Non-Science Courses and the Healthcare-Minded Student

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Some students feel "forced" into Gen Ed courses and wonder why the University requires them.   But here is why the Healthcare-minded student should embrace Gen Ed. 

Healthcare is a wide, wide field that is experiencing rapid change and rapid growth. Healthcare is much more than a matter of scientific thinking and high-tech instrumentation.  It often involves life-or-death communication in situations of psychological and biological stress or crisis; with possible cultural or language complications; with religious and ethical consequences.  It requires powers of observation and logic that befit the artist and the engineer, both.  Healthcare is a big influence on our country's politics and economics, as well as our daily lives. 

To equip a person for success in this type of working environment, there is no better preparation than the Liberal Arts education.  According to Dean John Koker, the Association of American Colleges & Universities "uses the term 'liberal education' to refer to a philosophy of education that empowers individuals with broad knowledge and transferable skills, and that cultivates social responsibility and a strong sense of ethics and values. A liberal education is more important than ever in today's volatile global economy and interconnected world. It therefore should be available to all students, regardless of their backgrounds, what schools they choose to attend, or what major or field of study they pursue."
 

Healthcare programs across the country understand this, which is why they not only admit more students with liberal arts-type degrees than any other, but also why the field of "medical humanities" is booming in graduate schools across the nation.

Fortunately, the UW Oshkosh undergraduate can start his/her medical humanities education right here, with strategic selections of GenEd courses (see recommendations below).  To ensure that you complete GenEd and can graduate, start with a copy of the user-friendly GenEd check-off form provided online by the Undergraduate Advising Resource Center.   Make certain to select the form that corresponds to the Catalog Year that appears on your STAR.  As you construct your program to graduation, you will need to keep a close eye on fulfilling these requirements or you will not be allowed to graduate.  Bear in mind, too, that you can take MORE Gen Ed courses than the minimum, if you so desire.

How did we arrive at these GenEd recommendations? 

• Gen Ed courses that multiple Healthcare schools require or recommend (e.g. Ethics, Psychology).
• Learning about different cultures to expand your ability to interact well with all types of patients (e.g. Ethnography, Human Geography, Spanish for Medical Professionals).
• Learning about religious diversity and how faith impacts Healthcare decisions (e.g. Religious Studies).
• Improving observation and communication skills that are part of many Healthcare careers (e.g. Art, Communication).
• Social and political contexts of Healthcare (e.g. Government, Sociology, Urban Studies).
• Issues of women and families (e.g. Women’s Studies, Sociology, Psychology).

Understanding UW Oshkosh's GenEd abbreviations: 

• (ES) means Ethnic Studies (minimum 1 course)
• (NW) means NonWestern studies (minimum 1 course)
• (SS) means Social Sciences (minimum 4 courses)
• (HU) means Humanities (minimum 4 courses)
• NOTE: Some courses "double-dip" for GenEd.  Example: (ES, SS) would satisfy both requirements at once. While we encourage students to take all the GenEds that interest them, double-dippers can be useful for the student trying to avoid the SuperSenior year or carrying a lot of elective credits.

Communication and Observation Skills are highly valued in healthcare professionals, so consider:

• You have to take COMM 111 Speech to graduate. Don't put it off. Take it in Freshman or Sophomore year. This will prepare you for oral presentations in majors courses that may help you earn a higher GPA.  Speech class also prepares you for interviews.

  • Consider following it up with COMM 220 Interviewing or COMM 267 Effective Listening.

• ART 101 Drawing and Color (HU)

• SPAN 341, Spanish for Medical Professionals (min prereq = SPAN 204).

Mathematics at a fairly high level is required by many Healthcare programs, so consider:

• MATH (104 + 106) …or… MATH 108, and either

• MATH 171 Calculus I   …or… A statistics course, choose from any listed on GenEd checksheet, but especially consider PSYCH 203.

• Some professional schools (e.g. Pharmacy) may require a full year of Calculus, so you’d take Calc I and II, i.e. Math 171 and 172.

