M.A. Program in Bioethics

Degree Requirements and Curriculum

Students in this Plan A (i.e. thesis-based) Master’s Degree program are required to take at least 20 credits of courses, distributed as follows:

REQUIRED BIOETHICS COURSES (9 credits)

BTHX 5010: Bioethics Proseminar
(to be taken Fall of 1st year - 2 credits)
The Proseminar will familiarize graduate students with a wide range of topics in bioethics and the work of a number of faculty affiliated with the program, to help students select mentors and research programs. The Proseminar will be open only to bioethics graduate students (Master’s students and Bioethics Graduate Minors), with an aim of fostering community among them.

BTHX 5300: Foundations of Bioethics
(to be taken 1st year - 3 credits)
This course provides an overview of major theoretical frameworks and foundational issues in bioethics, including moral frameworks, sociology of knowledge, etc.

BTHX 5610: Bioethics Research and Publication (1 credit)
This seminar is tailored to students wishing to incorporate work in bioethics into their career plans. It provides an overview of research methods, and discusses career and publication strategies, authorship issues, ethics in publication, and peer review.

CORE COURSES

At least one core course allowing study of an area of specialization within bioethics, as specified, below (3 credits):

Clinical ethics core course
BTHX 5100: Intro to Clinical Bioethics - 3 credits; or

Ethics of health policy core course
BTHX 5400: Introduction to Bioethics in Health Policy; or BTHX 5453: Law, Biomedicine, and Bioethics (cross listed with LAW 6853) (3 credits each), or

Ethics of human subjects research core course
BTHX 5210: Ethics of Human Subjects Research (3 credits)

ELECTIVES:

Bioethics courses (at least 5 credits)
Complete listing of courses available here.

Related fields outside Bioethics: One or more (at least 6 credits)

Sample courses appropriate to this requirement can be found here.

Courses fulfilling this requirement must be chosen in consultation with the student’s advisor to ensure their appropriateness for the student’s course of study. Students may elect a graduate minor to fulfill this requirement. However, students may also elect to take courses from different programs, for example, a health policy course from the School of Public Health and a health law course from the Law School.

NOTE: Of the 20 total course credits required, at least 1 BTHX course and at least 2 courses total are to be taken at the 8xxx level.

Thesis Credits
Students are also required to complete at least 10 thesis credits and write a thesis. The final exam will be oral. The Plan A final exam committee must include two Bioethics graduate faculty members and one graduate faculty member outside of Bioethics. The "outside" member of the committee will be from the graduate faculty of the minor field, if the student has completed a graduate minor.

GPA
Students must maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0 (B) to remain in good standing.

TUITION AND FEES
Graduate tuition information can be found on OneStop. More detailed information on tuition and fees can be found at

http://onestop.umn.edu/finances/costs_and_tuition/index.html