Handbook for the Master of Arts Program
in Bioethics, Humanities and Society
Welcome to the Program in Bioethics, Humanities and Society [BHS]. This handbook outlines the requirements for the Master’s degree, as well as other information about the Master's program. If you have any questions, you should contact the BHS Director by phone or e-mail, who will be happy to advise you.
The Program in Bioethics, Humanities and Society coordinates the study of medical humanities and social sciences at the graduate level and offers joint degree programs with Human Medicine, Osteopathic Medicine, Nursing and Law. It is closely allied with the Center for Ethics and Humanities in the Life Sciences. The program is designed to meet the needs of people with interests in applying bioethics in the real world.
The program aims to serve three types of students. The first are those with a practical interest in working within the field of bioethics, human research protections and patient’s rights. The second are those who plan to pursue doctoral training in a traditional humanities or social science discipline, but wish to develop a background in bioethics. The third are professionals who seek training in bioethics that they can apply in their practices and consultations.
Because interdisciplinary training is essential, you will begin the BHS program with the common core course (HM 820 Humanistic and Social Perspectives on Health) that covers material from a range of disciplines - philosophy, law, anthropology, history, sociology, and literature - to develop an understanding of the content, methods, and limitations of each. The goal of this course is to acquaint you with the breadth of disciplines within Bioethics, Humanities and Society, and how they are interrelated.
Also in your first year, you should select courses that will lead to two coherent areas of concentration, one primary and one secondary from the following three broad areas: Bioethics, Humanities and Society. Bioethics applies ethics to medical decision-making and has its roots in philosophy as well as professional codes of ethics, but is informed by other disciplines. The Humanities are a set of disciplines from literature, the arts, history and religion that provide understanding and insight into the human condition and context of health and medicine. Society represents those disciplines –anthropology, economics, geography, psychology, political science, and sociology– that assess social and cultural perspectives on health and medicine in terms of efficacy, social justice and public policy.
By the end of your first year, you should identify faculty to serve on your guidance committee, who will assist you in developing and writing either your Master's thesis (Plan A) or research paper (Plan B). It is, therefore, important for you to meet faculty during your first year so that you can make an informed choice of a chair and committee members. The HM 820 course does bring in a few guest speakers from around the university. In addition, the Center for Ethics and Humanities in the Life Sciences [CEHLS] coordinates presentations by outside guest speakers and organizes informal lunchtime “brown bags” on a variety of topics. These are enriching opportunities, and you should make an effort to attend as many as you can.
CEHLS faculty works with public and private hospitals, agencies and organizations that can provide experiential learning and research opportunities. For example, learning experiences may be available to observe or work with a hospital ethics committee or to "shadow" a health care provider.
Faculty who teach and do research in bioethics, humanities and society are located in various departments, institutes and centers across the university. They are interested in working with students like you. You can meet them through courses, brown bags, or graduate assistantships. The BHS Director will help you identify faculty you may wish to work with and will facilitate both initial contacts and introductions. If you have questions or concerns about your academic relationship with them, feel free to discuss these with the BHS Director.
This Handbook describes the BHS program guidelines and these must be followed. The University guidebook entitled “Academic Programs” describes policies that are – yes, you guessed it – University-wide. All University rules must be followed and the BHS program has little power to override them.
II. Program Components/Plan Options
The BHS program offers a Plan A Master’s Thesis and a Plan B Master’s Research Paper. If you intend to go on for a doctorate, you might consider doing Plan A; if you already have an advanced degree or are pursuing a joint degree, you should probably do Plan B.
The BHS Plan A -- Master’s Thesis
Master’s Thesis Overview
The thesis option is appropriate if you seek an in depth research experience in your primary area of concentration. The thesis will involve proposing and testing hypotheses based on a review of the literature. You will then collect data that you will analyze and interpret. You will then make a formal presentation (colloquium or oral defense) and have the final product bound.
The Thesis Proposal
In addition to completing required course work in your two areas of concentration, you should expect to spend a considerable portion of your second year a Master's thesis. The first step is to produce an acceptable thesis proposal, a process that should in fact begin in the first year.
You are expected to enroll for one credit of HM 899 (Master’s Thesis Research) no later than your third regular semester for the purpose of writing your thesis proposal. You should consider working on the thesis proposal during the summer after your first year. (If you are on an extended joint degree program, you should enroll for your first credit of HM 899 after completing at least 13 credits toward the MA.). In undertaking this initial credit of HM 899, you should seek advice from the chair of your guidance committee. The initial HM 899 credits should be used to explore promising lines of inquiry for the thesis.
