Thinking about classes might feel like a big deal when you're in high school. Yet those choices quietly shape which college programs and career tracks open up for you later on. This can be more important if you're interested in healthcare. 

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You don't need to determine every aspect of your career yet, but you do need to build a strong academic foundation that keeps your options open.

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And there are plenty of options to explore. Healthcare includes medicine, nursing, physical therapy, public health, mental health, research, technology, and more. What's more? A recent survey by the NSHSS found that nearly 46% of Gen Z students are interested in medicine or health-related careers. So you're not alone in this.

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But how do you build a useful pre-college course plan without trying to predict your whole future?

Start With the Healthcare Career You're Curious About

Start by asking yourself what kind of healthcare work pulls at you. You don't need a job title. Just a direction.

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Do you like biology and how the body works? Are you more drawn to psychology and social work? Do you like working one-on-one with people? Or are you more interested in technology, research, or management?

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Different careers have different educational requirements. You probably already know that you need to go to medical school to be a doctor. 

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If you're interested in both nursing and mental health, you could eventually become a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner or PMHNP. With more than 1.2 billion people having a mental health disorder globally, this is definitely a good career route. You can explore psychiatric nurse practitioner schools online later as you learn more about the field.

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Cleveland State University, however, notes that you'll have to earn a bachelor's degree in nursing first. As already mentioned, you don't have to lock into a specific title right now. Simply understanding your interests helps you choose classes that keep those paths open.

Prioritize Science Courses

Science should sit at the core of your schedule if you're aiming for healthcare. Start with biology if your school offers it. Add chemistry next. Then look at physics or anatomy and physiology.

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Honors or advanced science classes can help you prepare for college. But don't automatically choose the hardest class because it sounds impressive. You want a challenge you can handle well.

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Why does this matter? Science gives you an advantage across every health field. That's true whether you’re considering medicine and surgery or clinical research. For context, a 2025 study looked at some first-semester nursing students at a U.S. university. The study found that those with stronger science aptitude and better science GPA had an easier time in their first year of the program.

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Of course, you don't need to master everything right now. You just need to feel comfortable with the concepts you'll see again in college.

Don't Overlook Math and English

Healthcare is not just science. That's a myth worth killing early. Math shows up everywhere. Dosage calculations. Statistics. Research interpretation. Data analysis. If your school offers statistics, take it. 

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English matters too. You'll write patient notes, research papers, and reports. You'll explain complicated things to scared people. Strong communication is not optional in healthcare. It's a core skill.

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As Dr. Lahreche Silouane, a medical English trainer, noted in a 2026 post, "The most underrated skill in medicine isn't memorization. It’s knowing how to communicate what you know. A doctor can have excellent medical knowledge and still struggle if they can’t explain a diagnosis clearly to a patient, present a case confidently, or write a professional medical report."

Use Electives to Explore Your Interests

Electives are your chance to test-drive different interests without committing to a college major.

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Take psychology if you're interested in mental health. Computer science can be useful if you're curious about healthcare technology. Nutrition, sociology, health sciences, and statistics are other options worth considering. Anatomy and physiology may also be available as an elective at your school.

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The goal isn't to collect impressive-sounding classes. It's to figure out what you actually enjoy. You might think you want to work directly with patients, then take a psychology class and discover that you're more interested in research or understanding how people think.

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That's useful information to have before you get to college.

Gain Real-World Experience

A strong transcript matters. But it's not the only thing. Look for volunteering opportunities. Hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, and other healthcare facilities often need help. Your school's health or science clubs can connect you. Job-shadowing is another option if you can find it.

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At Glen Cove Hospital in New York, 14 high school students spent the summer of 2024 volunteering through a Junior Volunteer Academy. They completed over 4,000 hours of community service and performed more than 400 comfort rounds with patients. One student said, "Every job, every person, and every moment matters."

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That kind of experience cannot be learned in a classroom. For example, you might think you want a healthcare career because you like science. Then you spend time around real patients and realize you prefer research, technology, or administration instead.

Keep Your Options Open

Healthcare careers change as you learn more about yourself. That's normal. It's even expected.

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You might walk into high school set on becoming a doctor. Then somewhere along the way, maybe in a biology class or after volunteering at a clinic, you realize nursing fits you better. Or you start out thinking nursing is your thing, then mental health catches your attention. Or research. Or something you haven't even heard of yet.

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That's you figuring your future out, which is kind of the whole point of high school. The U.S. BLS currently projects nurse practitioner employment to grow 40.1% by 2034, while medical and health services managers are projected to grow 23.2%. These two examples show just how many different directions healthcare can take.

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The takeaway here is that your high school course plan should give you a strong foundation without locking you into one path. Be willing to revisit your plan each year, and adjust as you learn.

Quick Course-Planning Checklist

The following checklist will help make building a course plan for a future healthcare career easier.

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Focus Area

Recommended Action

Core Science

Take Biology and Chemistry; add Physics or Anatomy if possible.

Mathematics

Complete Algebra and Statistics if available.

Communication

Be serious in English class to build writing and reading skills.

Electives

Pick 1–2 classes in Psychology, Health Sciences, or Computer Science.

Practical Experience

Volunteer at a local clinic, join a science club, or shadow a professional.

Strategy

Review prerequisites with your counselor and keep your course load balanced.

FAQs

Do I need to know exactly what I want to do before I pick classes?

No. You don't need a detailed plan. What you need is a general direction, and Science, math, and English courses are a key part of that direction. You can narrow down later.

What if my school doesn't offer anatomy or statistics?

That's actually common in some schools. But don't worry about it. Take what's available. Biology, chemistry, and strong writing courses still build a solid foundation. You can pick up what else is needed in college.

Should I take AP science classes even if I'm not sure about healthcare?

Only if you can handle the workload without burning out. A regular course with a good grade is often better than an AP course with a poor one.

The Bottom Line

Getting into college is the goal for many students, and high school is a good place to start thinking about it. Your schedule during these years won't exactly determine your entire career, but it gives you a very strong background, whether you're thinking of a career in healthcare or something else entirely.

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If healthcare is the goal, focus on science. Build your communication and math skills. Get some real-world experience beyond what you learn in classes. And equally importantly, keep checking in with yourself as you learn more about what you want.

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