What is Allied Health Sciences?
The term Allied Health is used to identify a cluster of health professions, encompassing as many as 200 health careers. There are 5 million allied health care providers in the U.S., who work in more than 40 different professions and represent approximately 60% of all health care providers. Even so, this is just a drop in the bucket in terms of how many allied health care workers are needed to meet current and future healthcare needs in America.
When you work in allied health, you are involved—directly or indirectly—with patient health, and you are regarded as an expert in your field. Some allied health professionals practice independently; others work as part of a health care team, providing continual evaluation and assessment of patient needs. They also play a major role in informing the attending clinician of the patient's progress and response to treatment.
Why Study Allied Health Sciences at Grand Valley?
- Location. Close proximity to five hospitals, the Grand Rapids Medical Education and Research Center, and many research, clinical, and treatment facilities.
- Partnerships. Strong relationships with the medical community provide students with high-quality clinical opportunities, which are an important aspect of the learning experience.
- Experience. Faculty members who meet the highest levels of professional standards teach our courses, not graduate students.
- Advising. Faculty advisors serve students with career coaching and next steps. The College of Health Professions maintains a dedicated staff of academic advisors in its Student Services Office to meet students' academic advising needs.
- Flexibility. The degree can be tailored to meet the health professions goals of students with specific academic emphases.
- Outcomes. The program has a 95% destination rate. Graduates of the program are highly satisfied, with 93.24% of respondents employed or enrolled in continuing education.
Allied health professionals work in health care teams to provide a range of diagnostic, technical, therapeutic, and direct patient care and support services that are critical to the other health professionals they work with and the patients they serve. The Allied Health Sciences (AHS) major is designed to meet the educational needs of an aspiring health professional, and the AHS faculty help students develop the skills and qualifications necessary to attract employers.
Program Overview
Grand Valley State University's Allied Health Sciences (B.S.) program sits within the College of Health Professions' School of Interdisciplinary Health.
AHS can be tailored to meet the health professions goals of students with specific academic emphases.
Pre-health professional and entry level baccalaureate emphases:
- Allied Health Sciences General Emphasis
- Health Professional Degree Completion Emphasis
- Histotechnology Emphasis
- Pre-Health Physical Therapy Emphasis
- Pre-Health Physician Assistant Studies Emphasis
- Social Science Emphasis
Combined Bachelor/Master degree programs allow students to complete both degrees sooner by counting graduate credits towards the undergraduate degree. This saves students time and money and allows them to enter the workforce sooner.
- Allied Health Sciences and Athletic Training Combined Degree
- Allied Health Sciences and Public Health Combined Degree
The combined degrees listed above are established partnerships. Students are welcome to talk with their advisors about other opportunities that would fit their needs and may self-initiate a combined degree:
Student Initiated Combined Degree Application
Admissions Process
GVSU Undergraduate Application
Certain emphases and combined degrees require a secondary application. Please locate your area of interest on the Program Information page for more details.