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“I Can Study That?!”: The Major and Minor in Bioethics at the University of Rochester

I Can Study That?!

The Major/Minor

This week’s featured program is the Bioethics Major or Minor at the University of Rochester. According to the website, key goals for the major include:

    • Provide students with the tools to think about the major ethical and related legal questions that arise in medicine and public health
    • Understand the frameworks in which individual moral decisions should be made
    • Understand the frameworks in which social and political moral decisions should be made
    • Understand the most important controversies in bioethics
    • Develop the tools to analyze moral arguments in bioethics
    • Develop the tools to construct arguments that contribute to some of these debates

All students in the major take the five-course Public Health core, the five-course Bioethics core, and three electives, two in the Philosophy and Ethics category and one in the History, Sociology, and Anthropology category.

Two Interesting Courses

PHIL 225 Ethical Decisions in Medicine

Philosophical analysis of ethical issues in medicine and biotechnology, such as problems arising in connection with the relations between physicians and patients, the challenges of cultural diversity, practices surrounding human and animal research, decisions about end of life care, embryonic stem cell research, genetic engineering, biotechnological human enhancement, and social justice in relation to health-care policy. Papers will focus on analyses grounded in case studies.

MHB 410 Bioethics at the Bedside

Most ethical dilemmas in medicine arise at the bedside. Wrestling with these challenging conflicts is a core task of the clinical application of bioethics in medicine and nursing. Using real cases, guided by an interdisciplinary team of practicing clinicians with educators in bioethics and law, this course will examine three fundamental subjects of bioethics that arise in medical practice: informed consent, organ transplantation and death and dying. This course is structured around clinical cases. Students will complete readings to guide discussions around clinical cases. Students will analyse and discuss cases with a variety of members of the health care team these may include, but are not limited to, physicians, nurses, bioethicists, chaplains, patients and family members. Students will participate in classroom activities to practice the application of knowledge and skills learned. Open to graduate students.

Five Possible Complementary Majors/Minors at The University of Rochester

Unique Opportunities within the Major/Minor

Numerous internships and summer opportunities are available to students. 

Sample Similar Programs