Grief Support Group Certified Specialist

Grief Support Group Counseling Certification

“Dedicated to Continued Learning, Growth, and Achievement in Health Care Practice”

A women's grief counseling support group talking to a bereaved woman and comforting her.

***Achieve your Grief  Support Group Counseling Certification. This Grief Support Group Counseling Certification Specialty is available ONLY to those who are currently Certified as a Grief Counselor in the American Academy of Grief Counseling or hold a certificate in Grief Counseling from another organization AND meet our Grief Counseling Certification prerequisites***

For information on becoming a Certified Grief Counselor, please visit our program page here: Click Here

The American Academy of Grief Counseling offers comprehensive, quality, Grief Counseling Certification and Fellowship programs for qualified professionals including, physicians, nurses, counselors, social workers, funeral directors, clergy and other professional providers practicing in all specialties of Grief Counseling.

The objectives of the AAGC  are:

  • Provide high quality programs of Certification and Fellowship for professionals practicing grief/bereavement counseling with a specialty practice in group based grief counseling, with a specialty focus in grief support group counseling certification.
  • Develop and support high standards of education and practice requirements for the attainment of grief counseling support group certification, fellowship status, and re-certification in group based grief counseling.
  • Provide a mechanism for the ongoing involvement of a peer advisory board of qualified professionals to oversee program development and requirements for grief support group counseling certification and fellowship in the AAGC.
  • Provide society with a mechanism to ascertain the appropriate education, skills, knowledge and experience required by professionals who offer such services related to grief support group counseling.
  • Establish quality standards and requirements for the re-certification and re-fellowship of its credentialed members, attesting to ongoing education and skill attainment in the practice specialty of grief/bereavement counseling and who attain grief support group counseling certification.
  • Provide a comprehensive program of approvals for continuing education, seminars, offerings, independent study, and other related educational activities, to ensure high quality standards are met and that such programs are of value to professionals practicing grief and bereavement counseling with a specialty in grief support group counseling certification.

Certification

Certified Grief Counselor with a Specialty Certification in Grief Support Group Certified Specialist requires attainment of the following certification criteria:

  • Applicants must hold current Certification as a Certified Grief Counselor by the American Academy of Grief Counseling. To review all information on the Grief Counseling Certification program:   Access Information
  • Note: Other Applicants who hold a current Certification in Grief/Bereavement Counseling from another credible Organization may be considered for acceptance into this program. Each Applicant will be evaluated on an individual basis. Applicants, besides holding a Certification in Grief/Bereavement Counseling must also meet at least one of the prerequisites established to have entered our Core Grief Counseling Certification program. These prerequisites may be found here. Contact info@aihcp.org to inquire regarding qualifications to enter if you do not hold current certification as a Certified Grief Counselor in the American Academy of Grief Counseling.
  • Completion of the continuing education program in Grief Support Group Certified Specialist Practice offered by the American Academy of Grief Counseling. Upon completion of the four (4) core courses in the Grief Support Group Group Certified Specialist Practice CE Courses curriculum the candidate may then apply for official Certification. This program of education consists of core continuing education courses designed to meet the specific education standards as developed by the American Academy of Grief Counseling for the practice specialty of Group Support Grief Practice at the Specialty level. All courses are offered by distance education, and candidates have two full years to complete the complement of courses. For full program information: access here.

Once Certified, members must commit to adherence to the Code of Ethics for Certified Grief Counselors and adhere to their specific profession’s Standards of Practice.

Helping the bereaved is an important function of society as well as professionals. Please review on how to become a certified grief counselor

CERTIFICATION – IDENTIFICATION & CREDENTIALS

Those applicants who become certified by the AAGC in the specialty of Grief Support Group Certified Specialist shall be deemed “Certified” and may use the initials/credentials: “GSG-CSp” which stands for “Grief Support Group Certified Specialist”

TIMELINE

All certifications shall be for a period of 4 years from the date that the initial certification by the American Academy of Grief Counseling (AAGC) is granted.

KEY FAQSphoto a man in a suite with his hand on a touch screen touching a large icon with the word FAQ on it

What are the key benefits of achieving a Certification in this health care specialty practice?

Response: Some of the key benefits of receiving a Certification in Grief Support Group Counseling includes increasing your marketability in the work place, enhancing your knowledge and skills base in this specialty practice, increasing your earnings potential, commitment to ongoing professional development and continuing education, achieving recognition for accomplishments attained, networking with peers in the same practice specialty, and much more.

Must I take the continuing education courses/program to achieve my certification?

Response: Yes, our model for certification is designed so that our certified members have accomplished the same educational achievements and have consistency in knowledge and skills attainment. Many have experiences in many types of specialties practices, but are varied. Our model focuses on core and solid, comprehensive knowledge and skills that have been determined to practice the specialty at a higher level of quality practice. There are instances where past education may be used to waive some of the courses required. This is evaluated on an individual basis and more information may be found in our more comprehensive FAQS section: Access here

Do you offer a curriculum of continuing education courses that meet the requirements for your Certification standards?

Response: Yes, for each of our certification programs we offer full continuing education curriculums that are designed to meet full requirements for certification. Click on the link above (Ce courses and prices) for this program. All of our CE courses are authored and mentored by highly qualified faculty with graduate degrees.

Do your continuing education courses have any Board approvals?

