Funeral Services, Funeral Director Major, AAS

The Funeral Services Director major will be accepting applications for Fall 2023 admission from May 8, 2023 through June 16, 2023. Please click here to apply.

Students who wish to be provisionally placed into the AAS Funeral Services Director Program should contact the Advising Center at advising@brightpoint.edu.

 

PURPOSE: This two-year degree prepares students for jobs as funeral directors. Students who complete this degree are eligible to take the national board exam which is required to become a licensed funeral director. This degree is offered at the Chester Campus. All career-technical degrees are guided by advisory committees comprised of local business leaders.

CREDENTIALS: An Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree is a major in a career-technical area that takes two years for full-time students to complete.  Although the purpose of an AAS degree is to gain skills for employment, some transfer institutions may accept some or all of the courses from an AAS major. Students who complete this degree are eligible to take the national board exam which is required to become a licensed funeral director.

The college has entered into a regional reciprocity agreement through NC-SARA to accept out-of-state students (except for students residing in California) in our online programs and courses. Students may contact the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) at 804-225-2600 or communications@schev.edu for information related to state agency contacts for complaint resolution. General disclosure information about external certification or licensure requirements outside the state of Virginia may be found at www.brightpoint.edu/NC-SARA.   

PROGRAM OUTCOMES: By the completion of this program, students will be expected to demonstrate an intermediate level of competency in the following skills:

1. Explain the importance of funeral service professionals in developing relationships/tips with the families and communities they serve.
2. Identify standards of ethical conduct in funeral service practice.
3. Interpret how federal, state, and local laws apply to funeral service in order to ensure compliance.
4. Demonstrate skills required for conducting arrangement conferences, visitations, services, and ceremonies.
5. Describe the requirements and procedures for burial, cremation, and other accepted forms of final disposition of human remains.
6. Describe methods to address the grief-related needs of the bereaved.
7. Describe and explain management skills associated with operating a funeral establishment.
8. Demonstrate verbal and written communication skills and research skills needed for funeral service practice.

ACCREDITATION: The Funeral Services Director program at Brightpoint Community College is approved by the Virginia State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors. The American Board of Funeral Services Education (ABFSE) currently does not approve programs of this type. 

UNIQUE ASPECTS OF THE FUNERAL SERVICES DIRECTOR PROGRAM: The Funeral Services Director Program at Brightpoint is one of two funeral services directors programs in Virginia. Because there are limited options for studying funeral services directing in the Commonwealth, the college’s program is designed to be accommodating for students who may be traveling for class and/or working while enrolled in the program. Funeral services courses at Brightpoint are offered in a one-day-a-week format, rather than the traditional two- or three-day-a-week format. This type of scheduling alleviates the need for students to travel to the Chester Campus multiple times per week to attend classes. In addition, the program offers some evening courses and courses during the summer semester.

Program Requirements and Special Conditions

1. Students must contact the Advising Center to be provisionally placed in the Funeral Services Director curriculum. In addition to completing a general application to Brightpoint, students must also apply to the Funeral Services Director Program during the application period. To be considered for full admission into the Program, students must:

a. Be 18 years of age or older.

b. Complete the following required courses with a grade of “C” or better: ACC 211 Principles of Accounting I, BUS 100 Introduction to Business, BUS 241 Business Law I, CST 100 Principles of Public Speaking, ENG 111 College Composition I, Math or Science Elective (choose 1) BIO 145 Basic Anatomy and Physiology, CHM 110 Survey of Chemistry, or MTH 130 Fundamentals of Reasoning, ITE 152 Introduction to Digital and Information Literarcy and Computer Applications, FNS 110 Introduction to Funeral Service, PHI 220 Ethics, PSY 116 Psychology of Death and Dying, REL 230 Religions of the World, SDV 100 College Success Skills, SOC 200 Principles of Sociology  

2. If there are a limited number of slots for full-admission into the A.A.S. in Funeral Services Director Program, students will be ranked by GPA and whether they are currently employed in a funeral home.

3. Students must maintain a 2.0 GPA to continue in the Program. Students who fail to receive a minimum grade of “C” in any two courses with the prefix FNS will be removed from the Program. A minimum grade of “C” is required for all courses in the Funeral Services Director Program.

4. Once receiving full admission into the Funeral Services Director Program, full-time students will have 4 semesters (including summer) to complete the Program. Part-time students must complete the Program within 6 semesters (including summer). Exceptions may be made by the Funeral Services Department Chair on a case-by-case basis.

5. All Funeral Services courses taken previously at Brightpoint or any other accredited program must have been completed within 5 years of applying for full admission to the Program.