Early Childhood Education
The certificate is only available to students living in Washington state who are currently working on a Human Development degree, and who have satisfied the necessary prerequisites.
Do you have a desire to strengthen individuals, families, and communities? WSU’s online certificate in early childhood education develops your understanding of how a variety of educational approaches, social policies, and prevention/intervention strategies influence the development of children, youth, and families.
The online early childhood education certificate addresses the complex ways in which child development is influenced by biological, family, neighborhood, school, and community factors, and how this knowledge can be applied to designing innovative and effective programs for young children and their families. This certificate is ideal for students pursuing a degree in human development who would like to specialize in early childhood.
Potential Careers
The early childhood education certificate prepares students for careers in institutions and settings that focus on young children. Graduates have been employed at child care centers, pre-school settings, Child Protective Services, and crisis nurseries.
A graduate explains the program in the video below.
Program of Study
All courses are 3 semester credits, unless noted.
Students must maintain an overall GPA of 2.6 in those courses that count toward the certificate.
A student must have already earned a WSU Human Development degree or are currently pursuing the Human Development degree with the Early Childhood Education option.
- HD 235 – Introduction to Early Childhood Programs
- HD 302 – Parent-Child Relationships (Prereq: Sophomore standing)
- HD 306 – Child Development (Prereq: HD 101, Sophomore standing)
- HD 341 – Guidance in Early Childhood Programs (Prereq: HD 306)
- HD 342 – Curriculum for Early Childhood Programs (4 credits with community-based practicum; Prereq: HD 235; HD 341)
- HD 482 [M] – Child Assessment and Evaluation (Prereq: HD 306; Junior standing)
- HD 445 – Early Childhood Professional Preparation seminar (Prereq: HD 342, department permission)
- HD 446 – Practicum in Early Childhood Programs (6 credits with community-based practicum; Prereq: HD 342, HD 445, by department permission)
The maximum number of credit hours earned at other institutions that may apply towards a WSU certificate shall not exceed ¼ of the total number of credit hours required for the certificate.