The Child Life & Family-Centered Care program at Boston University Wheelock College of Education & Human Development trains professionals to transform the healthcare experience of children, youth, and families in hospitals, clinics, and other settings. They learn to provide culturally competent care and work with faculty whose expertise includes pediatric hospice, spirituality and illness, and pain management for children with severe illnesses.
Many graduates of the Child Life & Family-Centered Care program go on to become successful leaders and change makers in the child life field. Most are certified child life specialists, and all of them have extensive experience supporting children, youth, and families in clinical settings.
Boston University’s Child Life & Family-Centered Care program was the first academic program to focus on the field—and the first to be endorsed by the Association of Child Life Professionals.
Spotlight
Child Life Around the World
“Child life specialists are the unsung heroes of pediatric healthcare,” write Maryam AlBahar and Tzu Yun (Alice) Chiu, who both graduated from the MS in Child Life program in 2023 and now work in Kuwait and Taiwan, respectively.
Child Life Celebrates 50 Years
BU Wheelock’s groundbreaking Child Life & Family-Centered Care program celebrated 50 years since it was founded with a special event for students, alumni, and faculty.
Child Life at 50
Fifty years after it was founded, BU Wheelock’s Child Life & Family-Centered Care program remains one of the most respected in the country.