PHC launches a new major!

Attention prospective pre-med students: PHC is launching an Integrated Math & Natural Sciences (IMNS) major and minor! IMNS is a science major specifically designed for those who are interested in going into the medical field and who do not wish to take classes like Earth or Environmental Science offered in PHC's other science major, Environmental Science and Stewardship (ESS). Oh, and on that note, PHC is also adding an ESS (Environmental Science & Stewardship) minor! All three programs go live in the fall of 2024.

“We have a lot of prospective students who like PHC—who like the environment and the worldview—that are interested in going into some kind of medical field,” Dr. Jackson said. The ESS major is staying, and students majoring in ESS can still pursue medical school. But the IMNS program does not require environmental-specific classes, making it more tailored to pre-med students. The IMNS program also provides a foundation for people interested in teaching middle school or high school science. 

Dr. Jackson said that rather than merely learning facts and theories within the individual sciences, he wants students to also learn about the connections between the sciences, as well as how scientific ideas arose out of the Western intellectual tradition. “What assumptions are we making as we’re doing science?" he said. "Are those the same assumptions that have been made through the ages, or have those assumptions changed over time?” Students in the IMNS program will also consider how Scripture and theology inform their approach to the sciences.

The IMNS major and minor are built from courses that PHC already offers. Dr. Jackson said that he and other faculty have faced the challenge of sorting through what is interesting and valuable to current students and prospective students. “How can we most effectively use the resources and curriculum we have to serve the needs of students with these different interests?” he said.

The IMNS major requires all the courses the ESS major requires, except for Earth Science, Philosophy of Stewardship, and Environmental Science. In addition, it requires Statistics II, Calculus II, and Physics II. Students pursuing an IMNS or ESS minor choose a certain number of credits from each category of math and science. Those pursuing an ESS minor can also choose  Earth Science or Ecology, and they must take Environmental Science. 

Dr. Jackson said the IMNS program will be a strong and valuable general math and science major. “Down the road, if this gets large enough and has enough interest, we can start seeing whether we can also offer a specialized major in a particular science or math, as we build up the student body and the capacity for it,” he said. 

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 Patrick Henry College exists to glorify God by challenging the status quo in higher education, lifting high both faith and reason within a rigorous academic environment; thereby preserving for posterity the ideals behind the "noble experiment in ordered liberty" that is the foundation of America.