The program prepares students to use creative art activities to improve individuals' physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Upon completion, students would be prepared to work as a facilitator/activity therapy assistant in a variety of settings such as nursing homes, rehabilitation, educational, correctional facilities, and hospice.
Students can apply credits from the certificate to an Associate of Arts degree and would be prepared to transfer to a four-year degree program in the area of Art Therapy. Professional level certification in Art Therapy requires appropriate work experience and a masters degree from an approved accredited program.
Program contact: Learn more
Financial Assistance funds cannot be applied towards this program.
This certificate will be automatically awarded when the certificate requirements are completed. If you do not want to receive the certificate, please notify the Office of the Registrar at RegistrarOffice@tri-c.edu.
Learn more about how certificate credits apply to the related degree.
This program has an approved transfer agreement with Ursuline College.
Program Learning Outcomes
This program is designed to prepare students to demonstrate the following learning outcomes:
- Lead and instruct a creative arts activity to a class in a variety of settings including community/recreational programs, senior-wellness programs, outpatient programs, retirement facilities, nursing homes/rehabilitation centers, correctional facilities, etc.
- Demonstrate proficiency in a variety of studio art media for art therapy, such as but not limited to drawing, painting, clay, ink, collage, sand-tray, and a variety of other 2-D and 3-D work.
- Apply the creative process to oneself and others to use and interpret art as a healing technique, a vehicle for change, and for human development and growth.
- Use characteristics of varied art media skillfully to evoke feeling and response for a diverse group of clients.
- Communicate effectively, orally and in writing, with colleagues and administrators, students in a class, individual clients, in group settings and one-on-one.
- Use interaction, observation, and listening skills to identify needs, strengths, and weaknesses of clients in order to recommend appropriate support systems/activity plan.
| Summer Start | Credit Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| ART-1600 | Introduction to Art Therapy 1 | 3 |
| ART-1610 | Art Therapy II: Methods and Media 1 | 3 |
| PSY-1010 | General Psychology | 3 |
| Credit Hours | 9 | |
| First Semester | ||
| ART-1050 | Drawing I | 3 |
| ART-2300 | Art Therapy III: Approaches and Techniques | 3 |
| COMM-1010 | Fundamentals of Speech Communication | 3 |
| PSY-2020 | Life Span Development | 4 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| College Composition I | ||
| Honors College Composition I | ||
| Credit Hours | 16 | |
| Second Semester | ||
| ART-2050 | Painting I | 3 |
| ART-1700 | Ceramics I | 3 |
| ART-2310 | Art Therapy Studio: Basic Therapeutic Skills | 3 |
| PSY-2081 | Psychopathology | 3 |
| Credit Hours | 12 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 37 | |
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Courses run in consecutive 5 week sessions.
MATH-1140, MATH-1141, MATH-1200, MATH-1270, and MATH-1280 can no longer count towards fulfilling the college-level mathematics requirement. These courses were re-classified as developmental mathematics by the state of Ohio in 2016. Tri-C established a 5-year transitioning window for students who had completed these courses prior to 2016 to apply them towards meeting graduation requirements, which expired in Summer 2021. It is highly recommended to see a counselor to determine the appropriate math required for your current major.