Health Science, Accelerated 4+1 BS/MS

Elizabeth Domholdt, Director, School of Health Science
Joanna DeMarco, Program Director

The 5-year B.S. + M.S. in Health Sciences is an accelerated degree completion program designed for high-performing undergraduates in the General Interest or Associate Degree Completion (2+2) tracks of the Health Sciences major. This program is designed to respond to the growing job opportunities in health-related settings by shortening the time for completion of a Master's degree. Students can jump-start their careers as professionals in health sciences by accelerating the completion of the two degrees.

Admission to Program

To be eligible for admission to the program, the student must:

• Have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher;
• Have completed 90 credit hours of the Bachelor of Science and BSHS program requirements;
• Provide three letters of recommendation from professionals (supervisors, faculty, advisors, etc) who are familiar with your work;
• Meet with program faculty to discuss successful progression through the program including course requirements;
• To remain in the program, students must achieve a B or better in graduate level coursework completed at the undergraduate level

Undergraduate students must submit two application forms:

1. Accelerated 4+1 Master's program application submitted to the graduate program director of the Master of Science in Health Sciences (MSHS) program no later than spring semester of junior year (junior year standing).
2. MSHS application

PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

Overview of Procedures

Students admitted to the joint five-year Bachelor/Master of Science program retain undergraduate status until they meet the requirements for the bachelor's degree, at which point they will receive the BSHS degree.

Students must apply to the MSHS Program during Spring semester of Junior year. Once admitted to the combined program, students may complete up to 12 credit hours of graduate courses while enrolled in the undergraduate program. These 12 credit-hours count towards BOTH the undergraduate degree and the graduate degree requirements.

Upon receipt of the Bachelor's degree, students who have been accepted into the combined program and who have a 3.0 or better average in their graduate courses will AUTOMATICALLY be admitted to the Graduate Program. They will have up to 12 hours of graduate coursework (and grades) placed on their graduate transcripts.

NOTE: STUDENTS MUST ATTEND THE NEXT REGULAR SEMESTER AFTER RECEIVING THE UNDERGRADUATE DEGREE AS A GRADUATE STUDENT TO CONTINUE IN THE PROGRAM. Graduate students must maintain a GPA of at least 3.0 to remain in the program.

UNDERGRADUATE-LEVEL

Core and Required Courses

• HSC 200 - Introduction to Health Sciences (Waived for 2+2 students)
• HSC 203 - Medical Terminology
• STA 347 - Applied Statistics OR PSY 317 - Behavioral Science Statistics: Inference 
• PHL 240 - Health Care Ethics
• COM 362 - Health Communication

Electives

• 36 credit hours of approved electives (36)

Capstone (Choose 1)

• HSC 484 - Advanced Research and Writing in Health Sciences OR
• HSC 410 - Evidence Based Practice OR
• HSC 487 - Community-Based Participatory Research and Health

Graduate Courses to be Completed During Undergraduate Program

• HSC 501 - Issues in Health Science *
• HSC 502 - Leadership Roles in Health Sciences *
• HSC 503 - Research & Analysis *
• HSC 505 - Culture & Health Care *

GRADUATE-LEVEL

Required Courses

• HSC 501 - Issues in Health Science *
• HSC 502 - Leadership Roles in Health Sciences *
• HSC 503 - Research & Analysis *
• HSC 504 - Seminar in Health Sciences Professions
• HSC 505 - Culture & Health Care *
• HSC 692 - Masters Project

1 Area of Emphasis Course (Choose 1)

• HSC 510 - Principles of Evidence-Based Practice in Health Sciences
• HSC 513 - Outcomes Assessment
• HSC 523 - Educational Evaluations in Health Sciences
• HSC 533 - Program Development & Evaluation
• HSC 691 - Thesis

2 HSC Courses (Minimum of 6 Credit Hours)

3 Elective Courses (Minimum of 9 Credit Hours

• See program faculty for a list of approved electives.

*To be completed during the undergraduate portion of the 4+1. Must earn a "B" or higher. Course applies to both the BSHS and the MSHS programs.