The School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences traces its origins to 1941, with the initial offering of allied health sciences degrees through the Indiana University School of Medicine. In 1958, by action of the Trustees of Indiana University, the Division of Allied Health Sciences was formed, and in 1960 the trustees conferred upon the faculty of the School of Medicine the responsibility and authority to grant the Bachelor of Science degree to those students who successfully completed the prescribed curriculum in four allied health programs.
Since that time, additional baccalaureate programs and new programs at the associate and graduate levels have been approved and initiated. In 1967, the Division of Allied Health Sciences was one of 13 similar units from across the country to participate in the planning and formation of the national professional society, the Association of Schools of Allied Health Sciences.
The Division of Allied Health Sciences was granted school status at the April 1991 meeting of the Trustees of Indiana University. The School of Allied Health Sciences encompassed allied health programming on five of the eight campuses of Indiana University and incorporated 21 distinct allied health academic degree programs.
In 2002, the School of Allied Health Sciences was restructured to better align campus resources in support of the allied health sciences degrees. The resulting school focused solely on delivering graduate degrees in selected health and rehabilitation science disciplines. The undergraduate allied health sciences degrees migrated to other academic units on the IUPUI campus.
To better reflect the more focused academic mission of the school, and based on faculty recommendation, in June 2003 the Trustees of Indiana University approved changing the name to School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. Four departments constitute the school; Health Sciences, Nutrition and Dietetics, Occupational Therapy, and Physical Therapy. In 2010, the school received approvals from the IU Board of Trustees and the Indiana Commission on Higher Education to offer a graduate degree in physician assistant studies and an undergraduate degree in Health Sciences. During its history of almost 50 years, the school has provided leadership in education, research, and civic engagement pertaining to health for the citizens of Indiana, the region, and the nation.