Dominican University

Specialized Structure: Graduate Certificate

MSW students enroll in the Gerontology Graduate Certificate in Aging Care in their second year, and complete four, three-credit gero-specific courses. Students who already have an MSW degree may register for the extern program. Ten courses of our foundation curriculum are infused with gerontology. Two new electives have been developed for students in the certificate program: Clinical and Global Perspectives in Aging Care and Advanced Practice with Older Adults.

First and second year students are offered scholarships as an incentive to enroll in the certificate program. Students have the option of using the rotation model to develop their internship according to their learning interests, and may intern in local, national, or international agencies serving older adults. Marketing materials have been developed and recruitment efforts have been stepped up to enhance the visibility of the program. We are also in the process of hiring a full-time faculty in the area of clinical gerontology. Efforts to improve the program are ongoing and to a large extent dependent on the students' annual assessment of the gerontology competencies, needs analysis from the agencies, and alumni feedback.