Medicine & Healthcare

An ideal career field for a Christendom graduate

How do the liberal arts help doctors, nurses, and surgeons? Many would scoff at such an idea and tell students to just go straight to medical school. And yet, if a student were to go that route, they would lose an invaluable background that often sets medical professionals apart from their peers.

Every day, medical professionals are faced with countless moral decisions. How do they know which one is the right one? Having the ability to think critically about a subject helps immensely with this. But what about communicating properly with patients? This is where a liberal arts education can often make the difference, with its focus on communication skills setting these medical professionals apart.

According to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC): “As you select a college remember that just as in high school, a good liberal arts education is a key ingredient to becoming a physician. You’ll need a strong foundation in mathematics and the sciences that relate most to medicine: biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry, and physics. But it’s important for your college experience to be broad. Taking courses in the humanities or liberal arts will help you prepare for the ‘people’ side of medicine.”

At Christendom’s Life on Tap alumni networking series, successful alumni in the medical and healthcare field have returned to campus to speak on how they used their liberal arts education and the career preparation they received at Christendom to find post-graduate success.

 Christendom offers the following classes for students interested in pursuing medicine post-graduation:

Fall:

General Chemistry I + Lab
General Physics I + Lab
Physics III + Lab (DS)
Introduction to Biology
Anatomy and Physiology I + Lab

Spring:

General Chemistry I + Lab
General Physics II + Lab
Thermal Physics (DS)
Introduction to Biology
Anatomy and Physiology II + Lab

Watch the video recordings below.

 Dr. John-Paul Jansen (’00) is an internal medicine specialist in Winchester, Virginia. Dr. John English (’06) is a Board-Certified General Surgeon specialist located in Front Royal, Virginia.

Catherine McFadden Wendt (’16) is a registered nurse at Winchester Medical Center. Margaret Luckey (’97) is a pre-licensed professional counselor.

 Joby Norton (’10) is a registered nurse at Winchester Medical Center. Angelica Cintorino Ferrara (‘14) is an RN at the Adult Acute Care, General Medical unit at the University of Virginia Medical Center.