Health Sciences Major
The challenging Health Sciences major is specifically designed to prepare highly motived students for successful admission into clinically focused graduate programs in healthcare. In the Health Sciences program, students explore various healthcare-related careers and enjoy a flexible curriculum that allows students to tailor their courses to meet their personal interests and the prerequisite requirements for a wide variety of graduate programs.
This is a highly competitive program. Helpful suggestions for high school students who are interested in health sciences:
- Take as many challenging advanced science and math courses as possible during your high school years. Choose being challenged over an “easy A.”
- If your school offers Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses, take the standardized exams at the end of those courses. Scores of at least 4 on AP exams or at least 5 on IB exams will earn college credit for the respective course at Butler. Specific AP/IB course suggestions for those interested in health sciences include biology, calculus, chemistry, physics, psychology, and statistics.
- Dual credit courses vary widely. Some, but not all, provide an excellent preparation. If your high school offers dual credit courses though a partnership with a college that does not have minimum admission requirements (many community colleges) the level at which those courses are taught may be below the level of honors, AP, or IB courses.
- Although not required for admission, consider taking the ACT or SAT. In 2023, approximately 52% of successfully admitted students submitted ACT or SAT scores. The average ACT score of admitted students was 28.5. The average SAT score was 1277/1600.
- Preferred admission requirements for the Health Sciences major:
- High school weighted GPA at least 3.0. In 2023, the successful candidate average GPA was 4.01 for students not submitting standardized test scores (range 4.98-3.30), and 4.15 for students submitting standardized test scores (range 5.6-3.32)
- Four years of science and math in high school, business courses also encouraged
- If you are interested seeing more of Butler, schedule a visit.
There are many appropriate undergraduate majors for students desiring admission into healthcare-related graduate programs, Health Sciences is just one option. Please consider these suggestions when determining the optimal undergraduate major for you.
Students interested in the health sciences (HS) major should meet with an academic advisor in the HS department prior to completing any change of major paperwork. Interested students should contact Ms. Tina Vawter (tvawter@butler.edu) to schedule an appointment with an academic advisor. During this appointment, discussions will focus on future career goals, your academic journey to date, and factors for success. Having a solid science and math foundation is critical. Math and chemistry placement scores and prior performance in courses such as CH 105/106/351/352, BI 105/210/220, MA 106/162, etc. are often good predictors of future success or struggles in the health sciences major. If after meeting with an advisor in the health sciences a student wishes to change majors, the advisor will help facilitate the appropriate change of major paperwork.
The Health Sciences major curriculum is challenging and flexible in order to prepare students for a wide variety of graduate programs. In addition to the Butler Core Curriculum, all students in the health sciences program take several fundamental and advanced natural science courses, social science courses, and our “core” healthcare courses. Students individualize their curriculum by choosing from over 68 healthcare-related elective courses that optimally prepare them for their chosen career path.
Students successfully completing this program will be able to:
- Demonstrate ethical, professional, collaborative, and culturally-sensitive behaviors within the healthcare setting.
- Integrate knowledge and skills from natural, formal, and social sciences with healthcare fundamentals to solve complex problems and optimize health outcomes.
- Locate, critically analyze, and apply data in a manner that supports evidence-based healthcare.
- Communicate effectively with laypersons and healthcare professionals on a variety of health-related topics.