Many thesis topics will emerge from disciplinary course work as you discover interesting issues in course readings or wish to expand a term paper. From the outset of your program, you should be alert for potential thesis topics and discuss them with your instructors, one of whom should be asked to chair the guidance committee for your thesis. When you have a promising topic, you should discuss it with your guidance committee chair. After settling on a particular topic, you should conduct a preliminary survey of the scholarly literature on that topic and discuss the results with your guidance committee chair. When your guidance committee chair agrees that you have a viable thesis topic, you should write and submit a proposal to the BHS Director, who is ultimately responsible to the College of Human Medicine and the MSU Graduate School for approving thesis topics. A proposal typically includes the following:
1. A clear statement of the scholarly problem or question to be answered by the thesis.
2. A brief review of the relevant literature on the topic. The review should establish that the thesis question has not already been satisfactorily answered, and explain how the published literature is related to the question.
3. A justification for the thesis that establishes that the question is worth answering.
4. An explanation of the approaches (methods) that will be used to answer the question, which must include perspectives from more than one discipline.
5. If research involving human subjects (including interviews, surveys, observations, etc) is contemplated, the proposal must include a section describing steps to be taken to comply with university policies and guidelines set forth by the University Committee on Research Involving Human Subjects (UCRIHS). For these policies, see http://www.humanresearch.msu.edu
6. The name of your guidance committee chair and a list of additional faculty whose academic specialties make them likely (or current) members of your guidance committee.
Put a lot of thought into your proposal; it will be the core of your Master’s thesis write-up, so the more work you do now, the less you’ll have to do later. Also, be explicit, clear, and complete, so your Guidance Committee can really understand what you want to do and can then give you proper advice.
Writing the Thesis
The length and scope of the typical thesis -- often running to some 60 to 80 pages of text -- can be daunting at first blush. However, if you understand from the outset what is expected at the end, proceed methodically, and seek and receive proper guidance throughout the thesis process--from selecting a topic to final revisions--then the experience becomes intellectually challenging and rewarding.
Normally, an acceptable Master's thesis in Bioethics, Humanities and Society contains the following sections or chapters:
1. A preliminary abstract (150 words or less).
2. An introduction, including
a) A clear statement of the scholarly problem or question to be answered by the thesis.
b) A review of the relevant literature. The review should establish that the thesis question has not already been satisfactorily answered, and should explain how the published literature is related to the thesis question.
c) A justification for the thesis question that establishes why the question is worth answering and a set of hypotheses / predictions / propositions to be tested or explored.
d) An explanation of the approaches (methods) that will be used to answer the question, which must include perspectives from more than one discipline.
3. An analytical section that answers the thesis question in a systematic way.
4. A conclusion that summarizes the findings or arguments, and assesses how successfully the thesis question was answered. Future lines of research on the subject might also be suggested.
5. Endnotes rather than footnotes.
6. Complete references / bibliography in a style observed by your disciplinary area.
You earn credit for your thesis-related work by enrolling in HM 899. The minimum number of HM 899 credits is four (4); the maximum number that can be counted toward the degree is six (6). HM 899 credits are automatically assigned a "deferred" grade (DF). After a successful defense, the thesis is given a grade that is then assigned to all the HM 899 credits.
You must have the permission of the BHS Director to enroll in HM 899. After the initial one credit taken for development of the thesis proposal, permission for additional credits will be given only on evidence of progress toward development of the thesis, and you should stay in regular contact with the BHS Director to let him or her know how the thesis is progressing.
The Pre-Defense Colloquium
When you and your guidance committee chair believe that substantial progress has been made toward the final draft of the entire thesis, you should schedule a colloquium, or formal meeting, with the full guidance committee, notifying the BHS Director of the scheduled meeting. The BHS Director may attend colloquia when it seems necessary to clarify BHS expectations for an interdisciplinary thesis and when possible in other cases simply to stay in touch with students' work.
The main purpose of the colloquium is to establish common expectations between you and your whole committee about what will constitute an acceptable finished version of the thesis, at a stage when you can make productive use of such recommendations. (This does not preclude you from seeking advice from individual committee members as necessary in working on the thesis before the colloquium.) At the colloquium, the guidance committee should reach agreement on required revisions, as well as set guidelines for the remainder of the thesis. Such expectations and guidelines should be forwarded, in writing, by the guidance committee chair to the BHS Director following the colloquium, along with a copy of the current draft of the thesis.
After the colloquium, the guidance committee chair has primary supervisory responsibility for the completion of the thesis, albeit in accord with the recommendations established by the entire guidance committee during the colloquium. If you have not already done so, you should obtain the Graduate School's thesis Formatting Guide at http://grad.msu.edu/format.htm. Final drafts of the thesis are expected to conform to all stylistic and format requirements in that Guide. Also available at the Graduate School office (in Linton Hall) is a set of forms that must be completed before graduation. When planning your defense, keep in mind that extensive revisions, additional research, plus follow-up meetings with the guidance committee chair (and perhaps other committee members) are often required. It is best to schedule the pre colloquium defense early in the semester in which you intend to graduate.
The Thesis Defense
When the guidance committee chair is satisfied that you have met the expectations and followed the guidelines established in the colloquium, you are ready to proceed to a defense of the thesis--essentially an oral examination. For this event, the guidance committee is transformed into an examining committee, with responsibility for assuring that:
1. The thesis meets the expectations established at the colloquium;
2. The candidate can explain both the method employed and the results achieved; and
3. The candidate can articulate the relevant interdisciplinary contexts for the thesis.
You must be registered for at least one credit during the semester when the thesis is successfully defended, which is not necessarily the official semester of graduation. This requirement recognizes both your work in defending the thesis and the faculty and staff time involved in bringing the thesis to completion and transmitting the finished thesis to the library and other official recipients. You must also apply for graduation by the first week of the semester you expect to complete your degree requirements.
If you will complete your degree requirements during Summer, apply for Summer graduation by the first week of Spring semester. You can apply for graduation on line at: http://www.reg.msu.edu/StuForms/GradApp/GradApp.asp
It is recommended that the defense be scheduled about six weeks before the end of the semester in which you intend to graduate. Give the committee at least two weeks to read the thesis. If the guidance committee requires corrections and changes (and they often do), you must submit a revised draft to the guidance committee chair for final review and approval (which takes the form of a signature on a bookplate). Then the BHS Director certifies the candidate for graduation.
A note on scheduling colloquia and defenses: Faculty have obligations to grade their classes during finals week. Do not wait until the last two weeks of the semester or finals week to hold your final defense. Furthermore, many faculty hold academic year appointments (Aug 15 – May 14) and are technically not obligated to consult or meet on theses during summers. Please do not assume, therefore, that faculty on guidance committees are automatically accessible for meetings, for reading drafts, or for colloquia and the defense during summer sessions. They may choose to do so, but no affront is intended when faculty say they cannot read material or meet with you during the summer.
Final Graduation Requirements
For the Graduate School
You must deliver the following materials by the deadline established by the Graduate School (for the university requirements for graduation and the relevant deadlines in each semester, see the Graduate School's web site, at <http://grad.msu.edu/graduation.htm>):
a) Final, unbound copy of the thesis (including the abstract), typed or printed in accord with the instructions in the thesis Formatting Guide, at <http://grad.msu.edu/format.htm>;
b) Extra copy of the abstract;
c) Signed bookplate;
d) All contracts (for microfilming and binding) and required forms.
For BHS
You must also deliver one bound copy (prepared by the University or a local bindery) to BHS. It is also courteous to give a copy (bound or unbound) to each member of the guidance committee. Copies of past BHS theses may be consulted from the BHS office.
The BHS Plan B -- Master’s Research Paper
Master’s Research Paper Overview
The purpose of the MA Research Paper is to provide experience in producing a scholarly, publishable article, a professional report or educational manual. The research paper may be interdisciplinary in nature or may focus in depth on a single discipline. Whether disciplinary or interdisciplinary, it should relate to and be supported by work in your primary area of concentration.
Preparing for the Master’s Research Paper
By the beginning of your second year, you should have a project topic in mind. It is your responsibility to invite faculty to serve on your committee. The BHS Director can advise you and help you if you are having difficulty. You should select a guidance committee chair and prepare a two or three page prospectus for your research paper. The research paper should be more substantial than a term paper for a graduate seminar, but not as comprehensive as a Master's thesis. If the research involves human subjects (including interviews, surveys, observations, etc), you must receive approval from the University Committee on Research Involving Human Subjects (UCRIHS) prior to the initiation of the research. The UCRHIS website is: http://www.humanresearch.msu.edu/
Working on the Master’s Research Paper
Once you and your guidance committee chair have agreed on your research paper topic, you should submit the prospectus to the BHS Director. The BHS Director will review the prospectus and you may then enroll in HM 898 Master’s Research, which gives you credit and time to work on your research paper. You should plan on spending part of the fall of your second year and most of your spring semester working on the research paper.
Completing the Master’s Research Program
The form of the final paper, which may be a scholarly article, a professional report or an educational manual, is up to you and your guidance committee. An approximate target would be between 25 to 40 pages of text, plus whatever bibliography and supporting apparatus (charts, appendices, etc.) may be required. You should arrange to hold a meeting with your guidance committee to obtain their feedback and approval. While no formal presentation or oral defense is required, you should consider presenting your work at a symposium or brown bag. Your guidance committee chair or the BHS director will help you identify an appropriate venue.
A complete working draft of the Master’s Research paper should be turned in at least six weeks before the end of the semester in which you intend to graduate. After receiving the final version of the research paper, the guidance committee should decide on a grade for the paper and the guidance committee chair should inform the BHS Director of the grade before grades for that semester are due (no later than 5:00 pm, Monday after Finals Week).
You should also provide a copy of your research paper to the BHS Director for your academic file.
III. Program Requirements and Plan of Study
Program requirements are distributed as follows:
First Year Core Seminar
- HM 820: Humanistic Perspectives on Health. 3 credits.
