Post-Baccalaureate Certificates

Admission requirements for the Post-Baccalaureate Certificates include:

• Bachelor’s degree or higher 
• Essay 
• Resume or CV 
• Transcripts from all degree-granting institutions attended 
• TOEFL/IELTS/Duolingo for international applicants 
• $75 non-refundable application fee 

Please see Course Descriptions for course details.

PBC Certificate in Principles and Practice of Hospice and Palliative Care 

• PALC 601 – Principles and Practice of Hospice and Palliative Care 
• PALC 603 – Communication and Healthcare Decision Making  
• PALC 604 – Psychosocial, Cultural and Spiritual Care  
• PALC 605 – Pain and Symptom Management in Advanced Illness 

PBC Certificate in Clinical Aspects of Hospice and Palliative Care 

• PALC 615 – Advanced Pain Management and Opioid Dosing 
• PALC 614 – Advanced Spirituality and Psychosocial Skills  
• PALC 611 – Advanced Non-Pain Symptom Management  
• PALC 612 – Advanced Disease State Management  

PBC Certificate in Leadership and Administration in Hospice and Palliative Care 

• PALC 608 – Hospice Leadership and Administration 
• PALC 609 – Palliative Care Leadership and Administration 
• PALC 610 – Practice Development and Strategic Planning 
• PALC 602 – Principles and Practices of Palliative Care Education 

PBC Certificate in Psychosocial/Spiritual Aspects of Hospice and Palliative Care 

• PALC 613 – Advanced Decision-Making and Communication Skills 
• PALC 614 – Advanced Spirituality and Psychosocial Skills 
• PALC 606 – Self-Care for Health Care Professionals 
• PALC 602 - Principles and Practices of Palliative Care Education 

PBC Certificate in Pediatric Palliative Care 

• PALC 620 – Disease State Evaluation and Management in Pediatric Palliative Care 
• PALC 621 – Pain and Symptom Management in Pediatric Palliative Care 
• PALC 622 – Communication, Grief and Bereavement in Pediatric Palliative Care 
• PALC 623 – The Practice of Pediatric Palliative Care 

PBC Certificate in Research in Palliative Care (requires permission of Program Director to apply) 

• PALC 652 – Applied Biostatistics in Palliative Care 
• PALC 661 – Quantitative Research in Palliative Care 
• PALC 660 – Study Design and Critical Appraisal of Evidence 
• PALC 662 – Qualitative Research in Palliative Care 
• PALC 670 – Person-Centered Research in Palliative Care 

Upon completion of this certificate, learners will be able to:
1.    Collaborate effectively as members of an interdisciplinary team to deliver patient- and family-centered hospice and palliative care.
2.    Assess and incorporate patient and surrogate goals, preferences, values, and cultural beliefs into care planning.
3.    Apply evidence-based approaches to the assessment and management of pain and common symptoms associated with serious illness.
4.    Assess psychosocial, spiritual, cultural, and existential aspects of care and incorporate findings into interdisciplinary care planning.
5.    Communicate effectively with patients, families, caregivers, communities, and healthcare professionals regarding goals of care, serious illness, and end-of-life decision-making.
6.    Recognize and address ethical issues encountered in hospice and palliative care practice.
7.    Promote health equity and culturally responsive care for diverse populations.
8.    Evaluate personal and team resilience and implement strategies to prevent burnout, moral distress, and compassion fatigue.
9.    Contribute to quality improvement, education, and professional development activities that enhance hospice and palliative care services.

Upon completion of this certificate, learners will be able to:

1.    Perform comprehensive assessments of patients with serious illness to identify physical, psychological, social, and functional needs.
2.    Develop evidence-based treatment plans for complex pain and non-pain symptoms.
3.    Apply advanced knowledge of pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic symptom management strategies.
4.    Integrate patient goals, prognosis, and treatment burden into clinical decision-making.
5.    Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams to address complex clinical needs across care settings.
6.    Identify patients appropriate for palliative care or hospice services using prognostic and clinical indicators.
7.    Manage clinical challenges involving special populations, including pediatric, geriatric, and medically complex patients.
8.    Apply ethical principles and communication skills in situations involving serious illness, life-sustaining treatment decisions, and end-of-life care.
9.    Monitor outcomes and adjust care plans based on patient response and evolving goals of care.

