Mount Saint Mary College is proud to offer its interdisciplinary Maternal Health minor, an 18-credit program designed to equip students with the skills needed to advocate for the health and safety of women globally.
The Mount’s Division of Social Sciences developed this program to identify and eliminate preventable maternal mortality through policy and practice.
The Maternal Health minor integrates perspectives from Human Services, healthcare advocacy, Psychology, and Sociology. By focusing on the systemic issues surrounding maternal care, the program prepares students to enter professional fields like nursing, social work, and public policy with a deep understanding of the diverse factors that influence health outcomes for mothers.
The 18-credit minor requires the completion of five core courses and one elective from the sociology department.
- Core Courses: Health Psychology, The Psychology of Birth, Communicating with Patients and Professionals, Cultural Diversity in Healthcare, and Human Sexuality.
- Sociology Elective: Students may choose from Social Problems; Sociology of the Family; Social Class, Power, and Inequality; Race, Gender and Society; or Community Action.
While the minor is open to all students regardless of their major, it’s specifically designed to complement the advocacy components of the Human Services and Psychology majors, the clinical training in the Nursing program, and the pre-health preparation found in the Biology major.
The minor prepares students for essential roles in service professions, including careers as healthcare advocates, counselors, doctors, nurses, and social workers. By fostering an environment of critical thinking and advocacy, the Mount aims to contribute to the international decrease in maternal mortality rates.