Narrative Medicine Graduate Certificate

The graduate certificate in Narrative Medicine is designed to enhance medical and healthcare education by giving students the competence to identify, acknowledge and interpret stories of sickness and of health through close observation of the human experience as they represent and serve our diverse society. Strong focus is placed on analysis of fiction and non-fiction writing. Reflective and creative writing assignments are designed to improve students’ ability to recognize, interpret and tell patient stories. Students interested in film, visual arts, dance and other creative mediums have opportunities to explore these outlets.

Using small-seminar courses and a capstone project, students explore the role of narrative in medicine and the vast expanse of human stories to improve their ability to care for patients and to deepen their satisfaction as a healthcare provider. The certificate is unique in its provision of a theoretical and academic foundation in narrative medicine bolstered immediately and rigorously by experiential work in the hospital setting.