The Honors College and the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine are pleased to offer this exciting opportunity to a small number of incoming freshmen each year. In this sequential BA/MD program, Medical Humanities Scholars design unique interdisciplinary programs that allow them to enhance their study of medicine with other areas of academic interest from the humanities, arts, and social sciences.
We STRONGLY RECOMMEND students apply to the University of Oklahoma before December 1st in order to receive acceptance and be able to access the Medical Humanities Application.
The Medical Humanities Scholars Program application can be accessed through the Honors College application
Medicine is both art and science. It is the art of understanding humankind in the context of disease — not just recognizing or diagnosing the pathological condition, but seeing how an individual's disease is a product of his or her environment, constitution, and personality. By exploring medicine through the lenses of the historian, the ethicist, the sociologist, the anthropologist, the writer, and the visual artist, students gain insights into the nature of the human condition, human suffering, personhood, and the responsibilities of individuals to one another in sickness and in health. These insights are valuable for both the aspiring clinician and anyone who will someday get sick and seek medical care. The history of medicine, for example, can provide orientation in a discipline that is changing at a dizzying pace — presenting a picture of where medicine has been, how it is evolving, and what promises and challenges its future may hold. The study of bioethics and medical ethics offers a vital reminder that medicine is a social enterprise that must balance cultural values and moral principles with scientific goals. Literature and the visual arts can convey the personal experiences of sickness and healing, revealing the subjective side of clinical care. Sociologists and anthropologists illuminate the ways in which professional and popular cultures interact, alternately clashing with and complimenting one another. Taken together, these disciplines offer both physicians-in-training and healthcare "consumers" an enriched understanding of the dynamic relationships between medicine and the larger social world.
MHSP Medical Humanities Minor Course Plan PDF
Note: This form is only for Medical Humanities Scholars. Students who are pursuing the Medical Humanities minor, but are not Scholars, should use the forms located under the Medical Humanities Minor tab.
Open to all Medical Humanities Scholars Program students in good standing, the Honors College MCAT Preparation Scholarship provides support in the form of reimbursement for your MCAT preparation course. You choose your preferred preparation service and materials, pay out of pocket, and submit this form with your proof of payment. Scholarships will be deposited directly to your OU Bursar account. Up to $2,000 may be requested.
This is a one-time scholarship. Once awarded you are not eligible to apply again. It is highly advisable that you plan your MCAT program in a manner that best prepares you for the actual MCAT with this in mind. There is no deadline for this application.
In 2000, the University of Oklahoma Honors College and the College of Medicine created a partnership to further the study of humanities in relation to medicine. Today, at the Honors College there are two programs for students interested in pursuing study in the medical humanities: the Medical Humanities Scholars Program (MHSP) and the Medical Humanities Minor. MHSP students complete the MH Minor and receive provisional acceptance at the College of Medicine. Undergraduates not in the MHSP may also minor in the medical humanities to enhance their understanding of the healing professions and the sociocultural dimensions of health and disease.
Discover why pre-medicine student Steven Lee chose the Medical Humanities Scholars Program—and how he’s using his English major to make a meaningful impact in his community.
The deadline to apply to the program is technically 15 January 2027. However, you must be accepted by both OU and the Honors College before applying to the MHSP. We suggest applying by 1 December 2026 to ensure that your application is read.
We recommend students apply to the university before December 1st in order to receive acceptance and be able to access the Medical Humanities Application.
Provisional acceptance means that a spot is waiting for you at the OU College of Medicine if you achieve an MCAT score and a GPA that are equal to or higher than the average MCAT score and GPA of the previous year's incoming medical school class. Typically, this is an MCAT score of approximately 510 and a science GPA of approximately 3.75. You will need to declare at the end of your sophomore year whether you wish to attend OU College of Medicine within the MHSP or apply as a regular applicant to OU College of Medicine as well as other medical colleges.
PLEASE NOTE: You are STRONGLY encouraged to submit your OU application by December 1st. This gives us enough time to process your Honors application and your MHSP application. Applying to OU after 1 December may jeopardize your consideration for the MHSP.
There are no specific non-academic characteristics that are required for consideration or acceptance into the MHSP. In general, however, we look for students with the following attributes:
There is no major preference given to students from Oklahoma.
No. Please do not include any supplemental materials with your MHSP application. In order to keep everyone's application on a level playing field, we will review only the MHSP application itself. We will not examine any supplementary documents such as a resume, letters of support, or a transcript.
Yes. You will need to take the MCAT. See the average MCAT score for the latest entering class above under "What does "provisional acceptance mean..."
Yes. The Medical Humanities Minor, administered through the Honors College, is open to any undergraduate student enrolled at OU. This allows all students at the University of Oklahoma to learn about the social, cultural, ethical, political, economic, and spiritual dimensions of health, disease, and healing. Through the MH Minor, students can enjoy all the curricular components of the MHSP.
We receive approximately 300 applications each year from over 30 states. We invite 36 students to interview online via Zoom.
We take up to 10 students each year.
