Online Bachelor of Science in Funeral Service Management

Course descriptions are designed to depict each course content in understandable items to aid the student in a complete comprehension of requisite studies to attain the objectives of the program.

 

BFS 310 - Thanatology (5 QH)

This course is intended to familiarize the student with the study of death and dying. Students will discuss various societal attitudes about death and how death is addressed and taught in society, how the current healthcare system supports or hinders the process of dying, end-of-life concerns for the terminally ill and their families, and the impact on survivors from traumatic or sudden death circumstances.

 

BFS 311 – Applied Thanatology (5 Qtr. Credits)

This course is designed to expose the student to the professional practice of thanatology and to deliver that in-depth knowledge and comprehensive training so you’ll be ready to positively impact lives. It is intended to familiarize the student with deeper aspects of thanatology, and components that overlap with professional work in end-of-life careers. Students will learn the difference between a disposition and a funeral rite, the value of meaning-making and the impact on mental health, what a death doula is and is not, setting appropriate boundaries and navigating dual-relationships, techniques for improving self-care and reducing compassion fatigue, contemporary issues in end-of-life careers and methods for engaging with the public.

 

BFS 315 – Death Companioning (5 Qtr. Credits)

In this course, students will become familiar with the modern American death landscape, identify the differences between hospice and palliative care, learn about the stages of active death, identify normal childhood developmental comprehension of death and the history of death companioning. Students will be able to give examples of compassion fatigue, distinguish between sympathy and empathy, and describe the appropriate role of a death companion.

 

BFS 320 - Experiencing World Religion (5 QH)

This course will examine religion as a living cultural experience, and will include systems of belief and how those beliefs are expressed with regard to funeral traditions from around the world. We will also study how those beliefs are expressed in ceremonies, food, clothing, art, architecture, scripture, and music.

 

BFS 330 - Intercultural Appreciation for Funeral Service (5 QH)

This introductory course provides students a framework on which to build their intercultural communication skills. The world can be a very small place, and funeral directors can regularly be faced with interacting with different cultures. By understanding the complexities of intercultural interaction, students can begin the process of learning about other cultures in their professional endeavors and personal relationships.

 

BFS 340 - Workplace Communications (5 QH)

This class will take a strategic approach to communication in the working world, using real-world practicality. Students will learn how to communicate in ways that enhance their own career success and help their funeral home operate effectively. There will be an emphasis on communication among ethnicities and cultural diversity, discussions of evolving communication technologies, and self-assessment tools, while incorporating digital teaching and learning tools to help students better connect to the course material and apply it to funeral service situations.

 

BFS 350 - Hospitality and Event Planning for Funeral Service (4 QH)

Funerals are not just rituals anymore, they are social events. In this class we will examine event planning as it relates to funeral service. The student will learn how to plan and see an event through from the early planning stages to clean up. Topics covered will include budgets and finance, site selection, contracts, vendors (such as caterers), food and beverage management, related technology, and hospitality law.

 

BFS 360 - Entrepreneurship (5 QH)

This course takes a hands-on, problem-based learning approach that works through real problems faced by entrepreneurs and small business owners. It is designed to put the student in the roles of financial analyst, marketer, and business owner to find solutions. Students will be provided with the necessary foundation to design, start, and manage their own funeral home.

 

BFS 370 - Marketing Funeral Service (5 QH)

Funeral directors and funeral home business owners are continually faced with how to make marketing decisions in deciding what customer to focus on and how best to meet their needs. This introductory marketing course will provide a basic marketing framework with a strategy planning focus. It will include recent best practices and will integrate the best digital tools for ensuring that students are prepared to engage, pursue and execute a successful marketing campaign for their business.

 

BFS 380 - Fundamentals of Preneed Sales (5 QH)

This course teaches students a detailed, yet broad, step-by-step selling process that is universal in nature but relates specifically to funeral service. It will demonstrate the order of steps within the selling process and will provide numerous examples of what should be in each step and show how the steps within the selling process interact with one another. Combined with up-to-date content and a strong ethical focus, this course teaches sales with a strong, practical focus that puts the customer first.

 

BFS 390 - Stress Management (5 QH)

This course empowers students to learn what stress is, evaluate their level of stress, and apply to their own lives the tools and skills to manage that stress. We will examine a variety of topics relevant to funeral professionals such as intrapersonal and interpersonal stressors, physiological reactions to stress, spirituality and stress, occupational stress, and family stress.

 

FIN 310 - (Open Elective) Essentials of Corporate Finance (4 QH)

This course will examine the most important concepts and principles of corporate finance at a level that is approachable for a wide audience. The course is a modern approach to finance, which has distilled the subject down to the essential topics in 18 chapters. The “why” is just as important, if not more so, than understanding the “how,” especially in an introductory course of finance. The course will enable one to understand key financial issues related to companies, investors, and the interaction between them in the capital markets. By the end of this course one should be able to understand most of what is read in the financial press and use the essential financial vocabulary of companies and finance professionals.

 

GBC 310 - (Open Elective) Changing Landscapes in Green Funeral Service (4 QH)

This course primarily explores the growth of ethical, compassionate, and environmentally sustainable green funeral service. Growing numbers of funeral consumers are expressing a strong interest in living—and dying—with a lighter hand on the land, creating a demand for innovative products and authentic services that they may not perceive to be available in standard conventional service. Many consumers have been drawn toward home funerals, home vigils, and green (or natural) burials, as well as biodegradable, fair-market, and footprint-conscious products. This course explores in depth the rise in environmentally-conscious products and practices, aesthetics and ethics. Learn how the contemporary perception of funerals is changing and how funeral service providers can meet their needs with integrity—and stay in business at the same time. Students who take and pass this course will be eligible to earn a Certificate of Proficiency in Green Funeral Service from the Green Burial Council.

 

HRM 310 - (Open Elective) Human Relations (4 QH)

This course studies research-based social science and management principles, as well as newer theories and philosophies of human relations drawn from management theory, group theory, personality theory, and relationship theory. More than ever, effective human relations skills are crucial to business success as organizations grow and compete in a global business environment. Employees must have the knowledge and skill to adapt to a workplace where change is frequent and inevitable.

 

HRM 320 - (Open Elective) Human Resource Management (4 QH)

This course will examine all of the important management functions in selecting the appropriate individual for the position available, including screening considerations, employment interviews, techniques of interviewing, preparation of resumes, application forms, and offer and acceptance letters. It will further identify key components like; employment relationships, orientation of new employees, compliance with EEOC guidelines, orientation and training, employee motivation and performance evaluations, compensation administration, and employee health and safety are also covered.

 

MGT 410 - (Open Elective) Applying Leadership Principles (4 QH)

This course will identify various leadership skills that are important to all fields of study because regardless of the role a person assumes in an organization he or she will need to influence others in order to accomplish the goals and tasks of their work. The course engages students in discussion, exploration and application of leadership skills, principles and practices. Students will learn about the relationships and connections among leaders, individuals and organizations. Topics include communication, motivation, problem solving, organizational change, and workplace conflict.

 

MGT 420 - (Open Elective) Choosing Success (4 QH)

This course focuses on how good decision-making skills determine success in all aspects of life. From study skills to money management, this course applies active and service learning techniques as well as the 5C decision-making model to prepare one for success. One does not merely become successful, but rather they choose to be successful.

 

MGT 430 - (Open Elective) Conflict Management and Negotiation (4 QH)

This course will explore ways to identify and analyze appropriate management strategies for dealing with various types of functional and dysfunctional conflicts in the workplace. This course will also focus on conflict management styles of avoidance, accommodation, collaboration, negotiation, mediation and domination.

 

MGT 440 - (Open Elective) Life-Span Development (4 QH)

This course will examine the current research and real-world application, helping students see how developmental psychology plays a role in their own lives and future careers. Through an integrated, personalized digital learning program, students gain the insight they need to study smarter and improve performance.

 

MGT 450 - (Open Elective) Organizational Behavior (4 QH)

This course will examine the effects of individual, interpersonal, group, and leadership factors on human behavior. Management applications of behavioral and social science concepts and theories are explored, to include those concerning motivation and communication, which helps students get a deeper understanding and scope of human behavior and interaction in professional organizations.

 

MGT 460 - (Open Elective) Interpersonal Conflict (4 QH)

This course in Interpersonal Conflict explains the key dynamics of personal conflicts that we all face. Key areas of discussion will include communication and conflict, interpersonal conflict, conflict management, conflict and negotiation, and conflict in personal relationships. The course will examine the central principles of effective conflict management in a wide variety of contexts--whether at home or on the job. Presented will be a combination of up-to-date research and examples giving students a theoretical and practical foundation in conflict management.