Development and the Life Course

Scientifically charting changes over the life course

Studying human development and the life course means exploring how people develop and function as individuals through the relationship between the natural and the social sciences. Students and faculty reflect on their experiences in the other areas of the college and of Cornell, including the natural sciences, design, and policy to inform their responses to human issues.

By examining the entire life course – prebirth, infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood and advanced aging – and the experiences and environments that shape the development of individuals, students obtain a more holistic evaluation of development. Students learn how people develop through a multidisciplinary approach that incorporates psychological, biological and sociological perspectives.

Students are encouraged to consider public policy issues and their implications, environmental and genetic influences, and connections to real world applications, in addition to the developmental, emotional and cognitive factors that affect each of us.

Human Development provides a strong grounding in the behavioral sciences and what those disciplines tell us about how people age and change throughout their lives and how they are affected by their experiences and environments. A variety of concentrations are available for students to further specialize and customize their studies.

Coursework includes: psychology, sociology, biology, statistics, anthropology, and history

Nutritional Sciences deals with the interrelationship between food, nutrition and health. Nutritional Sciences is approached from a highly natural and physical science perspective. A variety of issues are covered, from the biochemistry of the cell, to the political and economic dimensions of world hunger. Nutritional Sciences students can fulfil the course requirements for membership in the American Dietetics Association or can pursue a concentration in exercise science.

Coursework includes: chemistry, biochemistry, economics, sociology and psychology (all medical school prerequisite courses are incorporated into the curriculum)

Human Biology, Health and Society combines interest in human biology, health promotion and biosocial factors in our near environment that influence human well-being.

Coursework includes: biology, chemistry, anthropology or economics, psychology or sociology, all health related courses offered by Human Ecology (all medical school prerequisite courses are incorporated into the curriculum)