Undergraduate Certificate (Undergraduate Certificate) in Health and Wellness Coaching
OVERVIEW
Who is this program for?
This undergraduate health and wellness coaching certificate is designed for students interested in health coaching, wellness, health promotion, behavior change and helping others achieve healthier lifestyles. It can complement studies and career interests in healthcare, public health, nutrition, exercise science, psychology, education, community health, employee wellness and other health-related fields or be completed as a stand-alone undergraduate certificate.
Program Overview
Turn your interest in health and well-being into skills that can help others make meaningful, lasting changes. The Undergraduate Certificate in Health and Wellness Coaching prepares students to support individuals as they identify health and wellness goals, develop realistic action plans and build the motivation and confidence to put those plans into practice.
The program is approved by the National Board for Health & Wellness Coaching (NBHWC), providing students with an academic pathway toward becoming a National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC). Students complete training aligned with national health and wellness coaching standards while developing practical skills in communication, behavior change, goal setting and client-centered coaching.
Grounded in health education and health promotion principles, the certificate emphasizes learning by doing. Students practice coaching skills and gain real-world experience that prepares them to work with clients and pursue professional opportunities in health and wellness coaching.
The 12-credit-hour certificate is open to current University of Kentucky students as well as students who want to enroll at UK specifically to complete the certificate.
Related Careers
Your Path to National Board Certification
UK's Health and Wellness Coaching Undergraduate Certificate is an NBHWC Approved Training Program, meaning the curriculum meets national standards for health and wellness coach training and education.
Completing an NBHWC-approved program is a required step toward earning the National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC) credential. Students who complete the certificate can continue on the national certification pathway by fulfilling the remaining NBHWC eligibility requirements and applying for the National Board Certification Exam.
For students interested in making health and wellness coaching part of their career, this pathway provides a clear connection between their undergraduate education at UK and a nationally recognized professional credential.
Admission Instructions
Current University of Kentucky Students
You can add this certificate in myUK GPS. Under "My Program of Study" on the right side of the screen, click the link "Request a major/minor/certificate change". If you need help, contact your academic advisor.
You should talk with your academic advisor about how adding a program to your plan of study will impact graduation time and any graduation requirements of your major.
New Certificate ONLY students
If you are not currently enrolled at UK, you can still take this program by itself.
- Navigate to UK's Undergraduate Application
- Apply to UK with a "Non-Degree Application"
- In the Applicant Information section under Applicant Type, select "Certificate"
- Select the certificate program name
Application Requirements
Completed applications include an official high school transcript, application fee ($50 domestic/$60 international) and optional official ACT/SAT score (the University of Kentucky is test-optional for admission and scholarships through the 2028-29 academic year).
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What You'll Learn
Through the Health and Wellness Coaching certificate, you will develop the knowledge and practical skills to support clients in making sustainable changes while building a foundation for pursuing national board certification in health and wellness coaching.
You will learn to:
- Build supportive, client-centered health coaching relationships using professional coaching practices.
- Apply evidence-informed health coaching and behavior-change strategies to help clients improve their health and well-being.
- Use active listening, motivational interviewing and effective communication techniques to understand clients' goals, values and priorities.
- Help clients establish meaningful health and wellness goals and translate them into realistic action plans.
- Support clients as they identify strengths, navigate barriers, build motivation and work toward sustainable behavior change.
- Apply principles of health education and health promotion within health and wellness coaching.
- Develop practical coaching skills aligned with competencies established by the National Board for Health & Wellness Coaching.
- Gain applied experience working with clients and putting health coaching principles into practice.
- Build the educational and practical foundation needed to pursue the National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC) credential.
Degree requirements, course descriptions and academic policies for all programs are detailed in the University Catalog.
Get More Information
Complete the form to get the latest updates on this program, including special events and application deadlines.
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