as a Health Humanities major
Through experiential learning, internship opportunities, and interesting coursework, you will learn to develop creative solutions to healthcare issues affecting individuals and the greater community, and you will lay the foundation for your career.
Students should expect to take courses in a range of areas, such as communications, the arts, philosophy, English, science, social science, history, Asian studies, and other fields with a global or comparative focus.
Career paths for Health Humanities majors
The Philadelphia region hosts a rich infrastructure of health-related organizations offering career opportunities in areas such as:
- Healthcare
- Arts
- Business
- Education
- Law
- Journalism
- Public health
- Social work
Related Graduate Programs
Students graduating with our Health Humanities major may be interested in the following programs at University Park.
- Masters in Health Policy and Administration
- Masters in Public Health
- Other graduate degrees at Penn State College of Health and Human Development
- Other graduate degrees at Penn State College of Medicine
Related Internships
The Philadelphia area has many internship opportunities for Health Humanities students, including with major healthcare organizations such as Penn Medicine, Jefferson Health, the Red Cross, IBX, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, and others. Talk with your advisor about completing a 3-credit exploratory internship (HHUM 495), which is a great way to gain job experience while earning credit!
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