‘Now is the Time’ for Curricular Change

In a letter published in this week's Science, HHMI professors at several US institutions express a need for curricular changes to university-level science. "Because a large fraction of undergraduate students enroll in science courses to meet the requirements for admission to medical school, courses satisfying these requirements dominate the undergraduate science curriculum," the authors write. But this isn't necessarily a good thing, in their opinion. "The prescribed course structure has impeded educational innovation, particularly the development of new, multidisciplinary courses," the authors write. "Now is the time for science faculty to convene to reconsider what all future scientists (not just medical doctors) should know and how that material should be taught in their institutions."