Health and Society

Health and Society Program Goals:

Health and Society majors work with faculty from across the social sciences and humanities to develop a critical understanding of health-related inequalities along the lines of race, class, gender, and global location; explore the histories and cultures of health care practices; and actively engage with social change agendas aimed at improving the health and well-being of marginalized and underserved communities. The program encourages students to gain a deep understanding of the social, cultural, and political factors that shape human health and assess the potential of innovative “upstream” efforts to address systemic disparities in population health. Students in Health and Society connect classroom learning with a community-based internship and have the opportunity to incorporate experiential learning and independent research projects into their program.

This major prepares students for careers and graduate study in a wide range of health-related fields including: human services (eg. social worker, community health educator, patient advocate, medical interpreter, etc.); direct health care professions (eg. medical doctor, nurse, physicians’ assistant, doula, etc.); public health and health care policy; health care administration, and medical anthropology and sociology. Majors preparing for graduate work in health care fields are encouraged to complete the pre-health curriculum along with the Health and Society major. Double majors or the addition of minors in relevant fields such as Psychology, Crime and Justice Studies, Political Science/Public Administration, Sociology/Anthropology, Spanish, Economics/Health Care Administration, Urban Studies, Data Analytics, Sustainability, and Women and Gender Studies are strongly encouraged.

Admission into the Major:

Students interested in majoring in Health and Society must schedule an interview with the Health and Society Program Director for permission to enter the program, to discuss the program requirements and to arrange for a permanent advisor. Students seeking admission to Health and Society must have a minimum overall GPA of 2.0.

Contributing Faculty are based in a wide range of departments including Sociology and Anthropology, Psychology, Crime and Justice Studies, Economics, Political Science, Philosophy, History, Spanish, and English/Communications.

Minimum Requirements for Graduation:

To successfully complete the program for graduation, all students must:

Maintain a minimum of a 2.75 GPA in the major.
Maintain a minimum of a 2.0 GPA overall.
Complete 30 credits at 300/400 level (including all courses in the major).
Complete a minimum of 120 credits with at least 45 at UMass Dartmouth
Complete the University Studies requirements.
Complete the distribution requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences.
Complete the HLT major requirements.
All courses counting for the HLT major must be passed with a minimum of a C-.

Learning Objectives:

Recognize the interconnections between physical, mental, and social dimensions of human health and well-being;
Identify and analyze the social, cultural, political, and economic factors that impact health-related needs, behaviors, and beliefs of diverse populations;
Analyze the impact of structural violence and systemic inequalities along the lines of race, class, gender, global location on the health status of diverse populations;
Identify and assess solutions based on insights from the social sciences and humanities that address root causes of challenges to human health and/or contribute to improving human health.
Recognize key ethical principals that guide public health and health-related decisions;
Utilize basic skills in mixed-method social scientific research and demonstrate a critical understanding of knowledge production;
Utilize effective oral and written modes of communicating with diverse audiences about public health and health-related policy issues.