Program Description and Learning Outcomes

Program Description

The Mortuary Science program is designed to educate students in all phases of funeral service with special attention being given to the high ethical conduct within the funeral service profession. The knowledge and skills learned will allow students to acquire positions working in funeral homes as funeral directors, embalmers, grief facilitators and pre-need specialists. In addition, the program is designed to develop funeral service professionals who are active in the community in which they serve, who are knowledgeable and compliant with federal, state and local area guidelines where they practice, who participate in building relationships with bereaved families and those engaged in the funeral service profession and are sensitive to the responsibility for public health, safety and welfare in caring for human remains.

The Mortuary Science program is designed to give students the fundamental knowledge and skills needed to acquire entry-level positions in the funeral service profession and to encourage research in the field of funeral service.

Program Learning Outcomes

Explain the importance of funeral service professionals in developing relationships with families and communities they serve.

Identify standards of ethical conduct in funeral service practice.

Interpret how federal, state, and local laws apply to funeral service in order to ensure compliance.

Apply principles of public health and safety in the handling and preparation of human remains.

Demonstrate technical skills in embalming and restorative art that are necessary for the preparation and handling of human remains.

Demonstrate skills required for conducting arrangement conferences, visitations, services, and ceremonies. 

Describe the requirements and procedures for burial, cremation, and other accepted forms of final disposition of human remains. 

Describe methods to address the grief-related needs of the bereaved.

Explain management skills associated with operating a funeral establishment. 

Demonstrate verbal and written communication skills and research skills needed for funeral service practice.