Do you like helping people? Do you like the idea of a career in health care but don’t know where to start?

The AGS in Health Professions Exploration (AGSH) degree gives students the chance to explore a wide array of career options in the health care field. 

Health care programs offered at MHCC include some that require special applications, and some that do not. These are the health care programs at MHCC:

• Nursing (RN) AAS degree
• Dental Hygiene AAS degree
• Respiratory Care AAS degree
• Physical Therapist Assistant AAS degree
• Surgical Technology AAS degree
• Funeral Service Education AAS degree
• Mental Health, Social Work, Addiction Counseling AAS degree and certificates
• Medical Assistant certificate
• Basic Health Care certificate
• Medical Office degrees and certificates
• EMT Basic, short-term training
• Nursing Assistant: CNA 1 and CNA 2, short-term trainings
• Sterile Processing Technician, short-term training

Many health care programs need certain courses to be taken before the student can enter the program. Work with an adviser to plan out what courses you need if you’d like to apply for one of the MHCC programs above. Courses needed to apply for each program may change from year to year. It’s the student's duty to review program information before sending in an application.  Earning an AGSH degree does not guarantee a student will get into any specific program(s). 

Would you rather try for a career such as doctor, chiropractor, dentist, pharmacist or veterinarian? Work with an adviser to decide if the AS or AST in Biology degree is right for you.

See the MyMHCC portal for printable degree worksheets. 

Degree Requirements

Health Professions Exploration Core

Complete a minimum of 24 credits from Group 1:

¹

Or EMTX12 if taken fall 2023 or prior.

Complete a minimum of one (1) course from Group 2:

Human Anatomy & Physiology Sequence

• Choose BI121 and BI122 if considering Respiratory Care, Medical Office Specialist, and/or Funeral Service Education.
• Choose BI231, BI232, and BI233 if considering Nursing, Dental Hygiene, Physical Therapist Assistant, and/or Surgical Technology, and/or for applying to health professions program at other institutions. 

Mathematics

To complete the AGS in Health Professions degree, students must place into MTH058 Quantitative Reasoning I or higher, or complete MTH020 Applied Arithmetic and Pre-algebra with a grade of "C" or better.  Many Health Professions programs require minimum math completion as part of the application process. Meet with an adviser to plan carefully.

The following courses may be needed in order to apply for the following Health Professions programs:

Written Communication

Two (2) courses:

Oral Communication

One (1) course:

Health and Physical Education

HE261 CPR - Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation or HE252 First Aid: Responding to Emergencies recommended. One (1) credit minimum required:

Three (3) credit hours of PE185 may be granted toward an Associate degree at MHCC for completion of military basic training. A copy of the DD214 form or a Joint Services Transcript is required.

Arts & Letters

One (1) course:

Please note that the AGS allows more courses to count toward Arts & Letters than other MHCC degrees. 

Social Science

One (1) course:

Please note that the AGS allows more courses to count toward Social Sciences than other MHCC degrees. 

Electives

Complete electives to reach a total of 90 degree credits. Elective courses for the AGSH may be any course numbered 100 or above, not including developmental education courses. No more than 30 credits of one discipline may apply as elective. A maximum of 8 credits of PE185, 25 credit hours of IECC courses numbered 100 or higher, and 12 credits of Cooperative Education Internship may be applied to the AGSH degree as elective credit.

To be awarded an AGSH degree, students must:

• Complete all requirements to total 90 applicable degree credits.
• Maintain a minimum GPA of 2.0 or higher in: the cumulative MHCC grade point average, and all courses being applied toward the degree.
• Satisfactorily earn 12 credit hours at MHCC. Non-traditional credit (College Level Examination Program, Experience-Based Credit, Challenge, etc.) does not satisfy this requirement.

Please note: Courses may not be repeated for credit unless specified in the course description. Refer to the Course Numbering System and Developmental Education list for courses that are not applicable toward an MHCC degree or certificate.

To check your official progress toward graduation, log on to MyMHCC and click “View My Degree Audit.”

Online option regularly offered

Cultural Literacy course