Bioethics Online Community

Program Overview

Take a Course with Us!

Students can take courses without officially enrolling in the MBE program. Students are permitted to take up to 3, upon the approval of the Director. If you are interested in taking a specific course that relates to your professional growth, or if you would like to take courses while deciding if this is the right program for you, click here for the 'courses only' application. If you are interested in the MBE degree, please follow the 'Information for Applicants' link.

For a list of courses offered, click here.

Bioethics as a Field

The first national code of medical ethics was adopted in Philadelphia in 1847, but biomedical ethics as a modern field of study and as an area of professional practice is just 30 years old. Bioethicists reflect on clinical practice, medical research, the relationship of medicine to society, and changes in health care practice and policy. They may consider and advise on crucial social and individual concerns such as:

Despite the growing importance of these issues in our lives, bioethics should not be conceived of as a separate job category or specialty within health care, administration, the law, or policy work. The MBE is not intended as a first professional degree. Instead, the program is designed to combine bioethics with another discipline or with professional practice.

Bioethics, by its nature, is a subject that crosses traditional boundaries between academic disciplines. The advanced study of bioethics at Penn brings together liberal arts disciplines including philosophy, history and sociology of science, psychology, sociology, and anthropology, with the expertise of Penn's professional schools including Medicine, Law, Wharton, and Nursing. The MBE program is designed to provide its graduates with the interdisciplinary training they will need in order to address the moral challenges in health care today and tomorrow.

Who are our Students?

The MBE is designed for the following audiences:

Curriculum

9 courses are required for the MBE degree:

See 'Information for Dual Degree Students' for more information on specific dual-degree requirements.

Certificate in Clinical Ethics Mediation Option:

For students who work in the field of clinical ethics, we offer a certificate program as a supplement to the MBE degree.

12 courses are required under this option (an additional 3 CU over the requirements for the MBE degree).

For more information, see here.

Time Frame

We offer courses during the Spring, Summer, and Fall semesters. Students can enter the program in any semester. If working towards the MBE full-time, a student can complete the degree within 1 calendar year. The program may also be completed on a part-time basis. The majority of our part-time students who are also working full-time take 1 course per semester, completing the MBE in 3 calendar years. While we do not require that students be enrolled every semester, we do require that students complete their degree within 5 years.

What do graduates do with their MBE?

Most of our mid-career professionals use this degree to enhance and inform the work they do in their chosen career.

Our graduates working in the allied health professions use their degree to enhance their clinical practice and academic scholarship.

The majority of our JD's and JD/MBE students move to firms specializing in health law, biotech law, intellectual property and patent law, and malpractice. Some also go on to work in the pharmaceutical industry or as hospital counsel, and a few move to policy work.

The majority of our post-baccalaureate students go on to earn an MD, JD, PhD, or other graduate degree.

See our Student & Alumni Profiles for more information.

Contact Us

For more information, please contact:

Department of Medical Ethics & Health Policy, University of Pennsylvania, 3401 Market Street, Suite 320, Philadelphia, PA 19104.

mbe-info@mail.med.upenn.edu, or 215.573.0246.

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