Health Science Senior Seminar (HESC 497)
Course Description
Students will use current literature in their chosen healthcare fields to write an academic paper summarizing the state of the discipline and elaborating on innovations and challenges in those fields. Students will also develop and deliver oral presentations based on these papers and their experiences in internships or original research. Time spent in class will focus on discussions about the state of the medical field, intensive editing of student papers and presentations, and development of written and oral communication skills for health care professionals. Prerequisite: Senior standing and completion of an approved internship or research project
Course Objectives
This course is the capstone for the Health Science (HESC) major. Students will practice and refine their written and oral communication skills and reflect on their experiences at Hendrix and how those experiences have prepared them for their future careers. They will also identify and investigate controversies relevant to health care and their professional interests, consider multiple perspectives on complex issues, and use evidence to engage in deliberation. Specific course objectives include:
Communicating effectively in written and oral formats appropriate for academic and professional audiences.
Finding, evaluating, and synthesizing scientific literature relevant to complex issues in health care and students' professional interests.
Deliberating complex issues by considering evidence, assumptions, multiple perspectives, consequences, and tradeoffs to reach informed conclusions.
Integrating perspectives from multiple disciplines to develop a multifaceted understanding of health-related issues.
Reflecting on how their academic, professional, and experiential learning has prepared them for their future careers.
Important Resources
Downloads - available beginning August 25, 2026
Announcements
8/25/26 - Welcome!