BHSc Application Information

Students will be required to earn acceptance into the BHSc program. Program acceptance entails an application process to ensure that students are prepared, qualified, and capable for the rigor required to be successful in the BHSc program. The admission standards below have been established to set a standard that is comparable to the required entrance GPA of the various graduate health profession programs that this program is intended to prepare students for.

Students interested in majoring in Health Science must complete a two-step admissions process:

• Step 1: Students must first be accepted into Southern CT State University by the Admissions Office.
  • For existing SCSU students, you have already completed this step.
  • Once admitted to the University, it is suggested that you declare the Healthcare Studies major with a Health Science Foundations concentration prior to applying and being accepted to the BHSc program (which is the second step). If your current major is not Healthcare Studies with a Health Science Foundations concentration, you may declare or change your major by clicking here.
  • If accepted into the BHSc program, your major will be changed to Health Science. Graduating with this major will award you a Bachelor of Health Science (BHSc) degree and credential.
• Step 2: Application is made for admission to the Bachelor of Health Science Program in the spring semester prior to the fall semester in which students anticipate enrolling in upper level courses. The application will be made available each year by December on the program’s website.

The BHSc final admissions deadline is February 15th – Applications are accepted once each year. Decisions will be emailed to students by the end of March.

To apply for admission into the BHSc program, these prerequisites must be completed by the end of the Fall Semester prior to when the application is submitted.

1. Completion of 45 credits of university requirements or transfer equivalents.
2. A minimum overall grade point average of 3.2 and good standing with the University.
3. Successful completion of 5 of the 7 following courses (or transfer equivalent) with a passing grade (this means 5 of the following courses are completed with final grades at the time of submitting your application; they are not in-progress)
   • PSY 100 – Intro to Psychology
   • ENG 112 – Composition OR ENG 120 Writing Arguments for Bilingual Students OR HON 150 Introduction to Critical Inquiry
   • MAT 107 – Statistics
   • BIO 200 – Anatomy & Physiology I
   • BIO 201 – Anatomy & Physiology II
   • CHE 120 – Chemistry I
   • CHE 121 – Chemistry II
4. Successful completion of HSC 200 or HLS 200 with a minimum grade of “C” or better is strongly recommended. If this course is not taken prior to applying, this course must be taken the first semester after being admitted into the Health Science major.

The application process occurs once per year. Applications are submitted between the end of December and February 15th. GPA, as well as other pre-admission criteria, will be used as a way of evaluating students for acceptance into the Health Science program. These may include, but are not limited to, the completion of prerequisite courses and an evaluation of the student’s program plan for completion of remaining university requirements. Consistent with SCSU admission requirements, candidates who, in the judgment of BHSc faculty, present strong academic and personal qualifications, as well as the greatest potential for program success, gain preference.

After a determination is made concerning students’ readiness to enter the program, applicants are informed of admission decisions via email by the end of March. Those who are accepted will have their declared major changed from the Health Care Studies major with a Health Science Foundations Concentration to Health Science (HSc) and will be assigned to a BHSc faculty advisor. Following acceptance, the student should make an appointment to meet with their BHSc advisor to plan the student’s individualized program for the following Fall semester.

Please note, there are multiple pathways to work toward the pursuit of health science and health care careers; the BHSc program is only one of them. Students who are not accepted into the BHSc program might be interested in pursuing related majors in departments such as:

• Health Care Studies (HLS)
• Social Work (SWK)
• Recreation and Leisure Studies (REC)
• Communication Disorders (CMD)
• Health and Movement Sciences (HMS)
• Biology (BIO)
• Public Health (PCH)
• Psychology (PSY)

Students who are not admitted to the BHSc program, who would like to pursue graduate education in fields such as OT or PT, are encouraged to research the pre-requisites for these programs to inform decisions on the courses they plan on taking when meeting their next major advisor. 

The Department of Health and Movement Sciences welcomes transfer students from the community and technical colleges and four-year institutions. Pre-admission academic advisement is available to students interested in transferring into the BHSc program. Our goal is to facilitate the transfer process and assist students in their adjustment to the program.

Transfer students must be admitted to the University as well as to the Health Science Program. Transfer students who plan to apply to both SCSU and the BHSc Program for a Fall semester start date may need to complete both admissions processes simultaneously to meet the BHSc Program application deadline (see application deadline above).

Students wishing to transfer to the BHSc Program from other academic institutions are required to submit official transcripts of their previous college work to the University Office of Admissions. After a review of transfer credits is completed by the Admissions Office, a separate review of previous college work can be conducted by the BHSc Program Directors for consideration of additional transfer credits within established BHSc Program requirements. Transfer credit may be considered as equivalent to HSC/HLS 200 if courses are taken that match both the health professions and medical terminology curricula. Academic credit is not given for life experience or previous work experience for any health science courses. In all cases, requests for transfer credits are evaluated on an individual basis. After transfer credits are awarded, the University Registrar is notified to enter the credits in the student’s official academic record.

Transfer students may also consider the Healthcare Studies (HLS) degree program as an alternative degree option if prerequisites to the BHSc program are not met or if a student is not admitted into the BHSc program.

Students who are accepted into the BHSc program and decide to postpone enrolling in Health Science courses must reapply to the program the following year; students cannot defer their acceptance. Please note, acceptance into the program during one academic year does not guarantee acceptance into the program years thereafter.

Students who are not yet admitted to the upper division Health Science program will receive academic advisement and support through the Center for Pre-Professional Programs. Current Southern students must consult with their assigned advisor at that time when registering for classes to ensure that they fulfill application prerequisite and recommended university requirements. See the instructions on how to find out who your assigned academic advisor is. Once formally admitted into the program, students will be reassigned to a Health Science faculty advisor for upper division curriculum guidance, course planning, and career mentoring.

Prospective transfer students who have not yet applied to Southern or are in the process of doing so may contact transferservivces@southernct.edu for a review of their previous coursework or for questions with answers that are not found here.