Frequently Asked Questions

The Minor in Health Care Studies was created in 2012 with the purpose of giving undergraduate USC students exposure to the real-life clinical side of health care. Through our world-class physician and Ph.D. faculty, wellness-forward advisement philosophy, and unique undergrad Medical Sciences (MEDS) courses, we aim to support the future generation of health care practitioners and world-changing biomedical scientists. This minor is ideal for undergraduates who wish to pursue a postgraduate career in health care, biomedical science, or healthcare-related fields. The Health Care Studies minor aims to give students exposure to the clinical side of medicine, building on basics in fundamental science to understand the biological basis of medicine with coursework that explores the delivery of medicine and health care, in a combination of lectures, discussions, and simulated clinical activities.

CLICK HERE to submit your information and apply online to the Minor in Health Care Studies program. Minor applications are processed around the middle of each month.

Students in any major program can declare a Minor in Health Care Studies, granted that they: 

• Are a currently enrolled undergraduate at USC,
• Have a declared major, and
• Maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0.

We understand that grade point averages change semester to semester, so please apply anyway with a note that includes your intention to raise your GPA. We won’t turn you away for a lower GPA!

There are no hard deadlines for applying, but we recommend as soon as possible so that we can add the minor to your STARS report and figure out how many requirements you still need to complete before you graduate.

Applications are typically processed at the mid-point of each month and can take anywhere between 2-10 business days to complete processing. If you have not received word about your application, please email the minor department at mhcs@usc.edu. All notifications will be sent to the student’s USC email address.

No. Courses within the minor are open to all students, whether they have declared the minor or not, as long as they have fulfilled any required prerequisites. For some popular courses (such as MEDS 320), MEDS minor students are given priority to register.

Amy Hanna is the Minor in Health Care Studies advisor and can answer questions regarding the minor requirements or your course plan. To schedule an advisement appointment with Amy, email mhcs@med.usc.edu or call at (323) 442-0443. The Health Care Studies minor office is located on the Health Sciences Campus in the Willard Keith Administration Building (KAM) Room B6. 

All other coursework not relating to the Minor should be discussed with your main academic major advisor.

 The minor requires a minimum of 20 units, at least 12 of which must be at the upper-division level.

Students must complete the following:

• REQUIRED CORE COURSES (8 Units):
  • BISC 220/BISC 221 (4)  
  • MEDS 220 (2) 
  • MEDS 225 (2)
• ELECTIVES (12 units)
  • 12 upper-division elective units from the list of approved courses 
  • 16 unique units to the minor (only count for the minor and not for any other major, minor, or GE requirement). MEDS-220 and MEDS-225 count towards these 16 units.

You can find all of the minor requirements and all courses that count for the minor on the USC catalogue webiste. Please make sure you are viewing the catalogue that’s respective to your catalogue. year, which can be found on your STARS Report.

All minors at USC require 16 units of coursework that count only for the minor and not for any other major, minor, or GE requirement.

You should compare your minor requirements with your completed classes before registering each semester. If you have officially declared your minor, it will appear on your STARS report. If you notice any errors on your STARS report, please email the minor department at mhcs@usc.edu for assistance.

To request D-clearance, email mhcs@usc.edu with the course, section number, and your USC student ID number. It is your responsibility to verify that you have met any prerequisites as listed in catalogue.usc.edu or Web Registration prior to submitting your D-clearance request.

Prerequisites can be waived in the following general cases: 

• The student has taken an equivalent course of the prerequisite at a Community College or other institution.
• They are taking the course concurrently.
• They have taken a similar academic course as the prerequisite in the past (non-minor students only).

We highly recommend that students take the proper prerequisite courses to ensure that they do well in the class. Our MEDS Instructors emphasize learning and nurturing student growth and knowledge above grades, but the prerequisites for the class are chosen because those courses give students the basic tools that will help them in our courses. If you would still like to waive a prerequisite, please email mhcs@usc.edu with the course, section number, your USC student ID number, and your reason for requesting the waiver. Please note: emailing to waive a prerequisite does not guarantee the course will be waived.

We advise students to complete all courses as required per the program’s curriculum. The USC Catalogue is constantly being updated, new courses are added, some courses change names, so we realize that some courses that aren’t included in our curriculum are valid substitutions for some of our electives. 

Study Abroad courses in some cases can contribute units to the upper-division requirement if the courses will satisfy only the Minor and if they are relevant to our program. 

Substitutions are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and are only granted based on the course’s academic relation to the minor. Please submit all relevant inquiries to mhcs@usc.edu. 

No, in accordance with USC Policy, all classes for your minor must be completed for a letter grade. This means that all core courses for the minor (BISC-220/221, MEDS 220, and MEDS 225) must be taken for a letter grade if you declare the minor or plan to declare the minor in the future. 