Upon completion of this certificate, learners will be able to:

1.    Compare and contrast the traditional medical model of care for people with serious illness to the experience model of hospice care.
2.    Self-assess personal leadership style and values.
3.    Describe the leadership role of “change agent” and examine factors that impede and promote adaptive change and collaboration.
4.    Develop and apply strategies to foster a healthy hospice organizational culture, including strategies to synthesize the “team” concept of care delivery at an organizational level.
5.    Describe standard fiscal management principles and key metrics to the development and oversight of a hospice entity.
6.    Distinguish fiduciary responsibilities of the governing body from operational responsibilities in both not-for-profit and for-profit organizations.
7.    Describe strategies for selecting, developing and retaining top employee and volunteer talent.
8.    Recognize the role for leaders in advocacy and influencing public policy to promote better care for those with advanced and terminal illnesses.
9.    Describe elements of an ethical marketing and communications strategy for a hospice program.
10.    Identify the necessary systems for maintaining effective QAPI and regulatory compliance.
11.    Explain opposing legal and ethical perspectives of “death with dignity” (physician assisted death/suicide, terminal sedation, right to life/death) and the role of hospice leadership within such debate.

Upon completion of this certificate, learners will be able to:

1.    Conduct advanced psychosocial, spiritual, existential, and cultural assessments of patients and families affected by serious illness.
2.    Apply advanced communication and decision-support skills during difficult conversations, goals-of-care discussions, and end-of-life transitions.
3.    Develop interventions that address coping, suffering, resilience, grief, bereavement, and caregiver burden.
4.    Integrate ethical principles and frameworks into complex palliative care decision-making.
5.    Promote inclusion, cultural humility, and equitable access to psychosocial and spiritual care services.
6.    Collaborate effectively with interdisciplinary team members to address whole-person and family-centered care needs.
7.    Implement strategies that support workforce well-being and reduce moral distress, burnout, and compassion fatigue.
8.    Design educational initiatives that strengthen psychosocial and spiritual competencies among healthcare professionals.
9.    Demonstrate reflective practice, self-awareness, and lifelong learning in psychosocial and spiritual palliative care.

Upon completion of this certificate, learners will be able to:

1.    Assess and manage the unique physical, developmental, psychosocial, spiritual, and cultural needs of children with serious illness.
2.    Apply developmentally appropriate approaches to pediatric pain and symptom management.
3.    Communicate effectively with pediatric patients, families, and caregivers regarding serious illness, goals of care, and treatment decisions.
4.    Support grieving children, siblings, parents, and caregivers using evidence-based bereavement interventions.
5.    Collaborate with interdisciplinary pediatric palliative care teams across healthcare settings.
6.    Address ethical, legal, and cultural considerations unique to pediatric palliative care.
7.    Promote equitable access to pediatric palliative care through culturally responsive and family-centered practices.
8.    Coordinate care across settings and transitions to ensure continuity of support for pediatric patients and families.
9.    Demonstrate commitment to quality improvement, lifelong learning, professionalism, and self-care in pediatric palliative care practice.

Upon completion of this certificate, learners will be able to:

1. Critically evaluate and synthesize hospice and palliative care evidence. Apply principles of evidence-based practice, systematic inquiry, and critical appraisal to evaluate published literature and synthesize findings that inform clinical practice, education, leadership, and future research.
2. Design methodologically rigorous palliative care research studies. Develop research questions and select appropriate qualitative, quantitative, mixed-method, or person-centered research methodologies that address important issues in hospice and palliative care.
3. Apply statistical and analytical techniques to research data. Utilize biostatistical principles, measurement theory, sampling strategies, and analytic approaches to evaluate research findings and support valid scientific conclusions.
4. Conduct ethically sound and person-centered research. Design and implement research that incorporates ethical principles, stakeholder engagement, health equity considerations, and the perspectives of patients, families, caregivers, and communities affected by serious illness.
5. Generate and disseminate scholarly products that advance palliative care knowledge. Prepare systematic reviews, research reports, presentations, manuscripts, and other scholarly products that contribute to the evidence base and promote translation of research into practice.
6. Contribute to the advancement of hospice and palliative care through scientific inquiry and interprofessional collaboration. Collaborate with researchers, clinicians, educators, and stakeholders to develop, conduct, and disseminate research that advances the science, quality, accessibility, and effectiveness of hospice and palliative care.

Graduates develop the competencies necessary to participate effectively in hospice and palliative care delivery across care settings while supporting quality, safety, and equitable access to care.  

The various certificates prepare graduates to: 

• provide assessment and management of patients with serious illness  
• deliver developmentally appropriate, family-centered palliative care  
• grow leadership skills to develop, administer, evaluate, and improve hospice and palliative care programs 
• develop skills to lead and support psychosocial and spiritual aspects of comprehensive palliative care across settings.