Mortuary Science and Funeral Service Courses | 2024-2025 Academic Catalog | SIU

Students will trace the history of funeral services from ancient times through contemporary practices with emphasis on the development of funeral practices in the United States. Students study the customs of various cultures throughout the world including customs in the United States. They will demonstrate a knowledge of funeral service organizations and will discuss current topic areas of the profession. Lecture three hours. Restricted to MSFS majors.

Credit Hours: 3

Designed to provide the student with an overview of psychology in funeral service as applied to death, grief and mourning. Students will examine interpersonal and public relations as they affect the funeral service practitioner. This course is writing intensive and reflects the College's Communication-Across-the-Curriculum initiative. Lecture three hours. Prerequisite: ENGL 101 with a grade of C or better.

Credit Hours: 3

The student will have knowledge of the federal, state and local regulations pertaining to the funeral profession. Studies will include the Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations, Americans with Disabilities Act, Uniform Anatomical Gift Act, the Federal Trade Commission requirements, Rules and Regulations for the Control of Communicable Disease and other such regulations governing funeral service. Lecture three hours. Restricted to MSFS majors.

Credit Hours: 3

The student will survey microbiology: morphology, physiology, populations of microbial organisms, microbial destruction, immunology, and pathogenic agents. Lecture three hours. Prerequisite: PLB 115 or ZOOL 115 or 118 and CHEM 106. Restricted to major.

Credit Hours: 3

Students will be introduced to the study of the cause, course and effects of diseases upon the human body, with stress on ways in which tissue changes affect the embalming process. Lecture three hours. Prerequisite: MSFS 256 and AH 241.

Credit Hours: 3

This course primarily explores the growth of ethical, compassionate, and environmentally sustainable green funeral services. Growing numbers of funeral consumers are expressing a strong interest in living-and dying-with a lighter hand on the land, creating a demand for innovative products and authentic services that they may not perceive to be available in standard services. Many consumers have been drawn toward home funerals, home vigils, and green (or natural) burials, as well as biodegradable, fair-market, and footprint-conscious products. This course explores in depth the rise in environmentally conscious products and practices, aesthetics and ethics. Learn how the contemporary perception of funerals is changing and how funeral service providers can meet their needs with integrity-and stay in business at the same time. Students who take and pass this course will be eligible to earn a Certificate of Proficiency in Green Funeral Service from the Green Burial Council.

Credit Hours: 2

Provides students with an opportunity to explore studies that fit a particular need or interest. Enrollment provides access to the resources of the facilities of the entire institution. Each student will work under the supervision of a sponsoring staff member. Restricted to MSFS majors.

Credit Hours: 1-16

The student will be introduced to techniques of embalming through a study of the body, sanitation, embalming agents, instruments and methods of embalming. The student studies the theory, practices and techniques of sanitation as well as restoration and preservation of deceased human remains. Laboratory experiences consist of embalming deceased remains and of other related activities. Lecture three hours. Laboratory two hours. Prerequisite: MSFS 345A, MSFS 345B, MSFS 257, Allied Health 241 or equivalent Anatomy with grades of C or better and proof of Hepatitis B vaccine or Titre test. Restricted to Mortuary Science and Funeral Service majors. Lab fee: $50.

Credit Hours: 4

The student will study the anatomy of the circulatory system, the autopsied case, the cavity embalming, the contents of the thoracic and abdominal cavities and various embalming treatments. Laboratory experience is a continuation of 325A. Lecture three hours. Laboratory two hours. Must be taken in A, B sequence. Prerequisite: MSFS 345A, MSFS 345B, MSFS 257, Allied Health 241 or equivalent Anatomy with grades of C or better and proof of Hepatitis B vaccine or Titre test. Restricted to Mortuary Science and Funeral Service majors. Lab fee: $50.

Credit Hours: 4

Deals with the statutory laws and practices pertaining to funeral service. The student will trace the laws that govern the funeral director and the embalmer and their legal responsibilities to the consumer. Knowledge will be gained concerning the legal status of a dead human body, necessities of disposition, methods of disposition, rights and parties undertaking responsibility of disposition, custodial rights of the dead human remains, contract laws, right of disposition, control of the funeral, general rules of priority pertaining to next of kin, mental anguish, photographs, confidentiality, negligent acts by the funeral director and/or embalmer, mutilation laws, injury to pallbearers, Clergy and staff, physical impact, collection against an estate, primary obligor, estate liability, cremation, authorization, commingling of remains, personal effects, storage and shipping of remains. Lecture three hours. Prerequisite: MSFS 256, MSFS 345A and MSFS 345B with grades of C or better. Restricted to major.

Credit Hours: 3

Students will build upon knowledge of the anatomical structures of the cranial and facial areas of the human skull gained through anatomy. Students will develop a knowledge of facial proportions, modeling, facial expressions, materials, and techniques necessary to rebuild the human face destroyed by traumatic and/or pathological conditions. Laboratory assignments will include bone and tissue restoration, along with other applications needed for facial reconstruction. Prerequisite: AH 241. Lab fee: $150.

