Health Science

In Introduction to Chemistry, learners will discover the impact of chemistry on everyday life. They’ll learn about the structure of the atom, study periodic trends, analyze the structure of molecules and their properties, and describe the importance of common functional groups within the periodic table. They’ll identify balanced chemical equations, describe types of chemical reactions and predict their products, and examine intermolecular forces and describe their impact on the properties of substances. Finally, they’ll study the properties of acids, bases, and buffer systems, and properties unique to liquids and gases.

This course teaches students to think like sociologists, or, in other words, to see and understand the hidden rules, or norms, by which people live, and how they free or restrain behavior. Students will learn about socializing institutions, such as schools and families, as well as workplace organizations and governments. Participants will also learn how people deviate from the rules by challenging norms and how such behavior may result in social change, either on a large scale or within small groups.

Applied Algebra is designed to help you develop competence in working with functions, the algebra of functions, and using some applied properties of functions. You will start learning about how we can apply different kinds of functions to relevant, real-life examples. From there, the algebra of several families of functions will be explored, including linear, polynomial, exponential, and logistic functions. You will also learn about relevant, applicable mathematical properties of each family of functions, including rate of change, concavity, maximizing/minimizing, and asymptotes. These properties will be used to solve problems related to your major and make sense of everyday living problems. Students should complete Applied Probability and Statistics or its equivalent prior to engaging in Applied Algebra.

In this course you will learn key critical thinking concepts and how to apply them in the analysis and evaluation of reasons and evidence. The course examines the basic components of an argument, the credibility of evidence sources, the impact of bias, and how to construct an argument that provides good support for a claim. The course consists of an introduction and four major sections. Each section includes learning opportunities through readings, videos, audio, and other relevant resources. Assessment activities with feedback also provide opportunities to check your learning, practice, and show how well you understand course content. Because the course is self-paced, you may move through the material as quickly or as slowly as you need to gain proficiency in the four competencies that will be covered in the final assessment. If you have no prior knowledge or experience, you can expect to spend 30-40 hours on the course content.

Welcome to Composition: Writing with a Strategy! In this course, you will focus on three main topics: understanding purpose, context, and audience, writing strategies and techniques, and editing and revising. In addition, the first section, will offer review on core elements of the writing process, cross-cultural communication, as well as working with words and common standards and practices. Each section includes learning opportunities through readings, videos, audio, and other relevant resources. Assessment activities with feedback also provide opportunities to check your learning, practice, and show how well you understand course content. Because the course is self-paced, you may move through the material as quickly or as slowly as you need to gain proficiency in the seven competencies that will be covered in the final assessment. If you have no prior knowledge or experience, you can expect to spend 30-40 hours on the course content.

This course provides students with an overview of the basic principles and unifying ideas of the physical sciences: physics, chemistry, and earth sciences. Course materials focus on scientific reasoning and practical, everyday applications of physical science concepts to help students integrate conceptual knowledge with practical skills.

Welcome to Introduction to Communication: Connecting with Others! It may seem like common knowledge that communication skills are important, and that communicating with others is inescapable in our everyday lives. While this may appear simplistic, the study of communication is actually complex, dynamic, and multifaceted. Strong communication skills are invaluable to strengthening a multitude of aspects of life. Specifically, this course will focus on communication in the professional setting, and present material from multiple vantage points, including communicating with others in a variety of contexts, across situations, and with diverse populations. Upon completion, you will have a deeper understanding of both your own and others’ communication behaviors, and a toolbox of effective behaviors to enhance your experience in the workplace.

Microbiology with Lab: A Fundamental Approach explores the science that microorganisms are everywhere, and they have positive and negative effects on the community. The course examines the structure and function of microorganisms, disease transmission and progression, and immune responses and other interventions, and it identifies key global diseases. The course consists of an introduction and four major sections. Each section includes learning opportunities through readings, videos, and other relevant resources. Assessment activities with feedback also provide opportunities for students to check their learning, practice, and show how well they understand course content. To assist students in developing an applied, evidence-based understanding of microbiology, this course integrates several lab experiments to help determine the specific characteristic of an unknown microbial sample and a treatment plan. Because the course is self-paced, students may move through the material as quickly or as slowly as needed to gain proficiency in the four competencies that will be covered in the final assessment. Students who have no prior knowledge of or experience with this topic can expect to spend 48–60 hours on the course content. There are no prerequisites for this course.

