Child Life Specialist CertificateChild Life Specialist CertificateChild Life Specialist Certificate
Make a difference with a child life specialist certificate
Are you looking to make a positive impact on the lives of children and their families? If so, the role of a child life specialist may be the one for you. When a child is facing any complex healthcare situation — whether it be a serious illness, disability or hospitalization — a child life specialist is often by their side to offer compassion, encouragement and support to both the child and the family.
The Certificate in Child Life Specialist program from Maryville University is designed for those of you who aspire to work with children and families who have been affected by serious medical issues. Under the guidance of our faculty, made up of experienced professionals and certified practitioners, you’ll learn how to create safe, welcoming environments and minimize trauma for young patients. Additionally, our four-semester long program will enable you to build academic credentials in preparation for a practicum and the CCLS certification exam.
Begin your journey to make the world a better place with a child life specialist certificate with Maryville Online.
Apply with no application fees or GRE scores, and choose from six start dates
Earn your child life specialist certificate online in just four semesters
Enjoy greater flexibility with no live classroom sessions so you can complete coursework at your own pace
Courses are designed to prepare you for the Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS) exam from the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP)
Gain practical, real-life experience — choose from introductory field experience or a child life practicum for hands-on experience in a clinical setting
Who should earn an online child life specialist certificate?
You’re here and that means you care. Whether you’re looking to transition into a new career, earn a certificate or even take a step toward a bachelor of arts in human development and family studies, our online child life specialist certificate program will prepare you to take the next step toward becoming a child life specialist.
From learning how to address children’s physical and emotional needs to developing individualized care coordination strategies and sensitively guiding families through complex healthcare environments, our knowledgeable and supportive faculty are dedicated to help you succeed.
Why earn your child life specialist certificate online?
By prioritizing flexibility, accessibility and support, our 100% online child life specialist certificate program has been designed to make your learning experience as valuable as possible. As a university committed to the growth of every student, we are pleased to provide a comprehensive, relevant curriculum that you can complete in as little as four semesters.
This, along with our support team who will guide you through the introductory field experience or a child life practicum application process, gives you the opportunity to observe, learn and engage with patients and their families in a variety of real-world settings, enabling you to gain the knowledge, experience and skills that you will need to excel as a child life specialist.
The coursework for this certificate complements the Bachelor of Arts in Human Development and Family Studies online program at Maryville University, which further encourages your potential to grow in this profession.
Dynamic, affordable, and streamlined.
Get personalized support. Benefit from a dedicated student support team who can assist you from application through graduation and beyond.
Learn from a streamlined curriculum. Study important topics around human development, child psychology, care and more, and earn your certificate in as little as four semesters.
Prepare for further credentials. Complete coursework that you can apply toward a bachelor of arts in human development and family studies degree at Maryville University or prepare to sit for the CCLS certification exam.
Gain real-world experience. Learn from a practical, in-depth program that helps you gain knowledge while getting hands-on experience.
What can you do with your child life specialist certificate?
Working through Maryville University’s child life specialist certificate online will equip you with the communication, listening, leadership, organizational and compassionate skills to help young patients and families navigate challenging and complicated care situations. The real-life skills and experience you gain during the course and field experience or practicum will propel you to confidently take the next step in your career — whether it is by starting a new role or becoming a certified child life specialist after successfully completing the CCLS exam, you can make your mark and have a positive impact on young patients and their families in a variety of settings, such as hospitals, schools, the community and their homes.
What types of child life specialist careers can I pursue?
Those who complete a child life specialist certificate typically go on to sit for the Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS) exam from the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP) and become a certified child life specialist. The demand for child life specialists is expected to grow at an average rate of 7% year-on-year,1 and most child life specialists go on to become managers or supervisors in the field.
You can put your child life specialist certificate to work in a number of different settings, including:
- Hospitals
- Community settings
- Medical clinics
- Hospices
- Dental offices
- Schools
- Camps
- Patients’ homes
Entry-level child life specialist jobs
As a child life specialist, you will form the cornerstone of emotional support and care for young patients and their families during a child’s hospitalization or illness. Child life specialists do not need a medical or nursing background, and primary day-to-day responsibilities are centered on providing for patients’ physical and emotional needs. Administrative tasks and care coordination duties also fall to specialists who provide additional coordination support for families.
On completion of the child life specialist certificate program, you will have the knowledge you need to apply for and obtain a Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS) credential from the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP). As a role where qualifications and certifications have a bearing on your own potential and progress, the child life specialist certificate program enables you to take one step closer toward reaching your full potential in this field.
Where can your child life specialist certificate take you?
Make a difference
Emma Plank, who trained under Maria Montessori and Anna Freud, is one of the pivotal pioneers in child life services — in the 1960s, she and others used the principles of child development to encourage appropriate care for children in hospital,2 most of whom were previously denied the special care, support and education that they needed. As a child life specialist, you have the opportunity to continue this important legacy and ensure young patients and their families receive appropriate and on-going developmental care and support.
Work in an innovative, in-demand field
The increase in chronic health conditions and disabilities among children and adolescents over the past 50 years means that more and more young patients and their families are in need of the valuable care and support child life specialists provide.3 With compassion and innovation in health, patient care and technology, you can have a lasting impact on the lives of young patients and their families.
Develop and grow throughout your career
Working with different patients and their families in different settings means that the support you will provide is different too. These variations, paired with other on-going certification requirements for certified child life specialists, mean that you have constant opportunities to evolve and grow in your field. Over time, and if you choose to, it is likely that you will move into a managerial or supervisory role.
Why choose Maryville’s online child life specialist certificate?
Go further with a skills-based education
Your goal is to help children and their families, and ours is to help you get there. Our faculty members are there to support you on your educational journey, every step of the way. With our simplified application process, multiple start dates and relevant, practical curriculum, we equip you with the hard and soft skills that you need to become a proficient child life specialist, while finding satisfaction in your learning experience.
Maximize your education investment
Through our introductory field experience and child life practicum offerings, we strive to provide you with real opportunities to apply what you have learned and to further observe, learn and engage with patients and their families in a variety of real-world settings. With us, you can gain what you need to confidently move from the virtual classroom to your next impactful role.
Put our reputation to work.
Maryville University was founded in 1872 and has been helping brave, motivated professionals launch or enhance their careers with industry expertise ever since. Ninety percent of our full-time faculty holds a doctorate or terminal degree, and the faculty members for this program are part of our Bachelor of Arts in Human Development and Family Studies online program, with extensive cross-functional expertise in all facets of child development.
We’re proud of our reputation for quality academics, accelerated growth and affordability, because it demonstrates our commitment to excellence.
Online child life specialist certificate curriculum*
Young patients and their families who suffer from serious medical diagnosis or hospitalization face a unique set of physical and emotional needs and challenges. In only four semesters, our 13-course, 39-credit program is designed to help you learn how to address these needs in a compassionate and professional way while giving you the experience and practical skills you need as a child life specialist.
Additionally, all coursework and practicum hours are aligned with the ACLP academic requirements and help you to prepare for the CCLS exam. Additional academic eligibility and clinical internship requirements are required for certification.
Learn how to:
- Support patients in the treatment room and beyond, serving as an advocate to help patients and their families navigate a complex healthcare environment.
- Learn how to provide safe environments for children as they acclimate to a new healthcare environment, developing age-appropriate play and learning activities to complement early learning within a therapeutic setting.
- Build trusted relationships with children, parents and medical staff to authentically communicate concerns and questions to achieve the best solution for the patient.
- Develop individualized care coordination strategies for each patient across specialists, social workers, schools and more.
Some core courses offered in this program include:
- Introduction to family science
- Human development through the lifespan
- Child psychology
- Adolescent psychology
- Developmental play and learning
- Medical terminology
- Counseling skills for healthcare professionals
*To ensure the best possible educational experience for our students, we may update our curriculum to reflect emerging and changing employer and industry trends.
Take your education further with your online Bachelor’s in Human Development and Family Studies
Every educational journey is different — for some of us, the flexibility of part-time studying empowers us to balance our commitments with our personal and professional goals. Once certified as a child life specialist after the CCLS exam, you can start your professional journey while furthering your studies.
At Maryville, our online child life specialist certificate complements the Bachelor of Arts in Human Development and Family Studies online program, enabling you to transition from a certificate to an undergraduate degree while making a difference and gaining valuable work experience.
Learn more about the online child life specialist certificate at Maryville University.
- Child life specialist. (2018). U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved August 28, 2024. ↩︎
- Plank, Emma Nuschi. (2024). Case Western Reserve University: Encyclopedia of Cleveland History. Retrieved August 28, 2024. ↩︎
- The rise in chronic conditions among infants, children, and youth can be met with continued health system innovations. (2024). PubMed. Retrieved August 29, 2024. ↩︎
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