If you’re thinking of a career in the health sciences at any level, you’re making a smart choice.
The healthcare industry offers a multitude of exciting career pathways with highly competitive salaries. Considering longer life spans and more access to preventive health measures, a health sciences degree can provide a great start to a satisfying career.
The branches of the field include traditional or advanced medicine, alternative healthcare, and occupations that may involve regular patient interaction, require technical or scientific skills, or both.
Projections from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) show that careers in the health sciences are expected to grow substantially over the next decade and beyond. The job growth rate for all healthcare occupations is 16% through 2030.
Job growth is undoubtedly an appealing factor for those pursuing a career in the health sciences. There’s also a more noble reason people choose this route. A majority of them are driven by the rewards that come from being able to make a real difference in people’s lives every day.
If your desire is to help people, being on the front lines to help patients return to health, or find new methods to achieve wellness, offers great personal satisfaction.
So, where do you begin? It starts with deciding which of the broad range of occupations and specializations within the health sciences best fits your goals. The branches of the field include traditional medicine, alternative healthcare, and occupations that may involve regular patient interaction, require technical skills, or both.
Think of health sciences as having 5 primary career paths:
Naturally, you’ll need some help narrowing down the list. Your high school career guidance office will likely have information, and your nearby university – especially if it offers health sciences degrees – also has advisors to answer questions. Subject matter experts also are good to know, so ask about faculty, research associates, and clinical staff involved in your area of interest.
Meanwhile, here’s a collection of careers requiring health sciences degrees. These careers have above-average growth potential through 2030. This information is from the U.S. Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Occupational Therapy Assistants (OTAs) help patients recover and improve the skills needed for daily living and working. OTAs provide direct care to clients. OTAs work under the direction of Occupational Therapists in private practices, hospitals, rehabilitative centers, or senior care/assisted living facilities.
Laboratory technologists and technicians, who typically have a biology/chemistry-focused degree, collect samples and perform tests to analyze body fluids, tissue, and other substances. Laboratory technologists and technicians are typically employed in hospitals, doctors’ offices, diagnostic laboratories, and governmental agencies.
The field of exercise science explores how humans move and the biomechanics that affect health and wellbeing. Various specialties within this field lead to many opportunities.
Those choosing an exercise science degree might serve as a wellness program director in a corporate setting, a health and wellness initiative manager for a community or state agency, or work in a hospital in a rehabilitative role.
Doctors of chiropractic (DCs) are primary healthcare professionals focused on diagnosis, care, and prevention of disorders of the spine and other parts of the musculoskeletal system and the associated effects of these disorders on the nervous system and general health.
Radiologic technologists, also known as radiographers, perform diagnostic imaging examinations, such as X-rays, on patients. Many “rad techs” have MRI, CT, and sonography certifications. They work in healthcare facilities, and more than half work in hospitals.
Founded by the Cleveland family in 1922, Cleveland University-Kansas City (CUKC) is a nonprofit, private, chiropractic and health sciences university. Our 34-acre campus is in Overland Park, Kansas, a major suburb within the Kansas City metro.
Degrees offered by CUKC include
Ready to learn more about CUKC health sciences degrees? Get connected to an advisor here. You’ll also get this free eBook: Your Comprehensive Guide to College Financial Aid.
