Health, Science & Society Overview
The Health, Science, and Society major introduces students to health as a multi-dimensional lens through which to understand how biological, environmental, political, and social forces shape individual and societal well-being. Students in Health, Science, and Society will learn about biological and social determinants of health, how health, debility, and disease occupy a fundamental place in human experience, how socio-economic structures foster wellness and good health as well as disease and health disparities, and the crucial ways that the human-environment nexus shapes health. The major is built on four main perspectives: biomedical science, social determinants of health, data analysis, and ethical considerations.
Thinking about health, disease, and medicine at a biomolecular level provides a critical perspective for anyone wishing to have a strong foundation in a health-related field. Considering social, economic, and environmental factors, such as socioeconomic status, education, the physical environment, employment, social support networks, and access to health care leads to a broader understanding of health issues within a society. In both social sciences and biomedical sciences, the appropriate use of statistical analysis of data is required for appropriate and meaningful conclusions to be drawn. Questioning what is good, just, fair, and compassionate provides insight about what a society or individuals should do to promote health equity using different kinds of evidence about health inequalities. Together, these perspectives provide a well-balanced lens through which to consider complex health-related questions.
The major is supported by faculty with diverse interests from many departments, and it provides a great opportunity for students to gain a strong foundation in diverse health sciences and strengthen their qualifications for a variety of professional directions.
Beyond the classroom, Health, Science, and Society majors learn about the research and field experience of faculty and their undergraduate and graduate student peers through workshops, panels, and informal gatherings. Students are required to build on and expand their knowledge with hands-on experience through either an internship or applied research.
Major Requirements
Below you will find the requirements to complete the Health, Science, and Society (HSS) major at Clark University. The major requires 13.25 credit units, divided into several categories. The first category comprises foundation courses. The six foundation courses provide you with an overview of key disciplines that provide understandings of health. The HSS major’s second category is research methods. Students will gain an understanding of quantitative and qualitative approaches to studying health, measuring health patterns across populations, and understanding how social and cultural factors shape illness experiences. Students will gain experience deepening and applying these skills through a required internship or research project. The HSS major’s third category is elective courses. Your electives allow you to deepen your understanding of community and global health, health psychology, public health, the sociology of health and medicine, or STEM approaches to health. In your senior year as an HSS health major you will pursue a Capstone experience through taking a Capstone course, producing an Honor’s thesis based on independent research, or taking part in an Honor’s Studio course. All students will take the HSS Senior Symposium course to share their capstone experiences and to reflect on their professional development and career aspirations.
Foundation Courses: 6
BIOL 101 - Introduction to Biology I
BIOL 102 - Introduction to Biology II
ID 108 - What is Public Health?
ID 121 - Culture, Health, and Development: What Makes Us Sick?
ID 208 - Health (in)equity: social determinants and policy solutions OR SOC 241 - Sociology of Medicine
PHIL 130 - Medical Ethics
Methods Courses: 2
BIOL 106 - Introductory Biostatistics (prereq BIOL 101, BIOL 102, MATH 120)
and one of the following:
BIOL 117 - Epidemiology (prereq BIOL 101 and BIOL 102)
ID 132 - Methods of Inquiry: Applied interdisciplinary approaches for social change
ID 236 - Spatial Analysis for Health
SOC 202 - Social Research Process
Elective Courses: 3
See below for the list of elective courses.
Practicum or Internship: 1
180 hours of engaged time working in a clinical, laboratory or community health setting in Worcester, elsewhere in the US, or on study abroad.
HSS 298 - Internship
HSS 299 - Directed Study
Capstone, Honor’s Thesis, or Honors Studio: 1.0*
ID 282 - Community Based Health Research OR
HSS 298 - Internship - in a clinical, laboratory or community health setting. (One semester of Practicum is a prerequisite.) OR
HSS 299 - Directed Study OR
HSS 297 - Honors
*Taken with .25 Capstone Symposium
Capstone Symposium (.25)
The Capstone symposium is an opportunity for seniors to come together bi-monthly to reflect on their Capstone course, project, or research.
Elective Course Lists
Biomedical Science Course List
BIOL 109 - Microbiology
BIOL 143 - Neuroscience
BIOL 212 - Microbiomes
BIOL 218 - Genetics and Disease
BIOL 236 - Biology of Cancer
BIOL 255 - Virology
BCMB 237 - Chemistry and Biology of Medicine
BCMB 276 - Chemical Biology - Techniques and Applications in Research
Social Determinants of Health Course List
EN 120 - Discovering Environmental Science
EN 265 - Cities, Regions, Climate Change & Health
ID 106 - Healthy Cities
ID 208 - Health (in)equity: social determinants and policy solutions
ID 233 - Approaches to Community Health
ID 248 - Gender and Health
ID 277 - Approaches to Global Health
SOC 241 - Sociology of Medicine
SOC 277 - What Makes People Sick? Social Determinants of Health
CRW 202 - Imagining Place: Writing Health, Science and the Environment
Research Methods Course List
BIOL 117 - Epidemiology
GEOG 110 - Introduction to Quantitative Methods
ECON 160 - Introduction to Statistical Analysis
ID 236 - Spatial Analysis for Health
PSCI 107 - Research Methods
QBUS 110 - Quantitative Methods for Managers
Health Ethics & Values Course List
BIOL 144 - Bioethics: stem cells, embryos and reproduction
PHIL 130 - Medical Ethics
PHIL 104 - AIDS to COVID: Ethics and Pandemics
Health, Science & Society Faculty
Ellen Foley, SSJ (Director)
Michael Addis, Psychology
Nathan Ahlgren, Biology
Esteban Cardemil, Psychology
James Cordova, Psychology
Patrick Derr, Philosophy
Tim Downs, SSJ
Charles Jakobsche, Chemistry
Denis Larochelle, Biology
Deborah Merrill, Sociology
Neva Meyer, Biology
Arundhati Nag, Chemistry
Yelena Ogneva-Himmelberger, SSJ
Nicole Overstreet, Psychology
Deborah Robertson, Biology
Justin Thackeray, Biology
Rosalie Torres Stone, Sociology
Return to: