Archive for the ‘Deathcare Training’ Category

Why Should You Attend an Accredited College for a Funeral Services Career?

Wednesday, February 24th, 2010

Get a diploma from an accredited institution for better job opportunities.

Get a diploma from an accredited institution for better job opportunities.

Many jobs in the funeral industry seek candidates who have a college education. While seeking a higher degree is commendable for any student, the choice of attending an accredited college, especially for the funeral industry, is imperative in your path to find a job or to build a career. Why should you seek an accredited college for your funeral career, and why is it so important?

First, an accredited college is a college that seeks confirmation from an accrediting agency to approve a program, its components, and the degree or certification. The United States has no Federal Ministry of Education or other centralized authority exercising single national control over post-secondary educational institutions in this country. The States assume varying degrees of control over education, but, in general, institutions of higher education are permitted to operate with considerable independence and autonomy. As a consequence, American educational institutions can vary widely in the character and quality of their programs.

While the U.S. Department of Education does not accredit educational institutions and/or programs, the Secretary of Education is required by law to publish a list of nationally recognized accrediting agencies that the Secretary determines to be reliable authorities as to the quality of education or training provided by the institutions of higher education and the higher education programs they accredit. This accreditation in the U.S. serves the purpose of helping students find a reliable and recognized college as well as help to avoid “diploma mills.”

There are two basic types of educational accreditation, one identified as “institutional” and one referred to as “specialized” or “programmatic.” Institutional accreditation normally applies to an entire institution, indicating that each of an institution’s parts is contributing to the achievement of the institution’s objectives, although not necessarily all at the same level of quality. Specialized or programmatic accreditation normally applies to programs, departments, or schools that are parts of an institution. The accredited unit may be as large as a college or school within a university or as small as a curriculum within a discipline.

Most of the specialized or programmatic accrediting agencies review units within an institution of higher education that is accredited by one of the regional accrediting commissions. However, certain accrediting agencies also accredit professional schools and other specialized or vocational institutions of higher education that are free-standing in their operations. Thus, a “specialized ” or “programmatic ” accrediting agency may also function in the capacity of an “institutional ” accrediting agency. In addition, a number of specialized accrediting agencies accredit educational programs within non-educational settings, such as hospitals.

In the funeral industry, the American Board of Funeral Service Education (ABFSE) is the only organization in the United States which represents faculty and administrators in the field of funeral service education. Additionally, ABFSE is the sole accrediting agency for funeral service education in the U.S. recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).

The ABFSE’s origins reach back to 1946 when its predecessor organization was founded as the Joint Committee on Mortuary Education by joint resolutions of the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA), the Conference of Funeral Service Examining Boards of the United States (ICFSEB [renamed the International Conference of Funeral Service Examining Boards in 1998]), and with the concurrence of the several associations of schools and colleges involved with funeral service/mortuary science education. The original authority of the Joint Committee included “setting up standards concerning the schools and colleges teaching mortuary science” and accrediting “schools and colleges of Mortuary Science…”

In 1959, the name of the Joint Committee on Mortuary Education was changed to its current name — the American Board of Funeral Service Education. In 1962, authority for the accreditation of all funeral service programs and institutions was assigned to ABFSE. A Commission on Schools was established within ABFSE in 1970 to deal exclusively with the accreditation of member institutions. Soon thereafter, in 1978, the Commission on Schools was changed to an autonomous, self-perpetuating committee of the ABFSE designated as the Committee on Accreditation (COA).

The COA is responsible for granting candidacy, initial accreditation, or re-accreditation to institutions of funeral service education. The minimum requirements for accreditation are that a program offer at least an associate degree, or its equivalent (i.e., 60 semester credits of a prescribed curriculum) and meet the required standards of the ABFSE. The Standards and associated policies are available on the ABFSE website (www.abfse.org). They may be accessed and downloaded by clicking on “About ABFSE” and “ABFSE Standards.”

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Educational Statistics for Funeral Services Careers

Monday, February 22nd, 2010

Skull Tombstone

Over the past 40 or 50 years, there have been significant changes in the profiles of both the institutions offering funeral service education and the students studying to become funeral directors/embalmers. Who studies for a funeral service career, and how much can individuals make in this field?

Two generations ago, funeral service education was offered almost exclusively by private institutions and virtually 100 percent of the students were male and, for the most part, sons of funeral home owners. Over 90 percent of the students were Caucasian. Most programs offered a diploma or a certificate that lasted less than a year, some as little as three months.

Today, according to statistics offered by the  American Board of Funeral Service Education (ABFSE), there are approximately 6500 students enrolled in funeral service education. Approximately 2500 are new students. Approximately 90 percent of these students come from the 31 states that currently offer a program.

Today female students make up a majority (57 percent) of enrollees. White students make up approximately 66 percent of the total while African Americans are 23 percent, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, and Asian

Americans are up four percent, and eight percent identify themselves as from other ethnic backgrounds.

The average age of the new student has remained relatively constant over the past decade with 17-22 year-olds making up 36 percent of new students and those over 30 making up 30 percent.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median annual wages for funeral directors were $52,210 in May 2008. The middle 50 percent earned between $38,980 and $69,680 and the lowest 10 percent earned less than $29,910 and the top 10 percent earned more than $92,940.

Salaries of funeral directors depend on the number of years of experience in funeral service, the number of services performed, the number of facilities operated, the area of the country, and the director’s level of formal education. Funeral directors in large cities usually earn more than their counterparts in small towns and rural areas.

According to BLS, funeral directors held about 22,000 wage-and-salary jobs in 2005, but many others were self-employed. Most of the self-employment positions are in small family-run funeral homes. BLS projects employment of funeral directors is expected to increase by 12 percent during the 2008-18 decade. As more people opt for cremation, some of the services that funeral directors provide, such as embalming, are less needed. Projected job growth reflects growth in the death care services industry overall due to the aging of the population.

Additionally, many funeral directors now offer a wider range of services—such as the creation of video tributes—to help people say goodbye to their loved ones in special ways. And several thousand jobs will be available to replace workers who leave the occupation permanently. Funeral directors are older, on average, than workers in most other occupations and are expected to retire in greater numbers over the coming decade. In addition, some funeral directors leave the profession because of the long and irregular hours. Job prospects may also be better for some mortuary science graduates who can relocate to get a job.

These employment opportunities tend to be best for workers who are willing to relocate or for those in large metropolitan areas. However, according to the American Board of Funeral Service Education, on a national basis there are generally more jobs available than there are licensed funeral directors to fill them. This availability varies from region to region and from town to town. Funeral service is a profession that most people enter only after having had positive personal experience and not as a result of reading books or watching videos.

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Education Requirements and Licensing for the Funeral Industry

Sunday, February 21st, 2010
Columbia Funeral Home in Seattle, Washington.

Columbia Funeral Home in Seattle, Washington.

If you are seeking a career opportunity in the funeral industry, you have numerous sources available to you to learn about educational requirements and licensing. The following information includes a summary of basic educational requirements for most states. You always can contact the funeral service college or check this list of State Funeral Directors Associations at the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) to learn more about specific education guidelines for each state.

With career opportunities in over 20,000 funeral homes across the U.S., you may find a need for a well-trained funeral service professional. Demand is greater for graduates who have prepared themselves for management positions by selecting business and communications courses as part of their college program.

Generally, you will need:

  • A high school diploma or equivalent (GED).
  • An Associate Degree, or its credit hour equivalent, a portion of which is in funeral service education, from an accredited educational institution.
  • Passing a state and/or national board licensing examination.
  • An internship or apprenticeship ranging from one to three years.
  • Many states require that funeral directors meet continuing education requirements to maintain licensure. (See State Boards and Licensing Requirements Information)

The funeral service curriculum, approved by the American Board of Funeral Service Education (ABFSE), the United States’ funeral service accrediting agency, includes courses in:

  • Public Health and Technical Area — microbiology, anatomy, chemistry, pathology, restorative art and embalming.
  • Business Management Area — business management, funeral arranging, funeral merchandising, funeral home management, computer applications, Federal Trade Commission Funeral Rule and accounting.
  • Social Science Area — sociology of funeral service, psychology of grief, funeral directing, history of funeral service, communication skills and counseling.
  • Legal, Regulatory and Ethical Area — business law, funeral service law and regulation and professional ethics.

To learn more about current jobs available in the funeral industry, visit the newest jobs available list at the NFDA’s Funeral Career Center.

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Deathcare Careers: Embalmers and Education

Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
Early embalming tools.

Early embalming tools.

According to Gary Laderman in his book, Rest in Peace, there are no statistical data for the number of bodies embalmed in the early decades of the twentieth century. However, according to many second- and third-generation funeral directors, embalming rapidly became a standard feature of the undertaking work performed by their predecessors. Even before funeral homes existed, embalming often was practiced at the home of the deceased.

From the time of the Civil War forward, more and more funeral men began to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to be certified as embalmers from the rapidly growing number of mortuary schools around the country. Between 1900 and 1920, schools devoted to training embalmers — “students often entered a class without much college or even high school education” — appeared in cities such as Minneapolis, Los Angeles and Cleveland.

Courses in these schools normally would last roughly six weeks. But, as curriculum requirements became more rigorous, state boards began to examine and license prospective embalmers and funeral directors and the overall appearance of serious educational training became more critical for professional legitimacy. School term lengths increased and subjects such as anatomy and chemistry became crucial components of an embalmer’s education. By 1934, courses began to last for nine months.

Unfortunately, at that time, rural areas had to rely on traveling instructors, or use educational texts that covered the basics of anatomy, physiology and embalming techniques. One funeral director from 1914 detailed his experience in Laderman’s book:

“There were no embalming schools in the early days. One learned from practical men or proctors, who had learned from peripheral men who became undertakers after the close of the Civil War. In the late ’90s and the early 1900’s, short courses were offered by men will versed in mortuary practice as learned from those  who served during the Civil War. These courses were offered over a period of one month or six weeks. Then, compends…were prepared and printed for reference for the beginners, and it covered anatomy and a lot of things like that.”

Despite this lack of schooling, embalming became the “enduring signature of the nascent funeral industry, a practice at the center of the economic, cultural and religious funereal universe…” Embalming had become the lifeblood of the American funeral industry from the beginning of the twentieth century forward. Embalming was presented as a thoroughly modern practice, yet part of a new American tradition. It had religious value for the living and it was a highly technical, hygienically-beneficial intervention that required the delicate skills of an artist.

Today, formal classroom time in the art and science of embalming and restorative art remains quite short. Post-graduate learning is limited to seminars — if and when they are available. Publications for the embalmer are very scarce. the American Society of Embalmers knows of five embalming associations in the United States, only three of which serve an entire state…

Only one journal is now in regular print for embalmers — and a portion of that journal is devoted to topics for the funeral director — since this journal is a fluid manufacturer’s “house organ” a majority of the articles discusses only their products. Seminars are infrequent and not always convenient for the embalmer to attend due to the work schedule. To this writer’s knowledge there are only four embalmers trade associations in the United States (and two are within the same state) which have been in existence for over 10 years. Smaller groups possibly exist within local communities. There is an international association of embalmers with a North American division — it has made a concerted effort to provide educational opportunities for the embalmer.

Is embalming taking a back seat to current American outlooks about death, the increase in cremations and the new interest in green funerals? How do you feel about embalming, and do you feel more education in this field is necessary?

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Virginians Have Access to Training at Well-Known Department of Forensic Science

Saturday, January 23rd, 2010

Virginia Forensic Science Academy Logo

The Department of Forensic Science (DFS) is a nationally accredited forensic laboratory system serving all of Virginia’s state and local law enforcement agencies, medical examiners, and Commonwealth’s Attorneys. Their examiners provide technical assistance and training, evaluate and analyze evidence, interpret results, and provide expert testimony related to the full spectrum of physical evidence recovered from crime scenes. According to the Web site:

The Forensic Training Section services the entire Criminal Justice System and in particular, over ten thousand law enforcement officers throughout the Commonwealth. Each year, approximately 20-30 programs of varying length and complexity are offered and about 600 – 700 officers are exposed to technical training. This training concerns the many services offered by the forensic laboratory of the Department of Forensic Science, so that the laboratory value of evidence discovered at a crime scene will be recognized and that the evidence will be properly handled.

Training Section also has the responsibility of the Virginia Forensic Science Academy, a 10-week school of crime scene technology. After successfully completing the 10-week course, the law enforcement officers should be able to demonstrate proper techniques of locating, recognizing and collecting items of physical evidence. They should also be able to preserve items of physical evidence, recognize the laboratory potential of examining physical evidence, properly package and submit physical evidence, and interpret a crime scene to develop a profile of a possible suspect.

Each year, Academy graduates are invited to attend a three-day retraining seminar to keep them abreast of changes in the areas of forensic science and evidence handling. In addition, one day workshops are presented to review problem areas involving physical evidence collection and to present case studies which illustrate evidence handling approaches and techniques.

Once a student has completed the courses, they have a choice of becoming active with the Forensic Science Adadamy Alumni Association. The goals of this organization are to bolster the work of the Forensic Science Academy as well as to encourage high standards of conduct by all crime scene processors.

The Department of Forensic Science is jointly involved with the Virginia Commonwealth University’s (VCU) forensic science programs. VCU offers both a B.S. and a M.S. in forensic science. The Master of Science in Forensic Science is one of only 15 of its kind in the United States and the lecture/laboratory courses are taught at the DFS Central Laboratory. More information about both programs can be found at http://www.has.vcu.edu/forensics.

For additional information on education opportunities and a career brochure visit the American Academy of Forensic Sciences Web site.

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