The Undergraduate Certificate in Health Humanities: Health, Arts, and Society (HArtS) provides a flexible pathway for you to explore coursework across the health humanities. It complements existing pre-health majors with training in the cultural, historical, aesthetic and ethical context of health and healthcare. Program Overview The Undergraduate Certificate in Health Humanities: Health, Arts, and Society (HArtS) introduces students to the human dimensions of health and healthcare. Students will learn how the humanities and social sciences provide essential context for the scientific and technical training required for future professionals. Through this program, students develop creativity and empathy, strengthen communication and interpersonal skills, and sharpen their ability to think critically about health, illness, and care in real‑world settings. Why Choose a Certificate in Health Humanities? As healthcare becomes more complex and increasingly focused on teamwork and patient‑centered care, there will be continued demand for professionals who can understand communities, respond thoughtfully to patients’ lived experiences, and innovate in interdisciplinary spaces. Health humanities programs prepare students for this reality by helping them examine how social, cultural, economic, and ethical factors are part of health and healthcare. Students gain tools to navigate the human side of healthcare—listening closely, interpreting stories, collaborating across differences, contextualizing health, and reflecting on their own professional values. The certificate supports students preparing for careers in medicine, nursing, physician assistant studies, pharmacy, public health, and related fields, while also appealing to students interested in veterinary sciences, healthcare policy, advocacy, and community‑based work. Coursework in the health humanities enhances preparation for professional programs by building skills increasingly valued by admissions committees, including critical reading and writing, cultural awareness, ethical reasoning, and reflective thinking. The certificate requires students to complete five elective courses with at least one three-credit course in each of the areas of the arts, humanities, and social approaches to health, as well as a required three-credit hour capstone course led by the certificate coordinator. Upon completion of the certificate, students will be able to: Identify the value of the humanities, arts, and social and behavioral sciences to understanding health and healthcare Describe examples of the social, cultural, and ethical dynamics of health and healthcare Describe the role of the arts in medicine and healthcare Describe the role of history and narratives in understanding illness and health Employ career-ready skills in collaboration and communication. Program Contact Dr. Susan TannerAssociate ProfessorDepartment of Anthropology(706) 542-3922stanner1@uga.edu Total Program Hours 15 - 18 hours Entrance Requirements Application (To be announced soon) and acceptance into Program Required Courses (3 hours) Required CapstoneANTH 4545, Capstone in Health Humanities (3 hours) [Offered Spring 2027]Capstone Course is taken after completing at least one course from each elective area below Elective Courses (13 hours) Students must take five elective courses across three areas, with at least one course in each area, for a minimum of 13 hours. A. Social and Ethical Dynamics of Health and Healthcare (Select a minimum of one course) ANTH 3540 Multicultural Health Care 3 ANTH 3590 Nutritional Anthropology 3 ANTH 4540/6540-4540L/6540L Health, Biology, and Culture 3 ANTH 4590/6590 Anthropology of Infectious Disease 3 CLAS 1030 Medical Terminology 3 COMM 3350 Topics in Interpersonal and Health Communication Processes 3 COMM 4420/6420 Communication and Body Image 3 COMM(HPRB) 4610/6610 Health Communication 3 COMM(HPRB) 4625 Communication and Health Disparities 3 PHIL 2030 Introduction to Ethics 3 PHIL 3220 Biomedical Ethics 3 PHIL 4260/6260 Advanced Biomedical Ethics 3 PSYC 3810 Psychology of Health 3 SOCI 3100 Medical Sociology 3 SOCI 3110 Sociology of Health Care 3 SOCI 4000 Society, Bodies, and Health 3 WMST 4120/6120 Sex, Politics, Science, and Reproduction 3 WMST 2500 Introduction to Gender, Women, and Health 3 WMST 3270S Gendered Politics of Food 3 WMST(EDUC) 4400/6400 Bodies, Gender, Sexuality, and Sex Education for Children and Youth 3 B. Visual Culture and Creative Practice in Healthcare (Students must select a minimum of one course) ARED 3070 Art and Society: Visual Culture, Diversity, and Pedagogy 3 ARGD 3010 Foundations of Graphic Design 3 ARHI 2000 Introduction to Art History: Technique, Style, and Context 3 ARST 1050 Drawing I: Observation and Visual Language 3 ARST 1080 Three-Dimensional Design 3 ARST 2000 Introduction to Figure Drawing 3 ARST 2205 Introduction to Photography and Image Culture (Co-Requisite Below) 1 ARST 2205L Introduction to Photography and Image Culture Laboratory (Co-Requisite Above) 2 ARST 2700 Textile Foundations 3 ARTS 2000 Art Appreciation 3 ARTS 2100 Strategic Visual Thinking 3 MUSI 1022 Introduction to Music Therapy 1 MUSI 2020 Introduction to Music 3 PEDB 1609 Creative Dance for Well-being 1 C. History and Narratives in Health and Healthcare (Select a minimum of one course) ANTH 3444 Ancient Human Health 3 BIOL 4200W Science and Health Writing 3 CMLT 2800 Literature and Medicine 3 CMLT 4444/6444 Literature and Medicine 3 CMLT 4710/6710 Health and Narratives in Global Asias 3 ENGL 3836 Literature and the Health Humanities 3 ENGL 3851S Writing for Social Justice: The Prison Writing Project 3 ENGL 4836W/6836W Writing about Health and Medicine 3 HIST 2710 Disease and Human History 3 HIST 3433 History of Medicine 3 HIST 3740 Disease and Human History 3 HIST 3768 Global History of Public Health since 1900 3 HIST(GLOB)(LACS) 3770 Pandemic! Infectious Disease in Global History 3 HIST 4065/6065 History of American Medicine to 1865 3 HIST 4066/6066 History of American Medicine, 1865 to the present 3 HIST(CLAS) 4225/6225 Medicine, Healing, and the Body in Ancient Greece and Rome 3 HIST 4445/6445 A Global History of Drugs 3 SPAN 4003 Medical Spanish 3 D. Capstone Course, ANTH 4545 (3 hours) Students must have completed at least one course in each area above before enrolling in ANTH 4545, the capstone course. Students will develop a project that illustrates the integration of their coursework in the certificate program and the value of interdisciplinary approaches to health and healthcare. Students will learn about interdisciplinary research, reflect on the connections across their courses, conduct additional research and present a final product. The course will be led by the program coordinator and serve to build community among the certificate students.