Plan A Thesis
- A minimum of 15 credits in a primary area of concentration
- A minimum of 6 credits in a secondary area of concentration, in support of the thesis.
- Four to 6 credits of HM 899: Master's Thesis Research.
- A final oral examination on the topic of the thesis administered by your guidance committee consisting of three faculty members. The thesis must reflect an integration of more than one disciplinary perspective including the perspective of the discipline represented by your primary area of concentration.
Plan B Research Paper
- A minimum of 12 credits in a primary area of concentration.
- A minimum of 8 credits in a secondary area of concentration.
- One to 3 credits of HM 898: Master's Research.
- A research paper on a topic in the area of health and humanities approved by your guidance committee consisting of two faculty members.
You will be taking HM 820 your first semester. The only exceptions are students in the epidemiology Training Clinical Researchers for Community Settings TRECOS program. One of the major purposes of this course is to introduce you to the broad range of academic fields included within the medical humanities.
Also in your first year, you should select courses that will lead to two coherent areas of concentration, one primary and one secondary from the following three broad areas: Bioethics, Humanities and Society.
It is helpful if you have at least a primary area of concentration in mind when you enter the program, so that you can complement HM 820 with course work in that area during the first semester. A second area of concentration should be identified no later than the end of the first semester. Ideally you should begin taking course work in this area in your the second semester. You should choose areas of concentration carefully and with an eye to possible thesis topics (Plan A) or Master's research papers (Plan B).
If you are not pursuing a joint degree with one of the medical schools you should plan on completing between 14-16 credits in the first academic year. A sample schedule for full time study can be found in section IV. You should seek to complete all of the course work for both areas of concentration by the end of the third semester if at all possible. This will open up time in the second year so that you can focus on completing the thesis prospectus and writing the thesis (Plan A) or the Master's research paper (Plan B). If you need to pursue coursework on a part-time basis, you should notify the BHS Director and your guidance committee chair so that appropriate adjustments can be made to your program.
If you are in medical school, you should plan on taking at least one non-medical school BHS course each semester during your first two years. Selecting a clerkship in the Lansing or Flint area during your third or fourth year would enable you to take late afternoon or evening classes on the MSU campus and complete your BHS degree in a timely fashion. Some medical students may want to take five years to complete their medical degree which would free up time to complete non-medical BHS course work and/or work on a project and write up their thesis or master’s paper.
Your Plan of Study is the formal document describing the courses that you plan to take as part of your Master’s Program, so make sure you put a lot of thought into preparing it. You should develop it in consultation with your guidance committee chair. The Plan of Study form will contain information on
- The courses you will take
- The number of research credits you will use to work on your Thesis or Research Paper
- Your research area
- Your guidance committee members
You must make sure you put down the number of HM 898 (Plan B) or HM 899 (Plan A) credits you intend to take, because the Graduate School will hold you to them. In other words, only the completed credits on the Plan of Study form count towards your degree.
The plan of study must be signed by all members of your guidance committee and is not official until it has received the approval of the BHS Director. The Plan of Study must be filed by the end of your first year in the program. Generally courses are listed by early April for the next academic year. It may be amended with a Master’s Plan of Study Amendment Form signed by you, the chair of your guidance committee, and the BHS Director.
Guidance Committee and Faculty Advisor
Your Master’s guidance committee helps you develop your Master's Plan of Study, oversees your Master's research and approves of your thesis or research paper.
By the end of your first year, you should begin recruiting faculty to serve on your guidance committee. The committee for Plan A thesis must be composed of at least three tenure stream faculty members at Michigan State and for Plan B research paper of at least two tenure stream faculty. It is your responsibility to ask faculty to serve on your committee. The BHS Director can advise you and help you if you are having difficulty. Your guidance committee should reflect a combination of faculty with expertise in your areas of concentration and with whom you have a working experience either in the classroom or on a project. The BHS Director will only approve committees that represent your program of study.
The most significant member of the guidance committee is the person who will serve as the chair and help you with your thesis or research paper. Ideally the chair’s academic specialty will encompass your potential thesis research topic. Although the BHS Director must be part of the final negotiations with all faculty (which include a signed agreement to serve on the committee), you are usually expected to broach the matter directly with individual faculty before involving the BHS Director. Once formed, guidance committees may be restructured, depending on factors such as changes in areas of concentration and topics for the thesis or Master's research paper. You should not make changes lightly. Inevitably, you will encounter difficult (and sometimes, emotional) times in this process. However, should it become necessary for you to change the membership of your committee, you must file "The Master's Plan of Study Amendment Form" with the Graduate Office. This form is available to download.
Make sure the two of you have a cordial relationship based on mutual respect. Be sure you meet on some regular basis, perhaps one that the two of you formalize when you develop your Plans of Study. Your advisor is your best source for information about your scholarship and research, and can help you with your plans for continuing your education or seeking a job. Your advisor also likely knows about sources of funding you might be able to tap into, conferences etc. that you should attend, experiences you should gain, and journals you should aim to publish in.
