Degrees and Certificates
Early Childhood Development and Care Certificate
Do you have a desire to strengthen individuals, families, and communities? WSU’s online certificate in early childhood development and care 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 development and care 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, individuals who already hold a bachelor’s degree in another discipline, or persons currently working in the field of early childhood education who have at least 27 semester credits of college coursework.
The certificate is currently only available to students living in Washington state.
Potential careers
Program of study
The early childhood development and care 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.
Required (27 semester hours)
All courses are 3 semester hours, unless noted.
All courses must be completed with a grade of “B” (3.0) or better.
Courses must be taken in the order listed below.
Core Courses
6 semester credits
- HD 201 – Prenatal through Age 8 OR HD 340 – Development in Context
- HD 204 – Family Systems: Understanding Family Interaction
Specialized Courses
21 semester credits
- HD 341 – Learning and Guidance in Early Childhood
- HD 342 – Curriculum in Early Childhood Programs (4 credits with community practicum)
- HD 464 – Administration of Early Childhood Programs
- HD 497 – Professional Preparation for Internship (2 credits)
- HD 482 [M] – Child Assessment and Evaluation
- HD 446 – Practicum in Early Childhood Programs (community based practicum 6 credits)
Note: Anth/For L 350 or Engl 301 must be taken first, and Engl 498 must be taken last.
Highlight
Flexible enrollment courses are being converted to semester-based courses. The last day to register for a flexible enrollment course is February 5, 2008.