Credit Hours: 4

The student will learn advanced procedures and techniques for restoration and cosmetology. Special attention will focus on reconstruction and color arrangement needed to complete the natural appearance of the deceased. Students will focus on pigments, visual aspects of color and color schemes, lighting, complexion types and materials, corrective shaping, rouging, waxing, and powdering. Prerequisite: MSFS 345A with a C or better. Lab fee: $50.

Credit Hours: 3

In-depth competency and skill development and exploration of innovative techniques and procedures used in business, industry, professions, and health service occupations offered through various workshops, special short courses, and seminars. Hours and credit to be individually arranged. Mandatory Pass/Fail. Restricted to MSFS majors.

Credit Hours: 1-32

The student will learn skills necessary to effectively manage a funeral home. Included are the funeral director's responsibilities from the first call to the completion of the funeral service. Topics include completing pre-need and post-need forms, human resource management, financial management, facilities management, maintenance of records, religious ceremonies, and professional ethics. Lecture four hours. Prerequisite: MSFS 240 with a C or better. Co-requisites: MSFS 352, 360 and 401.

Credit Hours: 4

The student will learn the fundamentals of merchandising, product mix and pricing of funeral service merchandise (i.e., caskets, burial vaults, urns, etc.). Other topics include developing a funeral home marketing plan and applying small business marketing techniques to funeral homes. Lecture three hours. Co-requisite: MSFS 351, 360, and 401.

Credit Hours: 3

The student will study the chemistry of the body, sanitation, toxicology, chemical changes in deceased human remains, disinfection, and embalming fluids. Laboratory experiences in 325A will complement lecture material. Lecture three hours. Co-requisite: MSFS 325A. Prerequisite: CHEM 106 and MSFS 240 or concurrent enrollment in MSFS 240.

Credit Hours: 3

Exploration of small business management, its benefits and risks. Emphasis is given to business formation, development, management, and marketing. Human resources, accounting, trends, and the use of technology are also analyzed. Lecture three hours.

Credit Hours: 3

The student will study the proper procedures of embalming and other necessary preparations of special cases. Studies will include techniques and procedures used for embalming unique cases such as decomposition cases, burn victims, car accident victims, and other traumatic faces of death. Students will be required to submit several written research papers and present oral presentations of specific topics throughout the semester. Lecture four hours. Prerequisites: MSFS 257, 325A, 325B, 345A, 345B and 355 with grades of C or better. Co-requisites: MSFS 351, 352 and 401.

Credit Hours: 4

The student will focus on the important considerations when working with those that choose cremation as a form of disposition. This includes proper identification, legal authorization, use of third party crematories, required forms, cremation containers, containers for cremated deceased, cremation merchandise, services in conjunction with cremation, arranging for disposition of cremated deceased, shipping cremated deceased, FTC compliance, and the history of cremation.

Credit Hours: 3

The student will study the process of dying and the history of death disposal with emphasis on cremation. The student will examine how religion has played a part in the increase/decrease in acceptance as cremation being a method of disposing of the dead. Students will review cremation trends in the U.S. and the legal formality of cremation authorization and the cremation process. Students will explore how the death care industry is marketing cremation and analyze how the industry has adapted to consumer demands.

Credit Hours: 3

This course requires the selection and investigation of a research topic culminating in a paper to satisfy the research requirement for the Bachelor of Science degree in Mortuary Science and Funeral Service.

Credit Hours: 4-8

The student will be taught specific counseling procedures when counseling the bereaved family. Specific attention will be paid to the counseling and communication techniques and skills that will assist individual family members with handling grief and the mourning process. In addition, students will explore the concepts of pre-need and after-care services. Prerequisites: MSFS 108 or PSYC 102 with a C or better or consent of school. Co-requisites: MSFS 351, 352, and 360.

Credit Hours: 2

Students will be assigned to a University approved funeral home learning in actual practice situations: functional organization, procedures, and policies of the establishment. The course is 13 weeks in length. Not for graduate credit. Prerequisite: all other requirements of the MSFS major must be met including a grade point average of at least 2.0 in major. Co-requisites: MSFS 411 and 412.

Credit Hours: 5

Students will be assigned to a University approved funeral home to be given the opportunity to learn embalming techniques by active participation in the preparation room under the direct supervision of a licensed embalmer. The course is 13 weeks in length. Not for graduate credit. Restriction: all other requirements of the MSFS major must be met including a grade point average of at least 2.0 in major. Co-requisites: MSFS 410 and 412. Special approval needed from the advisor.

Credit Hours: 5

Formal discussions are held to evaluate the experiences and progress of the participants in the internship program. The student will participate in mock funeral arrangements and will evaluate themselves on style, knowledge, and confidence via video. The second part of the seminar is a review for the National Board Exam. The student must pass the Mock Board Exam, given only two attempts, to successfully complete the course. Mandatory Pass/Fail. Not for graduate credit. Co-requisites: MSFS 410 and 411.

Credit Hours: 2