The University Guidelines for Graduate Student Advising and Mentoring Relationships are available at
http://grad.msu.edu/staff/mentoreport.pdf
Your graduate studies depend heavily on maintaining a working relationship with you faculty advisor and committee members. You should feel free to change your advisor or committee members if you are unable to continue to work with them for personal or other reasons. Occasionally an advisor or committee member may be unable to continue to serve because they take a position at another university, retire or take a leave of absence. In some cases it may make sense to find a new advisor or replace the committee member. In other cases, you may be able to arrange to finish your degree with your current advisor or committee member in a long-distance relationship. Please contact the BHS Director to help you work through any problems brought about by the untimely departure of your advisor or a committee member. You must amend your Plan of Study when changing advisors or committee members.
Academic Standards and Performance
Your program of study, approved by the BHS Director, must total at least 30 semester credits. Most courses will be at the 800 or 900 graduate level, although up to12 credits may be taken at the 400 senior undergraduate or 500 graduate professional levels. A minimum of 12 credits must be earned in residence on campus. Normally the program is completed in two years. The maximum time allowed for the degree is six years.
You must maintain at least a 3.0 grade point average for all classes on your Master's Plan of Study. In addition, you can only earn two grades below 3.0 (including N grades in the P-N grading system). A third grade below 3.0 will result in you being dismissed from the program; this policy does not apply to courses below the 400 level unless the courses are required for your program. You will receive a warning letter from the BHS Director if your academic performance is unsatisfactory.
The BHS Director will conduct an annual evaluation in March regarding your academic progress, performance, and professional potential. It will be based upon your academic record and on reviews from you academic advisor or guidance committee chair, and faculty you may be working with as part of your graduate assistantship. You will be considered in good standing if you maintain a cumulative grade point average above 3.25, and no course mark below 3.0. This will be transmitted to you in writing with a copy retained in your file.
Probationary status is assigned to anyone who has completed 16 credits with deficiencies in course marks/cumulative average, or with more than 3 deferred credits (excluding HM 899). You have one semester, or six calendar months - whichever is less - to return to regular status or leave the program (unless inactive status is approved in advance by the BHS Director). Dismissal from the program will not occur without a probationary period. College policies (e.g., limitations on the number of course marks below 3.0) may force the BHS Director to undertake a mid-year evaluation, resulting in probationary status during the subsequent semester. Normally, if you are on probation you may not enroll in additional credits of HM 899 or HM 898.
IV. Sample Schedules for Full-Time Study
Plan A (Master’s Thesis)
Year One
Fall |
Spring |
Summer |
HM 820 |
Course in Primary Area |
HM 899* (Proposal) |
Course in Primary Area |
Course in Primary Area |
|
Course in Secondary Area |
Course in Secondary Area |
Year Two
Fall |
Spring |
Summer |
HM 899 * |
HM 899* (Oral Defense) |
|
Course in Primary Area |
||
Course in Primary Area |
Plan B (Master’s Research Paper)
Year One
Fall |
Spring |
Summer |
HM 820 |
Course in Primary Area |
|
Course in Primary Area |
Course in Primary Area |
|
Course in Secondary Area |
Course in Secondary Area |
Year Two
Fall |
Spring |
Summer |
HM 898 * (Prospectus) |
HM 898* (Presentation) |
|
Course in Primary Area |
Area or Elective Course |
|
Course in Secondary Area |
You may not register for more than 1 credit of HM 899 until the BHS Director has approved a thesis proposal. You may not register for HM 898 until the BHS Director has approved a research paper prospectus. Subsequent enrollments for thesis or research credits are subject to the BHS Director's approval, and will depend on continuing progress in writing the thesis or research paper. If you are in Plan, A you must take a minimum of 4 credits of HM 899; and up to a maximum of 6 credits of HM 899 can be applied to the degree. If you are in Plan B, you must take a minimum of 1 credit and may earn no more than 3 credits of HM 898.
V. Information for Joint Degree Students
If you are in the College of Human Medicine or College of Osteopathic Medicine, your block medical school tuition covers your M.A. courses, so you will not have to pay any additional tuition.
College of Human Medicine
You may apply up to nine credits from Block I and Block II courses towards your concentrations as follows:
| All concentrations (5 credits) |
|
|---|---|
| HM 546-547 (Social Context of Clinical Decisions) | 3 cr |
| HM 548 (Medical Humanities Seminar) | 2 cr |
| For selected concentrations (up to 4 credits maximum) | |
| HM 512 (Disorders of Behavior and Development) | 3 cr |
| HM 514 (Major Mental Disorders) | 2 cr |
| HM 528 (Metabolic/ Endocrine/Reproductive) | 3 cr |
| HM 531 (Clinical Skills Doctor Patient Relationship) | 1 cr (of 2) |
| HM 537 (Topics in Reproductive Health) | 1 cr |
| HM 543 (Human Development & Behavior in Society) | 3 cr (of 5) |
| HM 571-572 (Integrative Clinical Correlations) | 1 -2 cr |
College of Osteopathic Medicine
If you are in the College of Osteopathic Medicine, you are encouraged to enter the Extended Curricular Program because it provides adequate time to take the additional elective courses for the Masters in Bioethics, Humanities and Society.
