Program Overview

The Professional Certificate in Children and Loss is a collaborative program between RCSI and the Irish Hospice Foundation. This program aims to equip professionals with the skills to understand and support children and adolescents who are grieving.

Award and Duration

• Award: Professional Certificate
• Duration: 7 months
• Mode of delivery: Hybrid - Part-time
• Credits: 20 ECTS

About the Program

The program seeks to address the significant personal, community, and health impacts of loss and bereavement on children and adolescents. It is designed for professionals whose work brings them into contact with children who are bereaved through a family death or parental separation.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the program, participants will be able to:

• Demonstrate a critical understanding of core theories and ethical underpinnings of children and young people's experiences of death loss and non-death loss.
• Determine the central principles essential to organizational and personal support while working with bereaved children and young people.
• Evaluate the impact of a range of losses and changes on children and young people at different developmental stages.
• Appropriately assess the resilience of bereaved children and young people and their familial and community supports.
• Justify appropriate level 1 and level 2 interventions for children and young people according to their needs.
• Apply new knowledge and skills into professional practice.
• Reflect on professional development and personal growth through the educational experience.

Modules

The program consists of two modules:

1. Understanding Children and Loss: Critically evaluate the core theories and ethical frameworks underpinning the understanding of children and young people's experiences of death loss and non-death loss.
2. Addressing Loss Issues with Children: Critically determine the central competence and ethical principles essential to organizational and personal support while working with children and young people experiencing a death or non-death loss.

Schedule

• Module 1 (September-December 2026): Orientation session in-person, other lectures online.
• Module 2 (January-March 2027): Lectures in-person, with one online integrative session.

Accreditation and Recognition

• Accredited by RCSI and National University of Ireland as a Level 9 qualification.
• Supports the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) with 20 credits awarded.

Admissions

• Entry requirements: Professionals with a Level 8 degree in a relevant area or international equivalent, or eligibility through a recognition of prior learning (RPL) process.
• English language requirement: Applicants for whom English is not their native language may need to arrange a test to confirm proficiency in English.

Fees and Funding

• Total fee: €1,800
• Payment methods: Electronic funds transfer or credit/debit card.
• A non-refundable deposit of €250 is required on acceptance of a course place.
• Cancellations up to three weeks prior to the course commencing will be given a full refund, minus a cancellation fee of €200.

Suitable for

This program is suitable for professionals such as teachers, chaplains, social workers, social care workers, psychologists, counsellors, nurses, and others who meet bereaved children in their work.

Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI)

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Overview:

RCSI is a university focused exclusively on health sciences. It offers a range of undergraduate and postgraduate programs, as well as professional development courses. RCSI emphasizes collaboration between students, educators, and researchers to advance human health.

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