Graduate Certificate

Graduate Certificate Overview

The UF College of Medicine’s entirely online Graduate Certificate in Addiction and Recovery comprises six 3-credit required courses, for a total of 18 credit hours. Individuals with a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution or equivalent may apply for admission to the program. Students can go at their own pace in terms of how many courses they want to take at a time and can complete the program in as little as one year if desired. Many students take two courses per semester (fall, spring and summer) to complete the program in a year.

The Addiction and Recovery Graduate Certificate program is a perfect fit for professionals who desire the specialized skills necessary to pursue positions within the field of addiction or to complement their existing work. Those who can benefit include:

  • Social workers
  • Counselors (including substance use disorder counselors/substance abuse counselors)
  • Psychologists
  • Physicians
  • Nurses
  • Professionals in a range of other fields such as education, law, business, law enforcement and religious-based service

Students will have the opportunity to learn from national and international addiction experts. Teachers and mentors in the program have conducted groundbreaking scientific research in the field. Others evaluate and treat physicians, athletes, students and other patients daily at our department’s world-class treatment facilities.

Program Outcomes

By successfully completing the certificate program, graduates will be able to, among other things:

  • Apply proven, research-based methods for substance use prevention, diagnosis, screening, assessment, treatment and outcome evaluation
  • Identify appropriate counseling methods and resources for families, couples and significant others
  • Explain how to develop effective inpatient and outpatient treatment plans and monitor progress toward recovery
  • Identify methods and processes for individual and group counseling
  • Describe neurological processes affected by substance use and the mechanisms by which various drugs modify normal processes in the brain
  • Discuss how factors such as age, gender and ethnicity are linked to susceptibility to and effects of substance use
  • Explain how to tailor treatment based on factors such as stage of recovery, personal and cultural identity and treatment settings
  • Explain, interpret and utilize assessment results in making treatment recommendations
  • Outline models and theories of addiction, treatment and recovery
  • Establish effective counselor-client relationships
  • Evaluate the appropriateness of self-referral vs. counselor-referral and assess referral outcomes
  • Adhere to patient privacy and confidentiality laws, regulations and ethics standards
  • Engage and maintain relationships with community, governmental and other addiction-related resources
  • Explore options for financing of treatment
  • Cultivate personal, professional and cultural self-awareness as an addiction recovery clinician
  • Operate as part of a multidisciplinary treatment team
  • Relate U.S. and global trends in substance use

Graduate Certificate Admission Requirements

The minimum requirements to apply to the graduate certificate program are:

  • Bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution or equivalent
  • An upper-division GPA of at least 2.0 (Grade C) from a regionally accredited institution or equivalent

If you would like more information about admission requirements, please visit the admissions