The following COM courses can be counted towards the BHS degree:
| OST 505 Doctor-Patient Relationship I | 1 cr |
| OST 504 Doctor-Patient Relationship II | 1 cr |
| OST 519 Ethics, Policy and Jurisprudence | 2 cr |
| OST 536 Behavioral Systems I | 2 cr |
| OST 531 Epidemiology | 2 cr |
College of Nursing
| If you are in the College of Nursing, you are encouraged to take the following courses: | |
|---|---|
NUR 841 Health Care Policy in Perspective: Economics, Politics and Ethics |
2 cr |
NUR 845 Women and Health in the United States: |
3 cr |
| NUR 920 Translation of Research and Scientific Knowledge to a Community Setting | 3 cr |
College of Law
If you are in the College of Law, you are encouraged to take courses in the Health Law Concentration.
You should consider taking courses from the following list:
Law 458 Health Care Law |
|
|---|---|
| Law 339 Bioethics & the Law | 2 cr |
| Law 357 Food & Drug Law | 2 cr |
| Law 419 Law & Medicine | 2 cr |
| Law 519 Managed Care Seminar | 2 cr |
| Law 306 Medical-Legal Problems | 2 cr |
| Law 568 Public Health Law | 2 cr |
| Law 587 Biotechnology and Pharmacy Patents | 2 cr |
One of your first items of business (besides minor things like finding a place to live and so on) will be to make sure you know your Personal Identification Number. You were given your PIN when you applied to MSU. Your PIN is the letter “A” followed by eight digits. This piece of information is important—it’s who you are, as far as the University computerized records are concerned.
In addition, once you have a PIN you can get your MSU NetID as well. Your NetID allows you to do things electronically at MSU, including access email, library resources, your student record, and so on. Your NetID is the first part of your MSU email address: someone@msu.edu. Using your NetID you can also access some server storage space (called AFS space) in which you can create personal web pages.
Your graduate student mailbox will be found outside C-208 E Fee Hall, which you can access from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm on weekdays. Program related information and other notices will be placed in these mailboxes. Office hours for the BHS Director (C-218 E. Fee) and BHS Secretary (C-217 E Fee) will be posted on the BHS web site each semester: www.bhs.msu.edu
Please keep the BHS Secretary and the BHS Director informed of your most current contact information - phone number(s) and postal and e-mail addresses - so that we may get important and time-sensitive announcements to you as quickly as possible. You can find further resources at http://bhs.msu.edu/gradresources.asp>.
Financial Support and Outside Work for Pay
The availability of financial support from the BHS program depends on budget allocations and competition among applicants. Generally BHS financial support is in the form of a general Graduate Assistantship (GA). This is intended to allow you to work with a faculty member on a scholarly endeavor or research project. If you are offered a GA, the BHS Director will help you match your interests with an appropriate faculty member.
BHS regularly offers support for travel to scholarly conferences. Since the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities (ASBH) holds it conference in October, you should decide early on if you plan to attend and if you wish to apply for travel support. Preference will be given to students who are on the conference or meeting program, and to second year students over first year students.
In order to continue to receive support from the BHS Program for a second year, you will need to meet the following criteria
* Making satisfactory progress towards completing the degree.
* Other things being equal, preference is given to students earlier in their graduate program.
* Preference is given to students who will be continuing on an existing project or assistantship.
* Preference is given to students who have received positive evaluations of their past assignments.
* The final decision about any particular assignment rests with the BHS Director.
The BHS Director determines if you meet these criteria and can waive them in extraordinary circumstances. After determining an eligible pool of applicants and the availability of resources, the BHS Director will then inform you about your support for the next academic year by March 31st.
You are encouraged to seek out alternative forms of support including working directly on a faculty research grant or becoming a Teaching Assistant (TA) for a specific course offered by a regular department. If you work as a TA who has direct contact with students (as opposed to being just a grader or a reader), you must first take a training course, and you must decide if you want to join the Graduate Employees Union (GEU). You will be given a card on which you indicate your decision at the beginning of the first semester in which you are eligible to join. If you join the GUE you pay dues and need to sign a GEU card only once during your graduate careers. If you are a TA and decide not to join the CEU, you are required to pay representation fees and need to sign a card once a year. Research Assistants are not currently required to fill out this form.
Note Bene: If you are a TA and do not fill out a union card, you can lose your assistantship.
