The many disciplines that make up the School of Health and Human Services have one thing in common: compassion. In every department, students and faculty work in fields that empower people to improve their own health and psychological well-being and to extend that power to help those in need of professional care.

And because there are various professions within these fields, each discipline offers a lifetime of exciting career opportunities. A nurse, for example, who starts a career in patient care always has the option to move to other jobs in the healthcare world, jobs that emphasize research, teaching, marketing, or management. With programs grounded in the liberal arts, the School of Health and Human Services prepares students for flexible, professional careers and for advanced graduate study in an array of disciplines.

Southern's School of Health and Human Services is the only school in Connecticut to gather these disciplines under a single umbrella, which means academic opportunities are highly interdisciplinary and much more efficient. Experience shows that clients are best served when the professionals who help them are collaborating. For example, a client of a daycare center gets better care when her nurse knows how to consult with a social worker or a speech therapist. Working on the same principle, Southern's clinics and classroom projects encourage students to collaborate with and learn from students in other departments.

The school's wide range of internships means that students can begin to participate in the community while earning their degrees. Public health students, for instance, work in local community health centers, helping a variety of professionals to assess patient health. Students in recreation and leisure studies assist physically challenged patients in rehabilitation facilities. Social work students are in area child welfare agencies and on-campus clinics, putting their classroom lessons into immediate practice.

Preparing for health and human services careers at Southern is demanding, intellectually and personally. It requires dedication and involves sophisticated research and intensive study. But after graduation, Southern alumni find exciting careers brimming with opportunity. These fields are undergoing great changes today, which means each offers vast opportunities for creativity and innovation. The people who will make those changes in Connecticut institutions are studying today in Southern's cutting-edge programs. Following is a selection of some of the specialized study opportunities available to motivated students at Southern.

This four-year program for academically outstanding incoming students features a series of eight interdisciplinary courses centered around challenging questions and themes and designed to develop exceptional critical thinking and writing skills. Students accepted to the Honors College experience a strong sense of community as they go through the rigorous program together. The capstone of the Honors College experience is the senior year Honors thesis or creative project. The majority of students who complete the Honors College program do so on full Presidential Merit scholarships.

This program gives students an opportunity to earn course credit through paid employment before graduating. Advisers match students' credentials and career goals with the needs of potential employers. Students have the opportunity to try out career options and gain valuable work experience.

Rather than pursue a traditional major, the highly focused students in this program combine a number of established minors -- or design their own interdisciplinary minors -- to create a unique and innovative educational experience that meets their own academic, personal, and career goals. Students majoring in elementary education and elementary/special education may choose Liberal Studies as a subject-area major. Minors may be pursued in any subject area except those offered by the School of Education. (For more information, contact the School of Extended Learning.)

Many graduates earn advanced degrees in their disciplines or in fields like law, medicine, and business. Southern graduates also have gone on to study at universities across the country and around the world. In addition, they've continued their education in the high quality and rigorous programs offered through Southern's School of Graduate Studies, such as communications disorder, nursing, public health, marriage and family therapy, recreation and leisure, social work, and urban studies.