Is a Master’s in Child Life Worth It? Erikson Grads Say Yes

Top 3 Takeaways

1. Child life specialists work in hospitals and other healthcare settings, providing mental health support and caring interventions to children and their families as they cope with trauma, injuries or illnesses.
2. Erikson Institute’s master’s degree in child development with child life concentration is unique in the field, with its focus early childhood development and reflective practice.
3. Erikson child life graduates are well prepared and sought after for a range of roles in this dynamic, rewarding field.

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A Dream Realized: Christia’s Child Life Journey

Currently a third-year child life student at Erikson, Christia Provido says her program has confirmed that child life is the right career for her. “I feel like for me it was worth it. Erikson is known to have strong students who are ready to become a part of the field,” Provido says. “When I applied for internships, I was ready to step in.”

In fact, Provido was so well prepared that she was hired at her internship placement, Advocate Children’s Hospital – Park Ridge, initially to cover for a colleague who went on childbirth leave, but then for a full-time, permanent position. For Provido, working in a hospital setting was her top priority but she didn’t want to be a doctor or a nurse. “I knew I wanted to provide psychosocial support for children and families in a healthcare setting.”

Though Provido worked in an early childhood setting prior to starting graduate school, she feels Erikson has given her additional knowledge and skills to succeed as a child life specialist.

“I started as a child development supervisor, working in the classroom. I worked with children and toddlers,” Provido says. “I felt I had the basic knowledge, but I wasn’t fully prepared to be a child life specialist and that is what Erikson has prepared me to be. With my master’s I feel more knowledgeable.”

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A Master’s Degree That Opens Doors

Jenny Kemp Berchtold, Director of Child Development at Erikson, and an alum of Erikson’s first class of child life specialists, says the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP) has endorsed Erikson’s child life master’s program because the faculty go above and beyond to prepare students for their career path. “Our students can do an internship anywhere; the program really opens up a lot of possibilities. Nearly 80% of our students obtain a full-time paid position before graduation,” Kemp Berchtold says.

Why Choose Erikson’s Child Life Program

In Erikson’s child life program, students learn how to serve children and families from many different backgrounds, and they also learn about themselves through reflective practice, an approach that fosters self-knowledge and mutual support in small seminar groups that are found within all of Erikson’s academic programs. “The program prepares students to work with families in stressful and traumatic situations,” Kemp Berchtold says.

“Erikson’s program focuses on working with families from different backgrounds and different abilities, that is very important in our profession,” Provido says. “It is rewarding to see how we can be the one safe person for the child.”

From Provido’s perspective the future of child life is incredibly bright. “Child life can be in so many settings, including non-profit organizations. I want to learn about organizations that promote child life globally and hopefully expand child life services outside of the United States,” she says.