Explore

Interested in a career in healthcare but not sure where to begin? Information on this page will help you get started with exploring majors and career, and begin planning your journey to professional school.

Start your path with Who Is a Successful Professional School Applicant? It gives insight into the various competencies that professional schools are looking for in applicants.

Major Exploration

All pre-health students must pick a major in order to graduate from MSU. Students can choose any major that MSU offers and can research major options through MSU Academic Programs. Students are strongly encouraged to meet with academic advisors from majors they are interested in pursuing to learn more about the requirements and opportunities within the major. Professional schools do not factor your major into admissions, so students who select a major solely because they perceive it will enhance their chance of acceptance to professional school are not making a decision that is in their best interest.

Not sure what major you are interested in, or have a wide variety of interests and not sure where to start? Consider working with an Exploratory Preference Advisor for further assistance with major exploration. The Exploratory Preference major allows freshman and sophomore students the opportunity to explore a wide variety of majors offered at MSU in order to discover and choose an appropriate major that fits their abilities and interests.

Health Career Exploration

Pre-health students are encouraged to explore a variety of healthcare careers to ensure that they are pursuing a health care profession that is a good fit. We recommend using Explore Health Careers and Candid Careers as a part of your health career exploration to learn more about the wide variety of healthcare-related careers that are out there. Students can also visit our Health Careers pages below to learn more about different healthcare career options or view our Alternative Health Careers Panel video.

For students who have particular career paths in mind, but are unsure if they are a good fit, we recommend exploring further by:

• Researching the careers on your own
• Finding related volunteering or shadowing experiences
• Doing informational interviews
• Joining related student organizations

Taking these steps will help you gain insight into what a career entails and whether or not it is a good fit.

General Career Exploration

Are you completely undecided on what your career interests are? Or have a lot of different interests and are not sure where to start? We recommend meeting with a Career Advisor for further assistance with career exploration. Career Advisors assist with assessing students' skills and professional interests, help students explore related careers and industries, and much more! Visit the Career Services Network website for more information on how to schedule an appointment with a Career Advisor.

Be sure to also check out the many career exploration programs and events provided by the Career Services Network throughout the semester. A calendar of events can be found here.