New health sciences minor offers the bigger, better picture of health care

As the new minor in health care studies kicks off this fall, the horizon looks rosy. A part of a new-era partnership between USC Dornsife and the Keck School, the minor allows students a glimpse into research and clinical practice, and even more exciting, the bigger picture surrounding health care today.

The minor includes classes at the USC Health Sciences campus, exposing students to even more of the rich resources that a university like USC has to offer, from Keck medical professors to state-of-the-art leading laboratories and hospitals.

This also gives students the chance to explore the health care issues of our time in a very hands-on setting. For example, a biomedical research course will allow students the freedom to structure original hypothesis-driven projects through experimental work.

While some may gripe about the intensity of the minor’s courses—neuroanatomy, histology and surgery are a few on the list—the fascinating content of these courses should be worth the workload. The program is especially good for pre-med students, providing a more complete preview of the field of study they will undertake a few years down the road.

However, pre-med is not the only field that fits this minor. Multidisciplinary in approach, the minor will examine contemporary issues in health care, such as the ethics of running a health care practice. Today’s health care issues see a myriad of repercussions in sectors including business, communications, marketing and law, an understanding of which would enrich any undergraduate education. Students will eventually become the people making important decisions in all of these fields.

With new technologies and discoveries emerging at rapid pace, the health care horizon is full of promise. Health sciences will be the perfect choice of minor for any student dedicated to studying the bigger picture of a field that is advancing so fast and that dominates so many aspects of life in today’s America