Academic Program Proposal

Date Proposal Activated	Institution and Proposal	Degree Awarded	Academic Program Name	Objection Deadline	MHEC Final Action	Final Decision Date
	College of Southern Mayland Proposal	Lower Division Certificate (L.D.C.)	Health Sciences	8/20/2023	Approved	8/24/2023
Health Sciences Program Description
The new lower division Health Sciences certificate is designed to provide the foundation for continued study in the field of health sciences. The certificate provides a course of study designed to meet the needs of students who plan to study and transfer to a college or a university that grants an associate or baccalaureate degree in various areas of health sciences. Students enrolled in this certificate program will take classes that are commonly found in associate degree program preadmission requirements and/or prerequisite courses for baccalaureate degree courses. As such, the certificate will be available as a stackable credential positioned within the Pre-Professional Health Sciences degree. <br>This innovative certificate program has been designed in collaboration with other Maryland community colleges that are part of the Maryland Education Alliance (MEA) to provide a structure for academic progression and credential stacking. It allows students to complete the first year of an associate degree program in a health sciences field at one institution, followed by a second year in a specialized health sciences program at another institution. This collaboration benefits students as they will be able to complete the certificate at their local community college, and then transfer these credits to another community college that offers the health sciences program not offered at their local community college. This also assists the community colleges as they will not be duplicating programs or competing for clinical placements.