Unique Courses
Discover courses that go beyond traditional academic learning. These carefully selected programs offer access to invaluable connections, resources, and experiences that will help you stand out and broaden your perspective. Embrace opportunities that enrich your education and prepare you for a dynamic future. Transform your learning journey today!
Our selection:
Below, you'll find a brief course description along with any quotes we've received from past students who have taken that course. Click on the underlined course name to access OU-provided information about the course and application details (if available).
The OU Undergraduate Pediatric Emergency Medicine Research Associate's Program immerses students in emergency medicine, pairing students with a PEM physician mentor and requiring 40 hours (subject to change) of in-hospital clinic exposure. During their time in the OU Children's ER, students will interact with current medical students, residents, and attending physicians as well as recruit patients for participation in current pediatric research projects for which they are good candidates.
Explore Oxford, England in this three-week study abroad opportunity! The course satisfies three hours of honors elective credit and the honors colloquium requirement-- double-win! There are also numerous scholarships available for this program so be sure to check those out too if you're considering!
Spend two weeks at the Biological Station uncovering how insects help solve crimes. In this hands-on course, you’ll collect larvae from a pig carcass to estimate time of death and learn how entomology reveals evidence of neglect, abuse, and contamination.
Prerequisite: BIOL 1124, or BIOL 1114 and 1121; and BIOL 1134.
Think of this as your hands-on biochem lab. Learn the essential techniques that drive modern biochemistry—from protein purification to enzyme analysis—in a course that combines lecture and weekly lab sessions.
Prerequisite: CHEM 3653 or CHEM 3853 (or concurrent enrollment). 3 credit hours.
The First-Year Research Experience (FYRE) program pairs first-year Honors College students with a mentor at the OU Norman or OU Health Sciences Center campus to collaborate on a semester-long research project. Students earn honors elective credit, develop research and presentation skills, and explore funding and career opportunities through seminars and alumni insights.
HON 3993: Death, Dying and Religion
This honors Colloquium class offers students the opportunity to learn the course content within a women's prison and by interacting with those incarcerated. This course is not offered every semester so please check-in with Honors advising faculty for assistance with enrollment.
If you're looking to fill two elective credit hours this class might be for you! Ballroom Dancing is open to beginners and might be a fun change of pace from your pre-health coursework.
From midwives to medical mysteries—discover how women’s bodies, health, and healing shaped the story of medicine.
WGS 3220: Gender and Community Health
This course introduces feminist frameworks for understanding health, illness, and medicine. Drawing on critical feminist disability theories, students examine gendered health inequities and imagine more liberatory models of care and well-being.
Students in Gender & Community Health may write for Metrilineal, a peer-reviewed journal of Metriarch, an Oklahoma-based women’s health policy organization focused on issues such as pregnancy behind bars, menstrual equity, and family planning. Learn more at Metrilineal – Metriarch®.
Questions? Contact Dr. Melinda Chen at mchen@ou.edu.
Think bugs are just annoying? Think again. Medical Entomology dives into how insects and other arthropods spread diseases and how we detect, treat, and prevent them. Explore parasites, pathogens, and public health through interactive labs and real-world case studies.
Prerequisite: BIOL 1114 and 1121, or BIOL 1134.
This is a great course to fulfill HSTM requirement for BIO majors, but beyond that Modern Medicine discusses past and current topics in healthcare and is largely project-based.
WGS 3393: Gender and Identity in STEM
This course examines how gender and other forms of identity, including race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation, affect STEM students and professionals, from the toys children play with as toddlers to the career paths they follow as adults. We will read scholarship focused on gender and identity and their effects on skill, self-efficacy, and academic/professional outcomes in STEM disciplines. Questions? Contact the instructor, Dr. Kathleen Crowther: kcrowther@ou.edu