Graduate education in the Department of History and Sociology of Science is distinctive for its scope of study and its emphasis on an integrated program that explores the relationships between disciplines. In general, the Department admits students who wish to be prepared for research careers in any of the Department's areas of faculty strength, among them the histories of the life sciences, medicine, physical sciences, and social sciences in areas around the globe from the Middle Ages onward. The program focuses on a balance of technical, social, and cultural aspects of natural knowledge. Students are encouraged to integrate these aspects in research and to explore the applications of history to contemporary issues in industrial, health, and science policy.