• In October 2006, one medical educator called nationally to require all pre-meds and medical students to take statistics; this recommendation may gain traction in the future and become a requirement.  Most healthcare practitioners agree: Stats is used more often in the professions than is Calc.

• To keep your options wide open, take a semester of Calculus AND a semester of Statistics.

Human psychology underlies every healthcare interaction, so be sure to take PSYCH 101 Introductory Psychology (SS) at a bare minimum.  Many Healthcare programs require this course.  Then, consider following it up with:

PSYCH 220 Health Psychology (SS)

PSYCH 271 Cross-Cultural Psych (ES, SS)

PSYCH 280 Cognitive Psychology (SS)
PSYCH 291 Developmental Psychology (SS)         
PSYCH 304 Psychology of Religion (SS)

PSYCH 331 Infant & Child Development (SS)

PSYCH 338 Adult Development & Aging (SS)

     PSYCH 355 Psychology of Adolescence (SS)

               PSYCH 390 Sports Psychology (SS)

The human race is what patients are drawn from, so consider:

ANTHRO 102 Intro to Anthropology (SS)

ANTHRO 122 World Ethnography (SS, NW)

ANTHRO 123 American Ethnography (SS, ES)

ANTHRO 202 Physical Anthropology (SS)

ANTHRO 232 Cultural Anthropology (SS, NW)

ANTHRO 300 Myth, Magic, & Medicine (a course about alternative medicine)

ANTHRO 312 Indians of North America (SS, ES)

ANTHRO 332 Magic & Religion (SS)

ANTHRO 364 Cross Cultural Approaches to Mental Illness (SS)

                   GEOG 102 World Regional Geography (NW)

                   GEOG 111 Human Geography (SS)

                   NURS 340 Health Practices with Ethnic Groups (ES) (take as sophomore or beyond)        

Social implications of healthcare permeate modern society, so consider:

                   INTERDISC 102 Community-Service Learning (SS)

                   POLISCI 101 Intro to Government (SS)

                   POLISCI 102 American Government & Politics (SS)

                   POLISCI 321 American Public Policy

SOC WORK 110 Community Social Welfare Resources (SS) (note: this is ONLY 1 credit!)

SOC WORK 333 Poverty (SS)

SOC WORK 371 Child & Family Welfare (SS)

SOC WORK 375 Treatment & Mistreatment of Offenders (SS)

SOC 101 Intro to Sociology (SS)

SOC 151 Modern Social Problems (SS)

SOC 321 Social Psychology (SS)

SOC 335 Social Gerontology (SS)

SOC 339 Sociology of the Family (SS)

SOC 371 Sociology of Mental Disorder (SS)

URB REG STD 131 Contemp Urban Issues (SS)

WOM STD 201 Introduction to Women's Studies (SS)

WOM STD 240 Human Sexuality (GE, SS)

WOM STD 268 Gender, Communication, & Relationships (SS)

WOM STD 320 Gendered Lives (SS)

WOM STD 344 Cross-Cultural Perspectives on Gender (SS)

WOM STD 353 Domestic Violence (SS)

WOM STD 357 Sex Differences in Society (SS)

                   WOM STD 380 Women’s Health Issues & Nursing Practice 2-3 cr (SS)

Ethics and religion loom large in healthcare decisions and policy, so consider:

        PHIL 101 Elementary Logic (HU) (may also help with test-taking)

        PHIL 105 Ethics (HU)

        PHIL 205 Ethical Issues in a Diverse Society (ES)

        PHIL 311 Bioethics (take after PHIL 105)

        RELSTD 101 Exploring Religion (HU, ES)

        RELSTD 104 Religions of America (HU, ES)      

        RELSTD 107 Religious Ethics (HU) (maybe the best of both worlds)     

        RELSTD 102 World Religions (NW)

        RELSTD 265 Women and Religion (NW, ES)

        RELSTD 357 Religion, Faith, and Healing (take after RELSTD 101)

        INTERDISCP 200 Issues in Science & Religion (HU)