Graduate Certificate in Trauma-Informed Care
The Certificate in Trauma-Informed Care is a 15-credit program designed to provide participants with foundational knowledge about trauma and the ability to apply that knowledge to their specific settings in order to increase effectiveness with traumatized populations. The program is appropriate for students and professionals in mental health, education, crisis and emergency services, medical settings, criminal justice, law and law enforcement, non-profit and human services agencies, and anyone who works with individuals or systems exposed to trauma.
The certificate program may be particularly useful for (but is not limited to) students in the following graduate programs: Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Education, Health Administration, Health Care Administration, Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Physician Assistant, and Public Health. Because most of these graduate degree programs permit 6-9 credits of elective coursework, students can often embed some certificate coursework within their degree program.
The certificate program is open to degree-seeking and non-degree graduate students meeting the admission requirements, as well as advanced undergraduate students in good standing eligible to take graduate-level courses. An application is required.
Curriculum Overview
The Certificate in Trauma-Informed Care requires completion of three core courses (9 credit hours), along with two elective courses (6 credits). The certificate program is a hybrid learning format, with most courses structured as synchronous online courses.
More information, including detailed graduate course descriptions, can be found in the Graduate Catalog in the Counseling and Psychology section.
| Required Courses: 15 credits | ||
|---|---|---|
| PSY 500 | Understanding Trauma | 3 credits |
| PSY 510 | Trauma Assessment | 3 credits |
| PSY 590 | Special Topics in Trauma | 6 credits |
| PSY 600 | Capstone: Trauma-Informed Systems | 3 credits |
Admissions Requirements
Trauma Certificate applicants must meet the general requirements for admission to Valpo, and/or be currently enrolled (and in good standing) in VU’s Clinical Mental Health Counseling program or another graduate level program. An application is required.