Ron Johnson - (901) 333-6467

The Associate of Applied Science degree in Funeral Service Education at Southwest Tennessee Community College prepares students for any career entry level position as a funeral director and embalmer. 

Each program in funeral service education must have as its central aim recognition of the importance of funeral service personnel as:

• Members of a human services profession
• Members of the community in which they serve
• Participants in the relationship between bereaved families and those engaged in the funeral service profession
• Professionals knowledgeable of and compliant with federal, state, provincial/territorial, and local regulatory guidelines in the geographic areas where they practice, as well as professionals sensitive to the responsibility for public health, safety, and welfare in caring for human remains

Program objectives for the Funeral Service Education, A.A.S. program include:

• Enlarge the background and knowledge of students about the funeral service profession
• Educate students in every phase of funeral service and help enable them to develop proficiency and skills necessary for the profession
• Educate students concerning the responsibilities  of the funeral service profession to the community at large
• Emphasize high standards of ethical conduct
• Provide a curriculum at the post secondary level of instruction
• Encourage student and faculty research in the field of funeral service

This program is seeking candidacy through the American Board of Funeral Service Education (ABFSE), 992 Mantua Pike, Ste 108, Woodbury Heights NJ 08097.  Once the Funeral Service Education program is accredited by ABFSE, graduates will be eligible to take the National Board Examination. Graduates must successfully complete an apprenticeship and the State of Tennessee funeral service law exam to become a licensed funeral director or embalmer.

This program has been approved by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC).