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Undergraduate Program

Degree Offered

• Bachelor of Arts in Health, Medicine and Human Values (B.A.)
  Concentrations: Health, Humanities and Society; Biomedical Sciences.

Academic Program Requirements

Joint Requirements: Options I, II, and III.

Students in the B.A./M.D. program must fulfill the UNM General Education curriculum, all of the requirements for their selected major and concentration, and the Pre-Medical Science core requirements. All students must also complete 15 credit hours of special seminars and 8 credit hours of Community Health Practica. The combined 23 credit hours of special seminars and Community Health Practica promote cohort building among the students and constitute the interdisciplinary and experiential Health, Medicine and Human Values curriculum. The Pre-Medical Science core focuses on the sciences, including chemistry, biology, biochemistry, physics, and mathematics. The Pre-Medical Science core is required supportive coursework for all curriculum options and is not a direct requirement of the Health, Medicine and Human Values major in itself. All coursework must be completed with a grade of "C" or better.

Health, Medicine and Human Values Seminars
The Health, Medicine and Human Values seminars are interdisciplinary courses that provide opportunities for experiential and problem-based learning, applied writing and speaking, and small-group problem-solving. The seminars involve collaborative teaching with faculty from the School of Medicine and the College of Arts and Sciences. 

Community Health Practica
The Community Service-Public Health Workshop is taken in the spring semester prior to the summer after the second or third year in the program. The course is a preparatory seminar which builds on students' existing knowledge of social determinants of health in rural communities and introduces approaches in community outreach. Students must complete this course with a grade of "C" or better to be eligible to enroll in the Community Health Practica, HMHV 350 and 450. Completion requires proof of required immunizations, HIPAA and Blood Borne Pathogens certification, and all other requirements of the assigned clinical shadowing location (i.e. drug screening, background check, additional paperwork, etc.). 

The Community Health Practica, taken in the summer after the second or third year in the program, are designed to allow students to engage in experiential learning projects involved in community and clinical health. The Practica enable students to put into practice some of the problem-solving skills and information acquired in the seminars and other parts of the Health, Medicine and Human Values curriculum. Each practica involves writing and experiential components.

Detailed descriptions of the additional requirements for each option are described below.

Option I: Arts and Sciences Major

(B.A. or B.S.)
This option enables students to choose a major from one of the College of Arts and Sciences degree-granting programs while completing the structured set of HMHV courses designed to prepare students for medical school. In addition to completing all departmental requirements for the selected major, students must complete the Health, Medicine and Human Values seminars, the Community Health Practica, and a 45 credit hour Pre-Medical Science core.

Option II: Health, Medicine and Human Values Major: Health, Humanities and Society Concentration

(B.A.)
This option offers students a structured set of distributed requirements emphasizing humanities and the social sciences, while providing them with additional study in mathematics and the physical and natural sciences. In addition to completing the Health, Medicine and Human Values seminars, the Community Health Practica, and a 45 credit hour Pre-Medical Science core, students must complete 33 credit hours of distributed coursework for the Health, Humanities and Society concentration.

Option III: Health, Medicine and Human Values Major: Biomedical Sciences Concentration

(B.A.)
This option emphasizes intensive study in mathematics and in the physical and natural sciences. Students in Option III must complete the Health, Medicine and Human Values seminars, the Community Health Practica, a 45 credit hour Pre-Medical Science core, 19 credit hours of distributed coursework, and 18 additional credit hours of upper-division electives.

Minor in Health, Medicine and Human Values

A. Minor Requirements for students in the B.A./M.D. Program

B.A./M.D. students enrolled in Option I who complete HMHV 1110, 2110, 301, 310, 350, 401, and 450 are awarded a minor in Health, Medicine and Human Values.

B.A./M.D. students enrolled in Options II and III who complete all requirements for those options receive a major in Health, Medicine and Human Values; there is no minor requirement for either Option II or III.

B. Minor Requirements for students who withdraw or are released from the B.A./M.D. Program

B.A./M.D. students enrolled in Options I, II or III who leave the program after completing 12 credit hours of HMHV seminars and HMHV 350 and 450, may be awarded a minor in Health, Medicine and Human Values by completing another 3 credit hours of distribution requirements from the list of courses below. Students must achieve a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or above in all 21 credit hours submitted for the minor. Fifteen of the 21 credit hours for the minor must be upper-division.

B.A./M.D. students enrolled in Options I, II or III who leave the program after completing 12 credit hours of HMHV seminars may receive a minor in Health, Medicine and Human Values by completing another 9 credit hours of distribution requirements from the list of courses below. Students must achieve a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or above in all 21 credit hours submitted for the minor. Fifteen of the 21 credit hours for the minor must be upper-division.

C. Minor Requirements for students outside the B.A./M.D. Program

Students who complete 12 credit hours of HMHV seminars may receive a minor in Health, Medicine and Human Values by completing another 9 credit hours of distribution requirements from the list of courses below. At least three credit hours of the distribution requirements must be from a 400-level course. Students must achieve a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or above in all 21 credit hours submitted for the minor. Fifteen of the 21 credit hours for the minor must be upper-division. Some of the courses below require prerequisites, so students must plan accordingly.