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Building a Healthy World for All Faculty of Health
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Student Engagement and Impact

Enhance our learners’ opportunity and capacity to succeed in their education through greater access, meaningful community engagement and experiential and work-integrated learning.

We are focused on the needs of students, removing barriers that prevent some from realizing the benefits of postsecondary education and supporting academic success throughout their learning journey. We are cultivating an environment that supports mental health and wellbeing, and provides an accessible and inclusive place to learn and grow. 

We take pride in the state-of-the art teaching and learning provided by our faculty. And we recognize the value in creating opportunities for students to apply what they learn in the classroom to real-life situations. We want them to experience the satisfaction that comes with making an impact on others and to test avenues for themselves that could help determine their career path. 

Our diverse campus and community are a microcosm of the world around us, providing students with real-world environments in which to learn and apply their skills. That could mean learning about emerging public health issues in Africa through interactive workshops in Ghana. It could mean understanding the human impact on people and our planet through a study abroad course in biodiverse Costa Rica. It could mean Kinesiology & Health Science students helping teenagers with physical disabilities from the Jane-Finch area of Toronto take part in the Aspire Games sporting event.  

Students talking and working on a laptop

Why This Matters

Student holding a tablet with an image of a brain on it
Students in the fMRI Lab

5 benefits of hands-on experience

York University’s top-five reasons why hands-on experience is crucial to being career-ready: 

1. It introduces you to the world 

2. It sets you apart from other candidates 

3. It helps identify strengths and skills 

4. It shows areas of interest and character 

5. It helps build industry connections  

The program in Ghana surpassed my expectations. The vibrant culture, engaging educational activities, and meaningful connections I made were truly life-changing. From hands-on workshops to forming lasting friendships, every moment was a learning opportunity. The experience broadened my horizons and left me with cherished memories.

— Kinesiology & Health Science student Robyn Ahn said of the University of Health and Allied Sciences’ Summer School Programme. 

Much of our time was spent speaking to people from very different backgrounds including farmers, teachers, nurses and Indigenous communities in different parts of the country and hearing directly from them how determinants of health impact their lives.

— Global Health Assistant Professor Mathieu Poirier, York Research Chair in Global Health Equity, on the Social Determinants of Health course he taught in Costa Rica. 

YorkU sign

To achieve this goal, by 2028 we will:

  • Advance state-of-the art teaching and learning through faculty development and support. 
  • Strengthen resources to meet demands for experiential learning for all students. 
  • Advance academic, mental health and social supports for all students, with a focus on equity-deserving learners who have faced barriers in their educational journeys. 
  • Explore possibilities for and build new professional Master’s programs in such areas as digital health, mental health, population and planetary health, rehabilitation sciences and nursing. 
  • Introduce interdisciplinary pan-Faculty general education courses that build an understanding of health equity and actions to contribute to achieving social, economic and environmental sustainability – a commitment to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.