Build a foundation in human anatomy, physiology, cellular biology, and chemistry, along with hands-on patient-care opportunities.
The Human Physiology & Preventive Medicine degree is designed specifically for students interested in applying to professional healthcare schools—including medical school, dentistry school, physician’s assistant school, physical therapy school, occupational therapy school, chiropractic school, optometry school, and other allied healthcare graduate schools.
This interdisciplinary program will equip you with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to implement preventive medicine in your future career and gain acceptance into well-known graduate healthcare programs. Get the competitive edge to succeed in the professional healthcare school of your choice, and the clinical and professional experiences to begin exploring what a career in healthcare might look like for you.
Build Skills In:
Career Opportunities:
Get direct patient care hours at Invitation diabetes prevention program or Cardiac Rehab.
Invititation ProgramStudents interested in course descriptions and academic policies can check out our Undergraduate Catalog.
A Taylor liberal arts education will prepare you to live and work in a fast-changing world. It also goes a step further: laying a strong spiritual foundation that cultivates wisdom. You’ll become a well-versed individual, equipped with critical thinking skills, a lifelong love of learning, and an appreciation for God’s creation.
Hospital Internships
Internship at Indiana University Health Ball: a partnership where our students intern with the IU Health medical team in their Cardiopulmonary, Bariatric, and Oncology departments
Internships at Marion General Hospital: a partnership where our students intern in emergency care, general surgery, anesthesiology, family practice, cardiology, and urology.
Senior Capstone
Add to the theological and philosophical underpinnings of human health and medicine, research a specific chronic disease, and present an in-depth presentation of the current scientific evidence for disease prevention. This course culminates in a multi-day retreat where students give their presentations and engage in discussions centered around their philosophies on human health, human flourishing, and the practice of medicine.
Health Professional Prerequisites
This major intentionally provides flexibility for Human Physiology and Preventive Medicine majors to take specific prerequisite courses required for the health professional program of their choice while also participating in clinical experiences, undergraduate research opportunities, and international experiences.
Minor in Preventive Medicine
If you prefer to follow a more traditional path to professional school in medicine and healthcare (i.e. biology, chemistry or psychology) or hope to use medical studies to direct your major toward a health-related career, you may wish to add a minor in Preventive Medicine. Students who complete the Preventive Medicine minor will establish a basic understanding of traditional and lifestyle preventive medicine and gain valuable experience in a local diabetes and chronic disease prevention programAccording to the Center for Disease Control, 7 out of the 10 leading causes of death are chronic diseases—preventable diseases developed by poor lifestyle choices. These diseases account for 81% of hospital admissions, 91% of all prescriptions filled, and 76% of all physician visits leading to approximately 86% of all healthcare costs.
To combat chronic disease, Taylor’s Human Physiology & Preventive Medicine major teaches students to approach medicine through “traditional” means and lifestyle modification. With current estimates suggesting that 80% of cardiovascular disease and diabetes and 40% of cancers could be prevented by a holistic understanding of health, the preventive medicine component of this program seeks to prepare undergraduates for their future as medical practitioners after professional or graduate school.
The advanced physiology courses in this major will give you in-depth opportunities to study specific, interrelated physiological systems and how they are affected by a variety of chronic human diseases and conditions. We also will examine current treatment options and preventative approaches.
Silas Vinson
Class of 2021
The multi-disciplinary approach and the opportunity to get hands-on clinical experience through the diabetes prevention program allowed me to apply classroom knowledge to a patient-care setting.
Lillian Walter
Class of 2021
I’ll always cherish the dinners I shared with my professors. Professionally, I also enjoyed doing research, the Invitation program, and the Live Well program with the faculty.
Tyler Watson
Class of 2022
My professors mentored me and encouraged me to see life in a holistic sense as opposed to different, isolated boxes. I was encouraged to think about my profession and faith through a biblical lens.
Contact
Brian Dewar
Department Chair and Associate Professor of Biology
765-998-4918
email
Contact
Brandon Dykstra
Department Chair and Assistant Professor of Kinesiology