Mortuary Science

A major in mortuary science trains students to work with dead bodies, teaches students grief counseling skills, and equips students with the essential business skills to run a funeral home. Students learn the art of embalming, a process that preserves a dead body for funeral services. They also learn the skills of a mortician, a professional who uses cosmetics on a dead body so the body can be viewed during open casket services. Students are familiarized with the funeral customs of various cultures, as well as with caskets, burial vaults and cremation, and their associated pricing. Courses include: professional ethics; principles of health and safety in working with the dead; and hands-on clinical training.

A major in mortuary science might sound a little morbid, but the truth is that people who are skilled in preparing the dead for burial play an important role in helping families of the deceased mourn the death of a loved one and honor their memory during a funeral service. If you have a desire to comfort grieving families, this may be an appropriate major for you. Funeral services is also a profitable and secure industry in which to work, as funeral services will always be needed in all areas of the country. With a degree in mortuary science, students can move on to pursue employment with funeral homes, hospitals, medical schools, health departments and medical examiners and coroners offices.