At the end of each semester, the faculty member for whom you are working should provide you and the BHS Director with a written letter evaluating your work. To avoid any unpleasant surprises, it is important for you to stay in touch with the faculty member with whom you are working and with the BHS Director. Make sure you know that you are meeting expectations, and don’t be shy about asking what your funding prospects are for the upcoming academic year.
Given adequate budget allocation, the BHS program can offer assistance for up to four semesters, not including any semester in which you are supported from a non-BHS funding source such as another department or a research grant.
Summer support is normally not provided.
Graduate assistantships are compensated at three levels by University regulation. The minimum requirements for appointment are:
Level 1 -- Bachelor's degree and less than one year's experience as a graduate assistant
Level 2 -- Master's degree (30 credits or equivalent) and/or two semesters as a graduate assistant
Level 3 -- Master's degree (or equivalent) and six semesters' experience as a Teaching Assistant
(Note: Experience as a RA does not count towards the experience total for Level 3).
Support includes a stipend, a 9-credit per semester tuition waiver and health insurance. You must be registered for a minimum of 6 credits to be eligible for this support.
Accepting support carries the obligation to meet your responsibilities. If you have to be away during the semester, you must give reasonable advance notice to your supervisor or the course instructor so that appropriate coverage can be arranged.
Recipients of assistantships are considered university employees and you should fill out proper forms prior to accepting other MSU employment in addition to the assistantship and prior to being employed in other on-campus or off-campus job. For example, you must notify your faculty supervisor and BHS Director of any intent to engage in such ‘outside work for pay’ activities in addition to the assistantship responsibilities. The penalty for failing to receive advance approval for such outside work for pay can include dismissal and termination.
Ideally you should first meet with your advisor to review your program and select possible courses. The BHS Director will serve as your initial advisory upon entering the program. Then go to the MSU home page http://www.msu.edu and click on “Current Students” then on “Courses and Schedules” and finally on “Schedule of Courses” to see what is being offered. Make a list of the courses you want to take.
Some courses have prerequisites or other sorts of restrictions placed on them that will make it impossible for you to enroll electronically. To get an override, contact the relevant instructor and ask him/her to email the Graduate Secretary in the Department offering the course. The email message should give your name and PID, the course name and number and semester for which the override is requested, and it should state that the instructor permits you to enroll. This email message must come from the instructor, not from you. If you are blocked from enrolling in a Human Medicine (HM) course, you should contact the BHS Secretary who will forward your request to the appropriate CHM staff person who can enroll you. If you wish to enroll in a law school course, the BHS Director will submit the request.
Enrollment in courses is done on-line over the web. Go to the MSU home page http://www.msu.edu and click on “Current Students” then on “Computer Enrollment” and finally on “Connect to “WebEnroll.”
Once you have enrolled for your classes, a registration bill will be available electronically on StuInfo.. Go to the MSU home page http://www.msu.edu and click on “Current Students” then on “STUINFO” and log in. You should receive an email in your @msu.edu mailbox whenever a new bill is produced. Be sure to check for holds on your account. You will need to clear all outstanding holds to finalize your registration by paying your bill.
NOTE: if your "Minimum Amount Due" is $0.00 you MUST confirm your attendance in STUINFO under the "Confirm Attendance" menu item. Failure to do this will result in your being disenrolled - you will lose all the courses in which you enrolled. If there are any "HOLDS" noted on your Registration Billing Statement, you must resolve these prior to the payment due date indicated on the bill in order to become registered. Failure to resolve all listed holds will result in your being disenrolled.
It is important to register in a timely fashion. If not you may be assessed a late fee.
It is critical that you know where you stand with your advisor and the BHS program. It is a University regulation that you receive written feedback every year from your Guidance Committee (normally written by your advisor) stating explicitly how they (and relevant others) view your progress, and what is expected of you in the short run (say, the next year) and long run (the years that remain in your graduate career). A copy of this letter is filed with the BHS Office. If you disagree with any part of the letter, you may submit a response to the BHS Office and your response will be filed along with the evaluation letter. You may also request a meeting with the BHS Director to discuss any problems you have with the evaluation letter or process.
In addition, you should always feel free to ask your advisor and your committee members how they think you’re doing. This sort of informal feedback can often be extremely useful. And certainly if you have any concerns, you should make sure to have a candid conversation with your advisor, and any other faculty members you trust.
If you are not registered for two semesters in a row, university rules require you to complete an application for readmission. (This is just a form; it is not the full application that you filled out for admission, and there is no fee.) But your program clock keeps ticking, and so all time limits continue to be in force. You may apply for a time limits waiver, and under the circumstances it is likely to be granted if, before you leave, you write a memo to the BHS Director indicating the number of semesters you expect to be gone, and the reason (medical, occupational, financial, military, family obligations, etc) The reapplication process may stipulate conditions for readmission if you are gone more than two semesters, and your expectations about completion if the time limits are waived.