Response: Yes, most all of our continuing education courses do have some or many Board approvals, depending on types of professional boards.  Please access more information: Access here

Does Society Expect Health Care Professionals to be “Certified” in specialty practices?

Response: It is safe to say that today our society expects health care professionals to be highly knowledgeable and to practice their professions as well as their specialty practices at high levels of safe care, quality standards, and to maintain a high level of ethical practice. One way in which our health care professionals may demonstrate this level of achievement is by attaining a recognized professional certification from an organization that has developed and upholds all of these important indicators of high- quality professional specialty practices. Certification in a specialty practice demonstrates the professionals commit to achievements in core defined domains of practice allowing more confidence by society as a whole.

Once I am certified by your organization, am I certified “for life?”

Response: You can be if you chose to be. We have a program of Recertification for all of our specialty practices. Initial certifications are for a four-year period. All those obtaining certification may re-certify upon meeting the specific requirements for recertification every four years. Certified members may recertify every four years indefinitely as long as they meet the recertification requirements for their practice specialty. We hold strongly to the belief that professional Certification requires that one commits to and maintains ongoing education, skills attainment and practice in their specialty practice. Our recertification process allows for the verification of these verifications of our members. We offer a large curriculum of continuing education courses for our certified members if they would like to meet continuing education hours of recertification. You may learn more about our recertification requirements: Access here

After reviewing all of the information on this page, I may have more questions, who may I contact?

Response: We are here to help and assist you in all ways possible. We have Live Chat online during normal business hours and you may access the Live Chat link above on this page. Also, please access our Contact Us Page

Please view more FAQS for this Practice Specialty. 

The Certification Process

We have a dedicated page that provides a quick over-view of our certification process. It will provide you with good information about the process/phases of both the education courses and application for certification. Click here to access.

Re-Certification

Once a Certified Grief Counselor by the American Academy of Grief Counseling achieves their Certification as a Grief Support Group Certified Specialist, this Specialty Certification becomes tied to their Certification as a Certified Grief Counselor (GC-C). When they re-new their Certification as a Certified Grief Counselor, their Specialty Certification as a Certification as a “Grief Support Group Specialist” will automatically recertify at that time with no additional charge at the time of recertification. This Specialty recertification will continue to renew along with their Certified Grief Counseling (GC-C) Certification for subsequent recertification periods as long as their maintain renewals of their GC-C Certification status in the American Academy of Grief Counseling.

For those who Achieved Certification as a Certified Grief Support Group Specialist who were admitted into the program based on another grief/bereavement certification credential other than the Certification in Grief Counseling by the American Academy of Grief Counseling, the following Recertification process will apply to them:

Those Certified members with the practice specialty certification, but who are not Certified in Grief Counseling Counseling by the American Academy of Grief Counseling, may receive recertification at the expiration of their four year term by:

  • Obtaining 50 or more hours of continuing education within the four year period of certification.
  • Meet the practice requirements in Grief Counseling for the four year period of initial certification.
  • Criteria for Recertification

Certificate

Those applicants who have successfully achieved certification, or recertification by the AAGC will receive a large size official Certificate attesting to certification as a Grief Support Group Certified Specialist, as well as an official letter of notification. The certificate is suitable for framing and details the official professional certification title, initials that may be used, and time frames for certification. Those recertifying receive a new, updated certificate.

Standards & Code of Ethics

The Code of Ethics for Certified Grief Counselors and Fellows of the American Academy of Grief Counseling may be viewed online by clicking here. The Code of Ethics is approved by the Governing Board and the Advisory Board of the American Academy of Grief Counseling.

Fee Schedule

  • The certification fee for Grief Support Group Certified Specialist is $220.00, plus shipping and handling, for the four year term of certification. All Certification packets, which include the official certificate, wallet ID card, and other related documents are shipped with tracking. Payment in full is due at the time of application. If an applicant does not meet certification criteria, the application fee is refunded. A completed application must be submitted with full payment to be considered for certification. The application form is available Here.
  • Application for Re-certification is $220.00, plus shipping and handling, for the next four year period only for those who are recertifying and are NOT currently certified as a Certified Grief Counselor by the American Academy of Grief Counseling. Those who hold current certification as a Certified Grief Counselor in the American Academy of Grief Counseling, will recertify their Grief Support Group Specialist Certification at the time that they renew their Grief Counseling Certification all for one fee of $ 220.00.  This is a one time payment and is required in full at the time of application for re-certification. A completed application must accompany the payment.
  • Major credit cards are accepted. Check and money orders are to be payable to: The American Institute of Healthcare Professionals.

Achieving Fellowship Status in Grief Support Group Counseling

The AAGC provides for a Fellowship status for Certified Grief Counselors. Fellowship is granted following the successful completion of all requirements as defined by the AAGC. Fellowship status is considered the highest form of professional recognition by a certification body, and attests to the Fellow’s ongoing commitment, knowledge attainment, skill, and practice experience in the field of professional Grief Counseling. Those who achieve Fellowship status are deemed a “Fellow in the American Academy of Grief Counseling “, and may use the initials, FAAGC. Fellows may also continue to use the initials GC-C as they maintain their initial certification along with their Fellowship.

Click here for Fellowship Information.

Online Application for Certification

Click here for the online application for certification.

Additional Resources

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