The MEDS minor department shares the “MEDS” code with the Masters in Global Medicine Program, so 500 level and above courses cannot be taken to fulfill the minor.

No, MDA 210 was previously required for the minor but was replaced with MEDS 225 beginning in Fall 2021. 

If a student HAS already taken MDA 110 or 210 this will be accepted for the MEDS 225 requirements, these students do not need to complete MEDS 225. 

If a student HAS NOT taken MDA 210 or 210 they do need to complete MEDS 225. Students that have taken MDA 210 will need a substitution in their STARS report to accept MDA 210 in place of MEDS 225, email mhcs@usc.edu and we will make this substitution.

No, MDA 210 will be accepted in place of the new MEDS 225 requirement. Email mhcs@usc.edu for the course substitution.

The MEDS 490 course offers students the option of exploring 2 different research sections. 

• HSC Section: This is a more straightforward “Directed Research” 490 credit course, students will find a research mentor at Keck who is conducting biomedical research and will assist them in conducting research/data collection.
• CHLA Section: In this course, students complete weekly 6-hour shifts in the Emergency Department at CHLA recruiting patients for research studies and observing clinical care. You will not seek out a professor or clinician to conduct research with, but rather will work with CHLA faculty to assist their data collection.

MEDS-495, often referred to as the CHAT section, is a newer course on Social Emergency Medicine. It is also held at CHLA. In this course you will have three weeks of training on the social determinants of health in the Los Angeles community and available resources, followed by weekly 6-hour shifts in the CHLA Emergency Department talking with families and screening for these needs, and helping them connect with resources.

What AMCAS has told us is that there is no “set list” of courses that count for science GPA. “If it sounds like it should count, it will count.” However, we do have a list of courses that students have successfully counted in the past, and we try to make our 300-level courses more hard-science-based so that they more easily fit into a BCPM category. 

The following MEDS courses have been successfully counted for science GPA by previous students with their AAMC category in parentheses: 

• MEDS 300 (Statistics)
• MEDS 315 (Anatomy or Physiology)
• MEDS 320 (Anatomy)*
• MEDS 335 (Biology)
• MEDS 340 (Neuroscience)
• MEDS 350 (Neuroscience or Biochemistry)
• MEDS 355 (Biology or Physiology)
• MEDS 370 (Physiology)
• MEDS 380 (Biology or Cell Biology)
• MEDS 490 (Biology, Histology, anything under the Biology category which was specific to the kind of research the student did)

*NOTE: MEDS-320 has fulfilled the Anatomy course requirement because it is a 4 unit class that has a lab portion. If you plan to use MEDS 320 to fulfill an Anatomy requirement, we recommend asking the program to which you’re applying if they will accept this course as they make that decision. 

Regarding other MEDS courses, some students have been able to get them to count and others have not. It’s up to you if you want to try to apply them to your science GPA. Please note: there is always a chance that the person who is approving your science GPA calculations will not approve a MEDS course, even if other students have successfully counted the course. At this point, you have the option of appealing this decision. However, this process may delay your application. 

For more information about this topic, here is the AAMC Course Classification Guide.

You can see which MEDS courses are offered in the Schedule of Classes or on Web Registration for the semester in question.

Most MEDS courses are held at UPC, but some of the upper-division courses may require travel to and from HSC to utilize special equipment or facilities only located at HSC. Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, some courses have shifted to either online or hybrid. For example, starting in 2020, MEDS-320 occurs primarily in-person at HSC and online. Please make sure to check the modality of the course when registering. 

CHLA is located about 7 miles North of UPC at 4650 Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90027. 

Further directions and a map of their facilities can be viewed here. 

For public transit to CHLA, please see the instructions below: 

• Take the Union Station intercampus shuttle to Union Station.
• Take the Red Line (To North Hollywood) and get off at the Vermont/Sunset Blvd station.

LAC+USC Medical Center is located across the street from the Health Science Campus (across Zonal Avenue) at 2051 Marengo St, Los Angeles, CA 90033.

A map of their facilities can be viewed here.

If a student determines that they will not be able to complete the Minor in Health Care Studies program, OR determines they are no longer interested in pursuing the Minor, please email mhcs@usc.edu with your request to drop the minor AND your USE Student ID number. 

We will determine whether any exceptions can be made so that the student may complete the Minor on time for graduation. 

OR 

We will remove the minor program from the student’s STARs report.* *It is the STUDENT’S responsibility to double-check their STARs report to see that the Minor has been successfully removed.

Once you complete your minor requirements, you will automatically receive your minor certificate with your diploma after graduation. Minor certificates are mailed with diplomas 6 to 8 weeks after graduating.