The Child Life Program offers a 100-hour comprehensive practicum experience for students seriously interested in pursuing their certification to become a Child Life Specialist. This practicum experience is designed to help students gain an accurate perspective of the Child Life profession. Practicum students are exposed to a variety of Child Life educational opportunities, as well as the variety of experiences facing children and adolescents in the healthcare setting. Students will observe Child Life interventions as well as facilitate and engage patients in therapeutic activities. This learning experience is highly recommended for those students who are considering a career as a Certified Child Life Specialist and is often a prerequisite when applying for a Child Life internship. The Child Life Program at Cooper does not offer a Child Life internship.
Practicum students must complete their 100 hours within the approximate 12-week period. Students may choose to do one full day or two half days in order to complete the necessary 8-10 hours a week. Due to staff limitations, we currently accept only one applicant per semester to our practicum program. While it is not a requirement for our practicum program, we do encourage our applicants to enroll in a course taught by a Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS), in accordance with Child Life Council certification requirements.
For more information about available courses taught by a CCLS click HERE.
Interested candidates may complete and submit the practicum application packet.
We do accept applicants who are not affiliated with a college or university.
If you have questions, please email Child-Life@cooperhealth.edu.
Application deadlines:
- Fall – Application due March 15, 2024, session starts early September 2024.
- Spring – We will not be offering a Spring 2024 Practicum.
- Summer – Application due January 5, 2024, session starts beginning of June 2024.
We are planning to conduct and are accepting applications for all sessions. If a session needs to be cancelled, that will be noted in the application deadline above.
For more information regarding Child Life specialist certification, please visit www.childlife.org