Patients, Practitioners & Cultures of Care
Certificate in the Undergraduate College
The Patients, Practitioners & Cultures of Care Bridging Disciplines Program (BDP) certificate offers a transdisciplinary curriculum to explore health, health care, healing, and social justice issues from a rich variety of humanistic perspectives
Students in the program learn about the global health system’s diverse histories and cultural contexts, the role of narrative in experiences of illness and caring, the impact of the built environment on health and healing, and the challenges of remaining resilient and connected when providing care for others.
Guided by an interdisciplinary faculty that includes practitioners and scholars in fields ranging from medicine and social work to literature and anthropology, among many others, Patients, Practitioners & Cultures of Care cultivates skills and orientations central to any humanistic practice of health care.
Declaration Requirements
ShowDegree-seeking undergraduates in good academic standing at The University of Texas at Austin are eligible to apply to the BDPs. Students must be in at least the second semester of their freshman year to be eligible to apply. Students must plan to be enrolled at UT as a degree-seeking undergraduate for at least two semesters after the semester in which they apply to the BDP. The BDPs are open to undergraduate students from every college and school at UT. However, because there is significant overlap in program focus and coursework, some majors and BDP certificates may not be combined. View eligibility information for more details.
How to Declare
ShowApplications for the Bridging Disciplines Programs are accepted twice a year, during the fall and spring semesters. Learn additional information and how to apply to the BDPs. Interested students can attend an information session, which are offered throughout the semester.
Required Courses
ShowWith 19 credit hours of coursework and Connecting Experiences, students may earn a BDP certificate in Patients, Practitioners & Cultures of Care. View a complete list of courses and requirements.
Personality
ShowStudents in the Patients, Practitioners & Cultures of Care BDP form a community with shared interests in exploring patient-centered approaches to health, medicine, and care. Patients, Practitioners & Cultures of Care students come from a wide range of majors at UT, including Anthropology, Biology, Nursing, Plan II, Sociology, Social Work, and many others.
Skills
ShowAfter completing 19 credit hours consisting of coursework, as well as research and/or internship experiences, students earn a certificate that will be recognized on their transcript, demonstrating a secondary area of specialization that complements their major. By pursuing an interdisciplinary certificate, students in the BDPs learn to become more flexible, versatile thinkers, better prepared for a professional world that values innovation and collaboration. Students in the BDPs gain access to unique research and internship experiences at UT and around the world, giving them hands-on experience applying what they have learned in the classroom.
