Society and Health, Minor
Understand the socioeconomic, cultural, and psychological factors associated with human health.
"All my life, I considered medicine to be an isolated field, separate from outside influences. I hadn't considered how social influences could affect a person's health, or how illnesses could affect a person's health, or how illnesses can be caused by societal constructs and life chances. This minor taught me that there is so much more to health and disease than just the physiological."
About the Minor in Society and Health
The College of Liberal Arts offers the interdisciplinary minor in Society and Health. It focuses on the sociological, economic, cultural, and psychological factors associated with human health, coupled with their implications for ethical healthcare practice and policy. Students who minor in Society and Health develop an appreciation for the value of inter-professional, team-based problem solving to improve healthcare and health outcomes.
The demand for this minor arose as a result of changes in the medical school entrance exam, shifting expectations for the education of health professionals, and recognition of the need for interdisciplinary approaches to address health problems. Students who complete the Society and Health minor will meet two key needs in the health profession: sociocultural awareness and communication skills.
Students must be admitted to the Society and Health minor. Find out more about the application process below.
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Program Information
Degree
Required Credit Hours
18
Program Type
Minor
Program Location
School
Academic Requirements
Find out about credit hour and course requirements for the Society and Health minor.
Students in the Society and Health minor complete 18 credit hours and must earn a grade of C or higher on all courses to be applied to the minor.
Required courses:
- Math 115: Statistics OR Psy 202: Elementary Statistics
- Soc 370: Society Population Health OR SOHE 329: Medical Humanities
12 hours (4 courses) from at least two different departments:
Department of Criminal Justice & Legal Studies:
- LA 411: Elder Law
Department of History:
- HST 427: Diseases and Medicine in American History
Croft Inst for International Studies
- Inst 375: Global Health
Department of Integrated Marketing and Communication:
- IMC 585/Jour 585: Health Communication
Department of Nutrition and Hospitality Management:
- NHM 311: Nutrition
- NHM 323: Human Development Across the Lifespan
- NHM 328: Child Development
- NHM 417: Community Nutrition
Department of Philosophy & Religion:
- PHIL 328: Biomedical Ethics
Department of Psychology:
- PSY 301: Developmental Psychology
- PSY 311: Psychopathology: Integrative Approaches
- PSY 321: Social Psychology
- PSY 410: Health Psychology
- PSY 417: Disasters and Mental Health
- PSY 360/GST 360: Psychology of Human Sexuality
- PSY 565/GST 565: Psychology of Gender
Department of Social Work:
- SW 326: Gerontology: Social Welfare Aspects
- SW 427: Psychosocial Aspects of Loss Death Grief
Department of Sociology & Anthropology:
- ANTH 349: Medical Anthropology
- SOC 301: The Family
- SOC 310: Sociology of Disability
- SOC 311: Social Problems
- SOC 345: Population Trends and Problems
- SOC 370: Society & Population Health
- SOC 411: Environment, Technology, & Society
- SOC 413: Race and Ethnicity
- SOC 427: Social Stratification
- SOC 455: Population Studies Applied Research
Society & Health Program:
- SOHE 301: Topics in Society and Health Abroad
- SOHE 302: Topics in Society and Health
- SOHE 329: Medical Humanities
- SOHE 495: Society and Health Internship
- SOHE 497: Directed Study in Society and Health
Application
Admission to the Society and Health minor is based on submission and approval of an application. Students may apply after having completed any two (6 hours) of the approved courses for the minor. The application process will consider a student's performance and a statement about academic and professional goals.
Applications are accepted two times per academic year, once in the fall and once in the spring.
Application consists of the following:
1. Fill out the SOHE applicant information sheet.
2. Send in the following documents to Lynn Woo at lcwoo@olemiss.edu.
- current UM transcript
- transfer equivalency report for those with transfer credit
- resume
- essay about your academic and career goals and aspirations and how those align with the Society and Health minor
Welcome from the Director
The Minor in Society and Health focuses on the socioeconomic, cultural, and psychological factors associated with human health at multiple levels of society, coupled with their implications for ethical healthcare practice and policy. Students will develop an interdisciplinary social science and humanities based approach to understanding health and an appreciation for the value of interprofessional, team-based problem solving to improve healthcare and health outcomes.
If you have any questions about the minor or the application process, please reach out to me.
Lynn C Woo
Associate Director of Center for Population Studies and Director of the Interdisciplinary Minor in Society and Health
SOHE Special Topics Courses
How Can I Enhance My Health and Society Minor?
According to national surveys, employers are more likely to hire college graduates who have:
- had professional internships,
- worked with people from diverse backgrounds on community service,
- collaborated with peers on projects,
- taken multiple courses with significant writing,
- produced a senior project or thesis, and
- studied abroad.
These experiences are about core liberal arts skills of thinking, communicating, interpersonal skills, and understanding the world around us. Showcase and enhance these skills in an internship opportunity for that first step into the professional world.
We encourage students in the Society and Health minor to combine coursework with these hands-on, experiential learning opportunities.
Next Steps
Explore Affordability
We have a variety of scholarships and financial aid options to help make college more affordable for you and your family.
Apply to the University of Mississippi
Are you ready to take the next step toward building your legacy?