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medical/health humanities

A program that explores the ethical, historical, literary, philosophical, and religious dimensions of medicine or health. Includes instruction in art, cultural studies, economics, ethics, history, literature, medical anthropology, philosophy, religion and spiritual thought, science and technology, visual art, and writing. Examples: [Narrative Medicine]

Types of Degrees medical/health humanities Majors Are Earning

Those studying medical/health humanities have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Bachelor’s Degree	261
Master’s Degree	85
Doctor’s Degree	6

What medical/health humanities Majors Need to Know

Studies in medical/health humanities develop a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that medical/health humanities graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

Coursework in medical/health humanities emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• English Language — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 5.3 / 7.
• Sociology and Anthropology — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.6 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 3.6 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• History and Archeology — Importance 3.4 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Geography — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set emphasized by a medical/health humanities program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Writing — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to medical/health humanities careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Oral Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Inductive Reasoning — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, medical/health humanities graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Getting Information	4.7 / 7
Processing Information	4.5 / 7
Analyzing Data or Information	4.4 / 7
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others	4.4 / 7
Working with Computers	4.4 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.2 / 7
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events	4.1 / 7
Documenting/Recording Information	4.0 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.0 / 7
Thinking Creatively	4.0 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by medical/health humanities professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
ESRI ArcGIS software	Geographic information system	✓
IBM SPSS Statistics	Analytical or scientific software	—
Adobe Photoshop	Graphics or photo imaging software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Adobe Acrobat	Document management software	—
Microsoft Access	Data base user interface and query software	✓
Adobe Dreamweaver	Web page creation and editing software	—
SAS	Analytical or scientific software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for medical/health humanities graduates include:

• Liberal Arts Teacher
• Labor Relations Teacher
• Science Teacher
• Survey Research Teacher
• Weight Control Lecturer
• Lecturer
• Urban Planning Teacher
• Naval Science Teacher
• Foreign Service Teacher
• College Teacher
• City Planning Teacher
• Industrial Arts Teacher
• Humanities Teacher
• Military Science Teacher
• Survey Research Professor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to medical/health humanities graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Master’s degree	38.6%
Doctoral degree	29.6%
Bachelor’s degree	21.2%
Post-doctoral training	5.3%
Less than a high school diploma	2.1%
Some college courses	2.0%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	0.8%
High school diploma or equivalent	0.2%
Postsecondary certificate	0.1%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in medical/health humanities?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 84.1% of medical/health humanities degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	296	84.1%
Men	56	15.9%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of medical/health humanities graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	151	42.9%
Asian	28	8.0%
Hispanic or Latino	101	28.7%
Black or African American	46	13.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native	2	0.6%
Two or More Races	11	3.1%
Race Unknown	9	2.6%
International Students	4	1.1%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do medical/health humanities Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of medical/health humanities graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Wages typically rise steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$91,596
4 years	$89,352
5 years	$98,782

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $98,782 — roughly 8% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online medical/health humanities Programs

Distance learning is reported by IPEDS for medical/health humanities. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Bachelor’s	1	1
Master’s	2	0
Doctoral (Research)	1	0

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in medical/health humanities Worth It?

Strictly by the federal earnings tracker, medical/health humanities graduates earn a median of $89,352 four years after completion — roughly 135% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	Annual Degrees Awarded
Health Professions Education, Ethics, and Humanities	5,250
Nursing Education	3,933
Bioethics/Medical Ethics	757
Health Professions Education	102
Health Professions Education, Ethics, and Humanities, Other	101
Arts in Medicine/Health	5
History of Medicine	—

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.