Curriculum - MS Human Anatomy

Course ID: ANAT 310

This course is designed to provide graduate students with a solid foundation in basic histology. The course is a combination of lecture (in-person or virtual), laboratory, and virtual learning modules. The course will focus on understanding the microanatomy of various cell types, the four basic tissues that make up all organs (epithelium, connective tissue, muscle, nerve), and the microscopic structure of major organs within the various organ systems. There will be a strong emphasis on the relationship between cell and tissue structure and function, and while the course will focus on the structure of normal cells and tissues, selected abnormal or pathological tissues will be examined as well.

Prerequisite: Admission to the program or permission from the course director.

Course ID: ANAT 300, 301, 302, and 303

This course is a weekly seminar that is a combination of discussion sessions and in-person lectures by faculty and guest speakers. This course, is in part, intended to facilitate student-led discussions on current anatomical research and education topics. Additionally, there will be a focus on relevant clinical topics that are designed to help students understand how to teach clinically applicable anatomy and improve their knowledge of clinical skills and procedures.

Prerequisite: Admission to the program.

Course ID: ANAT 335

This course for graduate students will focuses on the developmental aspects of adult anatomy and congenital malformations. This online course is a combination of virtual lectures and virtual learning modules. The first half of the course will focus on developmental mechanisms and early development. The second half of the course will focus on development of the specific organ systems. The concepts learned in this course will reinforce the adult anatomy learned in the gross anatomy course and provide the student with a sound foundation of the mechanisms leading to congenital defects.

Prerequisite: Admission to the program or permission from the course director.

Course ID: AMC 507

Course Director: Dr. John Kaplan
Students attend a total of three, two-hour class meetings and participate in workshops and discussions. Short readings are assigned. Sessions address current issues in scientific integrity, ethical principles and theory, introduction to ethics case analysis, an ethical skills workshop, and considerations in selecting a mentor. At the end of this course students will have a basic appreciation of ethical principles in relation to standards of professional conduct in science. Students will also develop their skills and confidence in their ability to analyze and discuss ethical and professional standards as they apply to specific aspects of scientific research. This course is required of all first-year students. Learning Assessment is based on attendance, preparedness, discussion and a presentation. Prerequisite for AMC 612.
(Year 1, Fall semester only)

Prerequisite: Admission to the program.

Course ID: AMC 600

Course Directors: Dr. Paul Feustel and Dr. Peter Vincent

This course is designed to teach the student basic statistics so that they can perform appropriate statistical analysis of their research and so they can determine if appropriate analysis was performed when reading the literature in their field of study. The first part of the course is lecture/exercise-based sessions run by the faculty that exposes students to basic principles and tests commonly used in biostatistics, including sessions on what inferential statistics is and determining the statistical analysis as part of your experimental design. In the second part of the course students bring in experiments and/or data from their laboratory and describe the experimental design and the statistical test that was used (or will be used) to analyze the data and how this allowed (or will allow) them to formulate a conclusion from the data. Course Objectives: 1) Students will be able to design experiments that will include choosing the appropriate test based on the type of data they will collect, and the comparisons /relationships they want to determine. 2) Students will be able to determine which methods should be used in the analysis of data. 3) Students will be able to determine how many experimental units are needed to test hypotheses (power analysis). 4) Students will be able to recognize what conclusions can and cannot be drawn from the statistical analysis of experimental data. Learning Assessment is based on class participation, homework assignments and two in class exams.  (Fall semester only)

Prerequisite: Admission to the program.

Course ID: ANAT 340

This course will introduce students to experimental approaches currently being used in anatomical sciences and education research. The course is a combination of lecture and virtual learning models. Students will explore experimental design, quantitative and qualitative research methods, data analysis, and how to write up and present findings. Additional focus will be on learning to critically assess research and recognize strengths, weakness, and limitations of a study. The aim of this course is to provide students with the skills and knowledge to design and conduct their own methodologically sound anatomical research.

Prerequisite: Admission to the program.

Course ID: ANAT 330

This course is designed to be a full dissection course providing students with a regional approach to the macroscopic anatomy of the human body. It is a combination of lecture (in-person or virtual), laboratory, and virtual learning modules. There will be a strong emphasis on clinical correlations and how common disease and injury affect normal anatomical structure and function. In addition to learning anatomy, there will be a focus on teaching proper dissection skills.

Prerequisite: Admission to the program or permission from the course director.

Course ID: NEU 505

Course directors: Drs. Justin Bourgeois & Tara Lindsley
This course provides both a comprehensive overview of the anatomy of the brain from a systems perspective as well as an introduction to the major neurological and psychiatric disorders with known brain pathology. Learning assessment involves three essay exams.

Prerequisite: Admission to the program.

Course ID: ANAT 305

This course is designed to provide graduate students with a foundational understanding of current teaching theories and practices and will delve into both small and large group instructional methods. Topics will include: lecture design and preparation, cased-based instruction, small group instruction, and writing meaningful learning objectives. Additionally, an introduction to assessment, effective communication inside and outside of the classroom, and strategies to enhance critical thinking will be employed. Students will have an opportunity to practice these skills by creating and delivering a lesson. Students will be provided with written feedback on their preparation and delivery of the lesson.

Prerequisite: Admission to the program or permission from the course director.

Course ID: ANAT 360

Advance original research in the area of anatomy or anatomical education, or the development of an original course, workshop, or curriculum connected with Capstone Project.

Prerequisite: Admission to the program.

Course ID: ANAT 351

This course is designed as an opportunity for students to get supervised teaching experience with both in-class and laboratory settings. Students will have a chance to create lesson plans for in-person and virtual settings, explore different teaching methods and student engagement strategies, and participate in formal student assessment. There will be an emphasis on developing effective presentation and communication skills. Additionally, students will be evaluated on their lesson design and in-class performance and will receive feedback from faculty and peers before and after execution of their lesson plans, allowing for students to reflect on their work and identify strengths and areas for improvement.

Prerequisite: Successful completion of the first year.

Course ID: ANAT 370

This online course emphasizes the essential physiological principles underlying the functions, regulation, and interactions of the different organ systems of the human body. The following systems and units will be covered: cells and tissues, muscular, nervous, endocrine, cardiovascular, blood, respiratory, digestive, urinary and fluid balance, and reproduction.

Prerequisite: Successful completion of the first year or permission from the course director.

A central focus of the second year of the program is the 6-credit capstone project. The capstone project is an essential experience that provides the student with an opportunity to complete an original independent project suitable for publication. The project may be original research in the area of anatomy or anatomical education, or the development of an original course, workshop, or curriculum that is appropriate for submission for publication to MedEd Portal.