Accessing Your Departmental Files
The BHS Office maintains a file on you. You have the right to inspect any of your own educational records, including official transcripts, reports and evaluations of your academic performance and work performance as graduate assistant and your written responses if any. You cannot have access to confidential letters of recommendation and reviews of the admissions committee. To view your file, simply make a request to the BHS Secretary who will make arrangements for you to examine it under supervision during working hours.
If you wish to challenge the accuracy of an item in your file, you should write to the BHS Director explaining your concerns and your requested correction. The BHS Director will respond to your request and put both your challenge and the response in your file.
The Graduate Employees Union (GEU)
If you are a teaching assistant, you are eligible to join the Graduate Employee Union. The current contact between the GEU and the University lays out the rights and responsibilities you have as a member of this union. The MSU/GEU contract is available at http://grad.msu.edu/geu/agree.pdf
University information for graduate students in general
Academic Programs http://www.reg.msu.edu/ucc/ucc.asp
Graduate Students Rights and Responsibilities (GSRR) http://www.vps.msu.edu/SpLife/default.pdf
Olin Health Center http://olin.msu.edu
VIII. Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution
The related enterprises of scholarship and research are built upon honesty and integrity. Academic integrity stands for many things. Obviously, it means you don't cheat on tests and exams, you don't plagiarize your papers, and you don't falsify your data or misrepresent your research findings. These are the points we can all agree on and the University has a statement on Integrity of Scholarships and Grades. Failure to follow these guidelines leads to dire consequences for those involved. Academic dishonesty is not simply a personal failure. It is a failure of the mentoring system and a failure of the evaluation system. It is a failure that tarnishes us all.
You are expected to adhere to the high ethical principles as you conduct your research, scholarship, and professional activities. If you violate these principles, you will face sanctions proportional to the gravity of your infraction. Disciplinary action for ethical violations can include dismissal from the graduate program. It is critically important for you to be aware of the ethical landscape as you travel through your graduate program.
If you have questions about ethical concerns, start by initiating a conversation with your advisor. If this is not possible, feel free to contact the BHS Director or the Director of the Center for Ethics and Humanities in the Life Sciences (CEHLS).
If you are uncertain or confused as to policy or procedure with regard to course selection, requirements, or any other issues, you should contact your instructor or advisor. If a satisfactory solution is not reached, you should discuss the matter with the BHS Director, who will advise you about potential courses of action, including lines of appeal, if an appeal is warranted.
As part of the professional development program, the MSU graduate school regularly conducts workshops on conflict resolution. Further information on these workshops is available at:
http://www.msu.edu/user/gradschl/conflict.htm
The Office of the Ombudsman is also available to you to help you resolve conflicts with faculty or University administrators. Procedures to be followed are those given in Article 5 of the Graduate Student Rights and Responsibilities (GSRR) document: http://www.vps.msu.edu/SpLife/default.pdf
If the informal actions described above do not resolve the situation, you may file or have filed against you a grievance or formal written complaint. In such cases the BHS Director, or the Director of CEHLS if the BHS director is a party to the grievance, will convene an ad hoc Grievance Committee. This ad hoc committee will consist of one faculty member who teaches in the BHS program or is appointed in CEHLS and one graduate student in the BHS program. The ad hoc committee shall be responsible for prescribing procedures for the hearing and resolution of complaints from students, and for attempting to resolve such complaints. The procedures shall be designed to ensure due process and shall be consistent with the by-laws of the college, the university, and the academic freedom report. The ad hoc committee is advisory to the BHS Director or the Director of CEHLS if the BHS director is a party to the grievance, who shall make a decision on the grievance.
If the grievance is not resolved to the satisfaction of the grievant, the grievance can immediately proceed to the College level grievance process. If the grievance is not resolved to the satisfaction of the grievant at the College level, the grievance can immediately proceed to the University level grievance process.
IX. Integrity and Safety in Research and Creative Activities
Integrity in research and creative activities is based on sound disciplinary practices as well as on a commitment to basic values such as fairness, equity, honesty and respect. As a BHS student, you should be aware of the distinction between open intellectual debate over principles, attitudes and behavior on the one hand, and actual practice and behavior on the other. You may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal from the program for research misconduct, conflicts of interest, dishonesty with respect to grades or academic records and scholarship, and violations of professional standards.
The University Guidelines for Integrity in Research and Creative Activities are available at http://grad.msu.edu/staff/mentoreport.pdf.
If your research involves human subjects, you and your guidance committee chair must receive approval from the University Committee on Research Involving Human Subjects (UCRIHS) prior to initiating any research. Note that UCRIHS considers your guidance committee chair to be the principal or responsible investigator on your research project. The UCRIHS website is: http://www.humanresearch.msu.edu.
In addition if your research is conducted in a clinical setting with patients you will need to obtain training on the privacy and security of protected health information under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The MSU HIPAA website is: http://www.humanresearch.msu.edu/hipaa/hipaa_index.htm