FAQs | Center for Medical Humanities, Compassionate Care, and Bioethics

Frequently Asked Questions

About the Application

What should I write about in my Personal Statement?
In your personal statement please address the following questions: Explain why you are interested in our program and how you see it fitting in with your long term professional ambitions. Try, if possible, to comment in your statement on what one or more of the terms “compassionate care,” “medical humanities,” and “bioethics” mean to you. How do these areas of study mesh with where you see your career plans developing at this point in your life?
I received a Masters degree in addition to my undergraduate degree. Do you need both transcripts?
Official Transcripts are required for any college coursework completed at academic institutions outside of Stony Brook. Applicants who have completed coursework at Stony Brook University do not need to send their official Stony Brook transcripts, as these can be retrieved internally.

*Official paper transcripts can be sent to:
Office of Graduate and Health Sciences Admissions
Health Sciences Tower
Stony Brook University
Level 2, Room 271
Stony Brook, NY 11794-8276

*Official electronic transcripts (also known as “eTranscripts”) should be sent to gradadmissions@stonybrook.edu.
Whom should I ask for letters of recommendation?
Ideally at least two of your letters should be from professors/instructors whom you have worked with. If you have earned a degree in the past 5 years then two of your letters must come from professors at the degree granting program.
I am an international student. Are there any additional requirements for application?

Applicants with international credentials must submit an official English translation of all coursework showing a complete course by course record, GPA, degree, and institution, in addition to the original documents. SBU graduate admissions personnel will evaluate coursework, GPA, degree requirements, and institutional equivalence. In some instances where the coursework, degree equivalency, GPA, and/or institution cannot be verified, a course-by-course evaluation from one of Stony Brook University's approved NACES (www.naces.org) members listed below, may be requested from the applicant.
a. World Education Services (WES)
b. International Education Evaluations, Inc. (IEE)
c. Education Credential Evaluators (ECE)
Also, if your native or primary language is not English, English proficiency must be established based on the results of your TOEFL or IELTS examinations. Any applicant with a degree from an English language institution, including high school, a bachelors, masters or PhD do not need to take an English language proficiency test as long as they select one of these on their application. Additionally, any applicant who served as a Teaching Assistant at an institution where the primary instruction was in English do not need to take an English language proficiency test as long as they select this on their application.
If admitted, can I defer my admission offer?
You may defer your offer of admission for one or two semesters (e.g., if you applied for fall admission, you can defer to any term up to fall of the following year). After this time you must reapply.
I've taken some graduate-level classes at other institutions. Can I transfer those credits to this program?
The Graduate School policy does not allow us to accept transfer credits that have counted toward a degree or certificate at another institution. If no degree was received, then the student may petition the graduate admissions committee to have up to 12 credits transferred. The courses must have been taken in the previous 5 years. Determination of acceptability and relevance is made at the sole discretion of the graduate admissions committee.
Is financial aid available for qualified students?
The Center does not have any graduate teaching or research assistantships to offer at this time. Advising on grants, scholarships and loans is available through various offices on campus. General inquiries may be directed to the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarship Services on West Campus. University or Medical Center employees, medical students and students in the health sciences should contact the following offices:
- Learning and tuition benefits for employee of the Health Sciences Center or a unit of Stony Brook's West Campus
  
  HSC & West Campus Human Resources
  
  Benefits Administrator: Kristen Blandi (631)632-6180; Kristen.Blandi@stonybrook.edu
  
  Benefits Administrator: Paulene Toussaint (631)632-6180; Paulene.Toussaint@stonybrook.edu
- Medical student
  
  Medical Student Financial Advising
  
  Mary Jean Allen (631)444-2341; Mary.Allen@stonybrookmedicine.edu
- Hospital employee
  
  Hospital Employee Human Resources; Benefits department
  
  (631)444-4700; SBUHHR@stonybrookmedicine.edu

About the Program

What do graduates do with a degree in Medical Humanities?
The MA is not a professional degree in the sense that there are prescribed steps individuals follow after graduating. The diversity of our student body is reflected in their diverse goals and aspirations. Students at comparable programs go on to complete terminal medical degrees and PhD programs. They hold diverse positions in such fields as clinical ethics, hospital administration, patient advocacy, hospice care and the chaplaincy. Many current working professionals use the education they receive in this program to enhance and complement their skills and knowledge in their current profession. For additional information please contact Dr. Stephen Post at Stephen.Post@stonybrookmedicine.edu.
I am a working professional with a family. Can I take classes part-time?
Many of our students are working professionals. We understand such commitments and do everything we can to accommodate. All of our required courses during the Fall and Spring semesters meet in the evenings (as do most of our electives). Students can complete the program in one to five years.
I have been out of school for several years. Will I feel out-of-place in this program?
We count the range of experiences and voices found in our student body as one of our great strengths. Students in our program come from a wide variety of professional backgrounds and are diverse in age and ethnicity.

Masters Degree