School of Health and Natural Sciences

The School of Health and Natural Sciences includes undergraduate and graduate programs that provide the future-focused education needed to prepare for fast-changing career options in the science and health care fields. All programs emphasize the connection between professional knowledge and practice and knowledge from the arts, sciences, and humanities. Extensive experience in applying theoretical knowledge in clinical, fieldwork, or research settings is an important learning component in each of these programs.

Dean: Martha Nelson, Ph.D.

UNDERGRADUATE

• Biological Sciences
• Health Science (Pre-OT) 
• Nursing
  

GRADUATE

• Biology
  
• Nursing
• Occupational Therapy

STRATEGIC INITIATIVES AND PARTNERSHIPS

University of Skovde, Sweden

Students from the Department of Natural Sciences and Mathematics can spend a year in Sweden working in the labs alongside biologists from the University of Skovde.

Buck Institute for Age Research

Beginning this fall, the Buck Institute and Dominican will offer a master’s degree in biological sciences with an emphasis on age research. The Buck Institute is the first independent research facility in the United States to focus solely on aging and age-related conditions. The National Institute on Aging designated the Buck Institute as a "Nathan Shock Center of Excellence in the Biology of Age Research" in June 2005, one of just five in the nation.

Community Partners

Students studying for their bachelor’s degree in nursing are required to complete 810 clinical hours. Dominican has clinical affiliations with more than 55 Bay Area acute care hospitals, non-profit agencies, long-term care facilities, and clinics.

Xgene Corporation

Xgene Corporation was founded to develop and commercialize two promising new technologies: a proprietary technology for producing a full-thickness human skin equivalent, and an advance in the area of the control of gene expression.  The company has a lab in Dominican’s Science Center, and undergraduates are working in this lab alongside Xgene founder Warren Hoeffler, PhD.