Interdisciplinary education in the health domain: lessons learned from the master programme Medical Humanities and The New Utrecht School

Health(care)-related problems are becoming more complex, requiring interdisciplinary collaboration and creativity in search of potential solutions. For training students in interdisciplinary collaboration and boundary-crossing skills, it is vital to develop novel educational programmes with other faculties, other universities, schools for applied Sciences, and institutes outside the universities.

In 2017 the New Utrecht School was established as a platform for interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaboration within and between Utrecht University and the HKU University of the Arts. Several extracurricular activities were developed, such as public dialogues, workshop series, and innovative curricular courses and electives. The minor Medical Humanities for bachelor students in Medicine, Humanities, and the Arts eventually led to a one-year master's programme Medical Humanities (started September 2022) 

The mixed composition of the educational teams involved in the programme's development and implementation has helped bring the goals of interdisciplinarity nearer. Although the process has been time-consuming and less cost-effective than anticipated, we notice a cross-pollination between teachers and research groups, thus strengthening the ideas on interdisciplinary collaboration between the institutes more broadly.