MSCD Child Life Concentration

In addition to the general admission and degree requirements for the child life specialist master’s program, we require the following for admission to this highly competitive child life graduate program:

1. Verification of at least 100 hours of work with children and families in a professional supervised setting through an internship or direct volunteer experience in a medical setting prior to your first academic term. Preferred: Evidence of a completed child life practicum in a hospital, verified by a Certified Child Life Specialist. If you don’t have hospital provided documentation, you can complete and submit Erikson’s hospital experience verification form prior to your first academic term.
2. A resume listing paid and volunteer experiences with children and families.
3. At least one letter of recommendation from a Certified Child Life Specialist.

Yes, our endorsed program allows you to pursue an internship at any hospital offering a formal internship program across the US. Your final year at Erikson is intentionally designed to be able to be completed from anywhere outside of Chicago, with all of your required coursework being offered virtually.

No. This degree program is considered a campus program where you are required to complete some or all your courses at our Chicago campus. Our child life-specific coursework, taken over the 3 semesters prior to internship, is offered in-person in a “community learning lab” style environment with your cohort. Cohorts are small and lend themselves to close and meaningful learning relationships, especially in the time that you share together on our Chicago campus. This specific coursework is offered on-campus only.

If you complete our 3-year program, you can choose to complete the first 3 semesters in Chicago on our campus or virtually from any remote location (please note: some synchronous course sessions on Zoom may be required, while other work can be done asynchronously on your own schedule). Then, the following 3 semesters are completed on campus prior to your two internship semesters. Your internship semesters can be done from the location of your internship placements.

Our 2-year program is completed with 3 semesters on campus, and 2 semesters which can be done from the location of your internship placements.

Please see the list of accredited hospital sites across the nation on the ACLP website. Erikson will support you in securing an internship with mentoring and coaching.

We cannot guarantee placement in an approved child life internship since the decisions for acceptance into the internships are the purview of the child life clinical programs. If you are unable to secure an approved internship in either the fall or spring semester, you will need to secure a child life internship during the summer term after the completion of your coursework. If you do not secure an internship after three attempts, you will need to graduate from Erikson Institute with a Master’s Degree in Child Development, but without a child life concentration. You may continue to seek a child life internship on your own after graduation but as an independent applicant, not affiliated with Erikson Institute.