Master of Science in Mental Health and Wellness with Emphasis in Grief and Bereavement
Overview
Discover the Intersection of Mental Health and Grief
Enhance your ability to support end-of-life services with Grand Canyon University’s Master of Science in Mental Health and Wellness with Emphasis in Grief and Bereavement. This bereavement training degree is not a path to licensure, but instead provides an interdisciplinary program of study uniting grief research and theory with the science of mental health.
According to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, the number of people who received hospice services between 1990 and 2013 increased more than 7 times, from 210,000 to over 1.5 million.* As cultural willingness to address the process of death has expanded, so have career opportunities for those who specialize in this phase of life. This master’s-level grief and bereavement training degree does not lead to licensure, but the completion of the program positions you for leadership within a variety of individual, family and community services settings.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Degree Outcomes
Promote Wellness in the Face of Loss
The grief training degree is designed to allow students to understand best practices related to human resiliency, recovery and functioning. You will emerge from the bereavement training degree program with the ability to promote healthy solutions for mental health challenges related to loss. You will also benefit from GCU’s Christian worldview, gaining a strong ethical and spiritual foundation.
What You Will Learn
Gain a Psychosocial View of Bereavement
Coursework in the bereavement training degree program enables students to:
- Learn the cultural, spiritual and social foundations of how we experience grief
- Develop basic understanding of mental health and wellness practice
- Explore the application of ethics, cultural diversity, grief theory and end-of-life issues
- Examine the grief process as a shared experience of family and community
- Review appropriate services, interventions and treatments to achieve mental wellness
Career Outcomes
Lead Comprehensive End of Life Support
Provide grief and bereavement expertise within hospice facilities, churches, hospitals, schools, community-based organizations and other settings that provide comprehensive health and human services. The innovative bereavement training degree supports your ability to specialize in end-of-life support services. Sharpen your ability to assist various populations in recovering quality of life following tragedy and loss.
Course List
Program Core Courses
Course Description
This course is designed to prepare students for the graduate learning experience at Grand Canyon University. Students have opportunities to develop and strengthen the skills necessary to succeed as graduate students in the liberal arts. Emphasis is placed on utilizing the tools for graduate success.
Course Description
This course is an introductory course in mental health and wellness practices. The purpose of the course is to develop a basic understanding of mental health and wellness practices and wellness approaches. An overview of mental health disorders, basic overview of treatment practices, and the Dimensions of Wellness are covered.
Course Description
This course covers ethics and cultural diversity as it relates to mental health and wellness. The history of ethics is addressed, including how early ethical models evolved into modern ethical codes in the mental health and wellness professions. How ethics relates to legal standards and issues such as records and billing are addressed. Cultural diversity, sensitivity, and competence are covered.
Course Description
This course covers the history of grief theory research. It investigates common experiences of individuals experiencing a loss. The various forms of loss and the unique characteristics of grievers are examined. Resources for grief and bereavement are covered.
Course Description
This course reviews typical biopsychosocial responses to grief and loss. It Identifies and eliminates myths surrounding the grief process and thoroughly examines healthy and unhealthy ways of coping with loss. The course looks at grief from the shared experience of family and community.
Course Description
This course introduces the concept of death in society. Students examine research, theories, and case studies on the sociocultural dimensions of death and dying with a focus on end of life issues and grief management.
Course Description
This course explores how culture, spirituality, and society shape our understanding and experience of death and dying. While grief and loss are universal, how they are conceptualized and practiced around the world are largely determined by the confluence of these factors. Students become aware of how each of these overlapping areas have influenced their own views of death and dying as well as grasp a deeper understanding of others who are grieving.
Course Description
This course provides a comprehensive understanding of mental health, wellness, and health care, including the integration of these three fields. The course covers common mental health disorders, treatments, and supportive services, as well as an integrated focus on the mind and the body. The course examines the health challenges often faced by individuals with behavioral or mental health disorders, and it reviews appropriate services, interventions, preventative services, and treatments to achieve and maintain health and wellness.
Course Description
This course provides a practical, real-world exploration of the mental health and wellness field. Special focus is given to careers in mental health and wellness. The common duties and tasks performed by workers in the mental health and wellness field are investigated. Concepts covered throughout the program are examined through practical application. This course is the last course in the program of study; all other course work must be completed before this course.
Program Locations
Online
Evening
* Please note that this list may contain programs that are not presently offered as program availability may vary depending on class size, enrollment and other contributing factors. If you are interested in a program listed herein please first contact your University Counselor for the most current information regarding availability of the program.
* The Department of Education defines how an institution must calculate a program's On-Time Completion rate for federal disclosure purposes. The On-Time Completion rate is based on a program's published required number of months to complete all degree requirements as provided in the institution's catalog. Completion statistics are updated every January and are based on the cohort of students who started the program in the same year and then graduated within the published program length.
Online and Evening program disclosures* Please refer to the Academic Catalog for more information. Program subject to change.