The Funeral Celebrant Certificate is designed to serve a growing number of the population that want fewer religious rites and tailor-made tributes, memorial services, and funeral services that mirror the identity and way of life of the decedent.
Students holding a Funeral Celebrant Certificate are positioned to work with funeral directors, death doulas, and families to create a tribute that is truly unique to the decedent to assist with this increasing request for non-denominational and customized services.
Upon successful completion of the Funeral Celebrant Certificate, students are able to demonstrate a factual, conceptual, and applied understanding of:
- Improved and trusting human relationships through an understanding of the principles of effective interpersonal communication through active listening, conflict resolution, assertiveness, nonverbal awareness, and consideration of the role of the self-concept.
- Major concepts and principles underlying human behavior and mental processes including personality theory, development, learning and thought, brain and nervous system, sensation and perception, motivation and emotion, stress and physical health, abnormal psychology, psychotherapy, and social psychology.
- The history and evolution of the art and science of funeral service in North America.
- The role of the funerary ceremony in facilitating the early phase of acute grief.
- The relationship of social, religious, and spiritual beliefs, traditions, to funeral service practices and legal and ethical responsibilities of funeral service professionals.
- Public communication through various one-to-many speaking situations including communication theory, speaker-audience relationships, speaker resources, speech construction and delivery.
- Role of funeral service professionals including legal procedures and practices related to notification of death, transfer and disposition of bodies, arrangement conferences, procedures for fraternal, military and celebrity funerals, pre-planned funerals, and post-arrangement follow-up.
- Cross-section of religious, spiritual, and ethnic heritage practices to planning funeral services.
Program Completion
Completion of a program is based on full time enrollment. Many of our students attend part time and may not complete within the one year timeline.
Prerequisite Statement
To graduate within this program in the specified time, students must begin in the Fall semester and successfully place into required courses based on placement test results and/or high school GPA. Academic advisors can assist with questions.