The Siena/Albany Medical College Science and Humanities Program, a joint acceptance program and the first of its kind in the country, places emphasis on humanities, ethics and social service. Students accepted into this program earn a B.A. degree from Siena after four years and an M.D. degree from Albany Medical College upon completion of the medical curriculum.
Founded in 1986, the Siena Humanities in Medicine Program is the first of its kind in the country. The program places a special emphasis on combining humanities, ethics, and service with medicine. Students learn about the value of serving others and grow into powerful servant leaders. Here, we create physicians who treat the patient and not just the disease.
Students accepted into the program earn a Biology B.A. degree from Siena and must complete a minor in the School of Liberal Arts. Students then matriculate to Albany Medical College where they receive an M.D. upon completion of their medical studies.
“The Siena program is special because of its values. The emphasis on rigorous scholarship blended with compassion and robed in an attitude of service to humanity is the heartbeat, the defining characteristic, of the healing arts.”
In addition to traditional science courses, students in the Siena/AMC program will minor in humanities and take courses such as: logic/ethics, metaphysics, morals and medicine, medical sociology, health care communication skills. Through coursework, interaction with faculty, and personal experiences, students learn that every medical issue has an ethical dimension that requires a broadly educated physician.
A unique and key component of the program is the summer of service experience that students participate in between their junior and senior year. During this time, they travel throughout the world—from Central America to Africa—to live and work among the poor and marginalized.