Serve on the front lines of global health. Health Volunteers work with clinics and healthcare providers in their communities to develop strategies to promote nutrition, maternal and child health, hygiene, water and sanitation, malaria prevention, and HIV/AIDS education.
If you choose Health, take three courses from the following areas:
- Humanities in Medicine
- Food Science & Technology
- Nutrition & Health Sciences
- Gerontology
- Biochemistry, Biological Sciences, Life Sciences, or Microbiology
- Anthropology
- Psychology
- Sociology
- Any Pre-Health Track
- Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Biological Systems Engineering
Recommended courses:
- ANTH/GLST/MODL 214: Food and Culture
- ANTH 260: Pandemics from Past to Present
- ANTH 265: Global Health
- ANTH 422: Medical Anthropology
- ANTH 447: Biology of Inequality
- ANTH 442: Human Variation
- COMM 354: Health Communication
- CYAF 458: Family Stress & Crisis, Coping and Recovery
- EDPS 320: Happiness & Well-Being through Positive Psychology
- GERO 447: Mental Health and Aging
- HMED 230: Introduction to Medical Humanities
- HMED 349: History of Epidemics from the Black Death to COVID-19
- NRES 330: Environmental Health
- NUTR 230: Peer Health Education
- NUTR 250: Human Nutrition and Metabolism
- NUTR 253: Cultural Aspects of Food & Nutrition
- NUTR 256: Addressing Health Disparities through Health Literacy
- PHIL 213: Medical Ethics
- PSYC 428: Health Psychology
- SOCI 252: Health, Medicine, and Society
- SOCI/ETHN 454: Physical Health Disparities
- TEAC 380: Health and Wellness the Elementary Classroom
And build 50 hours of related field experience through an activity such as:
- Volunteer or work experience in such areas as health outreach, hospice, nutrition counseling, emergency medical technician (EMT) or CPR teaching/certification, maternal health, or hands-on caregiving in a hospital, clinic, or lab technician setting
- Counseling or teaching in health subjects
- Working as a resident advisor in a dormitory, as a peer nutritionist, or as a peer health counselor
- Significant experience in mechanical repairs, construction, carpentry, masonry, plumbing, hydrology, or set design
- Serving as a Well-Being Collective Ambassador or a Husker CARE Peer Educator
- Joining a health-related student organization or identifying one of the pre-health opportunities listed HERE
- Volunteering at Clinic with a Heart, MilkWorks, The Bridge, and other local organizations
Peace Corps Tip! Nearly two-thirds of Peace Corps Volunteers serve in Education or Health. Coursework and meaningful experience in one of these areas—especially teaching English as a second language—produce some of the strongest candidates.