In this course, students will develop an understanding of psychology and how it helps them better understand others and themselves. Students will learn general theories about psychological development, the structure of the brain, and how psychologists study behavior. They will gain an understanding of both normal and disordered psychological behaviors, as well as general applications of the science of psychology in society (such as personality typing and counseling).

This is World History: Diverse Cultures and Global Connections. In this course, you will focus on three main topics—cultural and religious diversity; pandemics; and the relationship of empires and nation states—as well as the skills of identifying root causes, explaining causes and effects, and analyzing complex systems. This course consists of an introduction and four major sections. Each section includes learning opportunities through reading, images, videos, and other relevant resources. Assessment activities with feedback also provide opportunities to practice and check how well you understand the content. Because the course is self-paced, you may move through the material as quickly or as slowly as you need to, with the goal of demonstrating proficiency in the four competencies covered in the final assessment. If you have no prior knowledge of this material, you can expect to spend 30-40 hours on the course content.

Applied Healthcare Probability and Statistics is designed to help develop competence in the fundamental concepts of basic mathematics, introductory algebra, and statistics and probability. These concepts include basic arithmetic with fractions and signed numbers; introductory algebra and graphing; descriptive statistics; regression and correlation; and probability. Statistical data and probability are now commonplace in the healthcare field. This course will help candidates make informed decisions about which studies and results are valid, which are not, and how those results affect your decisions. This course will give candidates background in what constitutes sound research design and how to appropriately model phenomena using statistical data. Additionally, this course guides candidates in calculating simple probabilities based on events which occur in the healthcare profession. This course will prepare candidates for studies at WGU, as well as in the healthcare profession.

This is Anatomy and Physiology II, a six section, four CEU course that enables students to develop an understanding of the relationships between the structures and functions of the cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, urinary, reproductive, and lymphatic systems in the human body. This course will involve laboratory activities, simulated dissections, textbook material, models, and diagrams. Because the course is self-paced, you may move through the material as quickly or as slowly as you need to, with the goal of demonstrating proficiency in the four competencies covered in the final assessment. If you have no prior knowledge of this material, you can expect to spend 40–60 hours on the course content.

Microbiology with Lab: A Fundamental Approach explores the science that microorganisms are everywhere, and they have positive and negative effects on the community. The course examines the structure and function of microorganisms, disease transmission and progression, and immune responses and other interventions, and it identifies key global diseases. The course consists of an introduction and four major sections. Each section includes learning opportunities through readings, videos, and other relevant resources. Assessment activities with feedback also provide opportunities for students to check their learning, practice, and show how well they understand course content. To assist students in developing an applied, evidence-based understanding of microbiology, this course integrates several lab experiments to help determine the specific characteristic of an unknown microbial sample and a treatment plan. Because the course is self-paced, students may move through the material as quickly or as slowly as needed to gain proficiency in the four competencies that will be covered in the final assessment. Students who have no prior knowledge of or experience with this topic can expect to spend 48–60 hours on the course content. There are no prerequisites for this course.

Pathophysiology is an overview of the pathology and treatment of diseases in the human body, tissues, glands and membranes, the integumentary system, the sensory system, skeletal and muscular systems, the digestive system, blood, vessels and circulation, lymphatic system, immunity and disease, heart and respiratory system, nervous, urinary and endocrine systems, and male and female reproductive systems. Prerequisites include all prior courses in this programmatic sequence.

This is Human Growth and Development, a three-module course that examines the entire human lifetime, from conception to death. Presented chronologically, the course focuses on three key areas: physical, cognitive, and psychosocial growth, along with other important issues such as cultural influences, emotions, and resilience. Because the course is self-paced, you may move through the material as quickly or as slowly as you need to, with the goal of demonstrating proficiency in the four competencies covered in the final assessment. If you have no prior knowledge of this material, you can expect to spend 30-40 hours on the course content.

This is a Global Arts and Humanities course that contains three modules with corresponding lessons. This course is an invitation to see the world through the humanities, examine the humanities during the Information Age, and explore the global origins of music—essentially questioning what makes us human, and how people are connected across culture and time. Each module includes learning opportunities through readings, videos, audio, and other relevant resources. Assessment activities with feedback also provide opportunities to practice and check learning. With no prior knowledge or experience, a learner can expect to spend 30-40 hours on the course content.

