BHSc Admission Review Process

Pre-Health Science students will be required to pass a review process to continue as a Health Science major. This review process ensures that students are prepared, qualified, and capable for the rigor required to be successful in the BHSc program as well as with preparing themselves for competitive professional programs in healthcare fields.

The requirements below have been established to set a standard that is comparable to the required entrance GPA of the various professional and 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 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, you can declare the Health Science major with the “Pre-Health Science” concentration. If your current major is not Health Science with a Pre-Health Science concentration, you may declare or change your major by clicking here.
• Step 2: The review process will be conducted  within the College of Health and Human Services (CHHS) Center for Pre-Professional Programs (CPPP).  As a Pre-Health Science student, you will work through an entrance requirement checklist with your CPPP advisor each semester.  Once you have completed the minimum entrance requirements, you will submit this checklist to your advisor within the CPPP by either September 15th or February 15th.  Review will occur and notifications of approval will be sent to you before next semester advisement begins. 
  • If you successfully pass the review process by meeting the stated requirements, you will continue the BHSc program.
  • Your major will be changed to Health Science without the “pre” concentration.
  • You will be assigned a Health Science faculty advisor.

Graduating with this major will award you a Bachelor of Health Science degree and BHSc credential.

To continue as a Health Science major, students must have the following requirements completed, by the end of the semester prior to when they anticipate being reviewed for entrance into the program and continuing as a Health Science major.

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 entrance requirement checklist; they are not in-progress)[RAM1] 
   • 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 program entrance review process occurs at the beginning of each semester.  The entrance requirement checklist is due to the Center for Pre-Professional Programs by September 15th for a spring semester approval or by February 15th for a fall semester approval. GPA, as well as other pre-admission criteria, will be used as a way of reviewing students for continuance into the Health Science program. The review process will include the completion of prerequisite courses and an evaluation of the student’s program plan for completion of remaining university requirements.

After a determination is made concerning students’ readiness to enter the program, applicants are informed of whether they meet the requirements to continue in the Health Science major. Those who meet the requirements will have their declared major changed from the Health Science major with a Pre-Health Science Concentration to Health Science (HSc) and will be assigned to a HSc faculty advisor. Once notified, the student should make an appointment to meet with their new Health Science academic advisor to plan the student’s individualized program for the following semester.

Please note, there are multiple pathways to work toward the pursuit of healthcare careers; the BHSc program is only one of them. Students who do not meet the requirements to continue in 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 able to continue in 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-major 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 interested in pursuing the Health Science may begin at SCSU as either a pre-health science student if the eligibility criteria for the major are in progress or directly into the program as a Health Science major if the requirements for the major have already been met. If students appear to have met the eligibility criteria for the major described above, students will receive an email notifying them that a review of their transcripts will be conducted by the Center for Pre-Professional Programs and a final determination will be made.

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 Transfer Admissions Office, a separate review of previous college work can be conducted by the BHSc Program Directors or affiliated departments 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.

Students who have not completed the Health Science review process will receive academic advisement and support through the Center for Pre-Professional Programs once their first semester begins. Current Southern students must consult with their assigned advisor at that time when registering for classes to ensure that they fulfill program prerequisites and recommended university requirements. See the instructions on how to find out who your assigned academic advisor is. Once students successfully pass the review process to continue in the Health Science program, students will be reassigned to an academic 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.

Accepted transfer students will first meet with a University Advising Specialist prior to enrolling in their first semester. 

If you have any questions about the admission review process, eligibility, or program requirements, don’t hesitate to contact the Center for Pre-Professional Programs at cppp@southernct.edu, visit the Center’s website, or contact the program directors, Dr. Kyle O’Brien at obrienk9@southernct.edu or Dr. Marc Robertson at robertsonm1@southernct.edu.