Hands-on Learning
Learning by doing is central to a Samuel Merritt University education. Students begin applying what they learn early in their programs, building skills and experience that prepare them for clinical education and professional practice.
Develop Your Clinical Expertise
Healthcare is learned by doing. Throughout their education, SMU students apply classroom knowledge in realistic settings where they can build skills and confidence before caring for patients independently.
Every program includes hands-on learning designed to reflect professional practice. Depending on your field of study, that may include simulation, laboratory experiences, research, community partnerships, or supervised patient care.
As students progress, those experiences build on one another, moving from foundational skills toward increasingly complex clinical learning.
Learning in Many Settings
Hands-on learning takes place across Samuel Merritt University and throughout the communities we serve. Students gain experience in the Health Sciences Simulation Center (HSSC), the Motion Analysis Research Center (MARC), campus clinics, hospitals, and community settings that reflect where they'll one day practice.
Because every healthcare profession follows a different path, opportunities vary by program and may include clinical placements, fieldwork, internships, practicums, clerkships, residencies, research, or service-learning experiences.
Health Sciences Simulation Center
Students practice clinical skills and respond to realistic patient scenarios in one of the West's most advanced healthcare simulation facilities. Guided feedback and debriefing, with video and audio of training, help students learn from each experience and prepare for clinical education.
Motion Analysis Research Center
Students and faculty explore the science of human movement in one of Northern California's premier research and teaching laboratories. The MARC supports research in biomechanics, sports medicine, rehabilitation, and human performance.
We Believe Students Learn Best by Doing
See the many ways SMU students gain hands-on experience during their health sciences education.