Introduction to Research Methods familiarizes students with the foundations of research, guiding students through selecting topics, forming research questions, engaging with relevant and reliable literature, and designing a research project. This course provides an overview of how researchers form questions and hypotheses, which different types of methodologies can be used to address these questions, and how existing literature and data are used to support or reject hypotheses. The methods presented in this course can be applied to many fields and disciplines, and they provide a baseline for students to use in their chosen area of study and future work.

Health, Fitness, and Wellness focuses on the importance and foundations of good health and physical fitness—particularly for children and adolescents—addressing health, nutrition, fitness, and substance use and abuse.

Career and Lifelong Learning supports students in taking their first steps in a lifelong journey of development as a professional. Students will explore career pathways, plan how best to achieve their desired professional future, and take tangible steps toward that future by creating career growth materials that adhere to today’s best practices. There are no prerequisites for this course.

Understanding Substance Abuse and Addiction provides an overview of substance abuse causes, impact, prevention, and treatment. Students will understand the signs and symptoms of substance abuse and addiction and its impact on individuals, groups, and the community. Students will analyze relevant factors that initiate and reinforce substance abuse and addiction and describe evidence-based strategies for prevention, intervention, and treatment. There are no prerequisites for this course.

Cognitive Psychology examines human mental processes, including how humans sense, interpret, think about and respond to information, and integrate new information with prior experience. This course examines mental operations, attention, pattern recognition and other perceptual processes, memory, problem-solving and decision-making, categorization and concept formation, language acquisition and use, and contextual interpretation.There are no prerequisites for this course.

Health Psychology provides a basic overview of the biopsychosocial model of health and other holistic models of wellness. The course draws from diverse cultural perspectives as well as the theory and practice of human health behavior change to explore the relationship between psychosocial experiences and health. Topics include the impact of social and cultural factors on health, the relationship between stress and physical health and disease, the psychological experience of illness, and how lifestyle patterns and behavior influence chronic disease. There are no prerequisites for this course.

Cultural Awareness and Ethics provides students with the understanding of what it means to have personal, explicit and implicit cultural biases and how these can affect interpersonal interactions. The course will explore strategies for responding to personal biases and for promoting cultural awareness and ethical actions. Through critical readings, videos, and interactive activities, the student will gain knowledge in these essential subjects. There are no prerequisites for this course.

Health Equity and Social Determinants of Health examines the social determinants of health (SDOH) as underlying factors that contribute to health inequity in populations and communities and their effect on health outcomes. This course will help students understand the evidence-based strategies and approaches that promote health equity. D581 Introduction to Research Methods is a prerequisite to this course.

The Health Sciences Capstone is a culminating experience for the BS in Health Sciences program. In this project-based course, students will apply their skills obtained through the program to an issue of personal interest in the health sciences. This course requires students to think deeply and use their creative problem-solving skills and understanding of diverse perspectives to identify a research topic and conduct research on it. Upon completion of the capstone, students will have proposed an evidence-based strategy to address a real-world issue related to the health sciences. Students must complete all other courses in this program before attempting the capstone. This course is eligible for an In Progress grade. Please see the Grading Scale Policy for more information.

Foundations in Public Health introduces learners to the nation’s public health systems including an overview of the core functions of Public Health and the 10 essential public health services. Learners examine a variety of strategies to promote health, prevent disease, and prolong life among populations and communities, including behavioral, population, and policy change, mass media approaches, and community-based interventions. This course also provides learners with a foundational and historical orientation to the field of public health by examining the philosophy, history, purpose, organization, terminology, and function.

Introduction to Epidemiology provides an overview of the determinants of communicable, viral, and chronic diseases. Students also will study various other conditions and the impact to public health. Using problem-based inquiry, students will analyze real-world public health problems by examining the distribution and patterns of data, selecting the methods to gather evidence, interpreting the information, and analyzing the trends to support decision making. There are no prerequisites to this course, but students are highly encouraged to adhere to the standard path, whose content is scaffolded to enhance the learning experience of this course.

Learning Strategies in Higher Education provides students with a toolbox of skills that will support student academic growth as they advance in their academic journey. Students will be introduced to the WGU Library; how to use it and best practices for research strategies. Students will learn how to be professional in written communication and how to correctly use current APA format. In this course, students also will learn about setting goals, time-management, study strategies, making and keeping appointments, professional decorum, and test-taking skills. Learning these skills, strategies, and methods will establish an academic foundation for students to be successful in higher education. There are no prerequisites for this course.