One Mission, One School, Four Programs

Who would have guessed that a training program that started in 1903 with seven students would evolve into one of the top ranked educational institutions in the country for its vision and leadership in healthcare education? For more than 100 years, the School of Nursing & Health Studies (NHS) at Georgetown University has been educating healthcare leaders to make a difference.

While the tradition of the Jesuit-based value system prevails at NHS, the progression of the School over the last 100 years has been phenomenal. On the cusp of a new millennium, the School faced enormous change. In 1997, an innovative Health Studies major with three concentrations was added to prepare decision makers for a constantly transforming health care environment. In the fall of 2000, the School's name changed from School of Nursing to School of Nursing & Health Studies. And in 2006, the Health Studies concentrations have now become majors that exemplify the mission of the School. 

Georgetown NHS now offers four Bachelor of Science degree programs:

• Healthcare Management and Policy - provides a broad systems approach to the management of health care organizations and to the understanding of the social, professional, technical and political forces that is essential for leadership in the dynamic health care industry. 

• Human Science - designed for students who desire to study the application of scientific discoveries in biology, chemistry, mathematics, and physics to human health.  Study in human science provides preparation for students interested in clinical research, medicine, dentistry, public health, physical therapy and a number of other health related professions.

• International Health - blends public health and health systems management with an emphasis upon how environment, culture, economics and politics interact to influence health status. The only undergraduate program of its kind in the country, it provides a strong base for the graduate or professional training that many international health positions require, as well as for entry into the field.
  
• Nursing - gives students an outstanding education in the biological, physical, and social sciences needed for their nursing career. Georgetown BSN students begin their clinical and practical coursework with patient contact in their first year of study.

NHS also offers an International Health Certificate, which is similar to a minor, allowing any NHS student to receive exposure to a very dynamic field.

NHS students have held internships at MedStar Health’s Washington Hospital Center, National Institutes of Health, National Academy of Sciences, Pan American Health Organization, World Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, Congressional and other U.S Government Offices and Agencies and many of the other 200-plus health science, medical and healthcare agencies and organizations in the Washington, D.C. area.

After a century, NHS is on the pulse of all issues affecting the health and well-being of all people making the possibilities for the next 100 years endless. The unique ability to transform based on the needs of the healthcare system is made possible by one mission, one school, four programs.