Behavioral Health & Human Services
Students in the Behavioral Health and Human Services (BHHS) program will learn to advocate for individuals of all ages who are disabled, vulnerable, or underserved. Through this highly flexible and customizable program, students will focus their studies on providing support in a variety of health, human services, and education settings. Students will study human development and behavior, common conditions & disabilities, and the impact of environmental stressors and positive supports. This program's broad base of behavioral health, addiction, psychology, sociology, and social services coursework will prove valuable for those students who transfer to a four-year institution for social work, human services, psychology, or special education majors. They can start employment while continuing their education and move up the career ladder by addressing supervisory or middle management tasks across a variety of settings such as residential, clinics, schools, and other community support agencies.
The Human Services Assistant Certificate is designed to prepare students to support professional staff and social workers in their case management. This important role assists in the coordination of social service programs and provides outreach services and activities to community members including providing referral services to state, county and community health and human services agencies/organizations.
The 60-credit Behavioral Health & Human Services AS degree helps students move up the career ladder by addressing supervisory or middle management tasks across a variety of settings such as residential, clinics, schools, and other community support agencies
Students will develop knowledge of the Human Services and Social Work fields, career paths in the social services, and various needs of client populations. They also will be able to identify and support persons with mental health disorders and developmental disabilities, discuss supports and available services for referrals, differentiate among common mental health disorders and explore the history of mental health treatment and advocacy for change. The learner will be able to develop an awareness and understanding of the range of social and human services, identify and expand on professional behavioral skills needed to work in the healthcare field, and learn the roles and responsibilities that behavioral health/human services workers have in the healthcare field. In addition graduates will be able to identify and understand problem behaviors, assess/analyze functions of behaviors, and program design and implementation.
Out-of-State Students:
Students from outside Minnesota who are interested in taking this program online should verify that the program is recognized in their home state.