Health Coaching integrates holistic health principles with coaching strategies to support individuals in achieving physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Complete in 6–12 Months
Guide Whole-Person Well-Being Through Integrative Practice
About the Health Coaching Certificate
The Health Coaching Certificate is a program offered through Meridian University's Center for Transformative Learning. Designed for professionals seeking to guide individuals toward healthier, more balanced lifestyles, the certificate draws on Meridian's graduate curriculum in health and wellbeing coaching to provide a comprehensive foundation in integrative health coaching practice.
As a certificate participant, you will take courses from the anchor and other parts of Meridian's graduate curriculum offered during the period of your enrollment. This means you will engage with the same rigorous, faculty-led coursework that graduate students experience, tailored to the certificate's focus on health coaching principles and practices.
What is Health Coaching?
Health Coaching is a professional practice that supports individuals in making sustainable changes to improve their physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Drawing on integrative nutrition, mindfulness, embodiment, and whole-person developmental models, health coaching engages clients in collaborative conversations that foster self-awareness, motivation, and accountability. Health coaches work with the understanding that lasting change emerges when individuals connect with their own deeper values and aspirations for well-being.
Meridian's health and wellbeing coaching curriculum provides the theoretical and practical grounding for this certificate. Coursework emphasizes integrative nutrition, guidance and accountability, aesthetics of healing, and whole-person developmental models. Sample courses such as Foundations of Transformative Health Coaching; Principles and Practices in Guiding Accountability for Personal Health; Health and Disease: Nutritional Perspectives and Practices; Mindfulness, Embodiment, and Self-Regulation; Consciousness and Well-Being; Narrative Approaches to Healing and Well-Being; and Cultural Practices and Belief Systems of Illness, Suffering, and Healing offer certificate participants a broad and deep engagement with the integrative approaches that define effective health coaching practice.
The Growing Field of Health Coaching
The demand for qualified health coaches continues to grow as healthcare systems increasingly recognize the importance of lifestyle modification, preventive care, and patient-centered approaches. Health coaching is practiced in diverse settings including hospitals, wellness centers, corporate wellness programs, private practice, and community health organizations. Coaches who bring depth and a holistic perspective to their practice -- drawing on Meridian's emphasis on whole-person well-being -- are well-positioned to support clients across the continuum of health and wellness.
Details
Certificate Details
- 16 credits of graduate-level coursework (4 courses at 4 credits each).
- Complete in 6 to 12 months — take 8 credits per quarter (6 months) or 4 credits per quarter (12 months).
- Courses are drawn from Meridian's graduate curriculum offered during the period of enrollment.
- Content and collaboration via Meridian's social learning platform.
Tuition
$476 per credit
Total certificate cost: $7,616 (16 credits)
Credits earned through the certificate may be applied toward a Meridian University graduate degree program, as applicable.
Accreditation
The Health Coaching Certificate is part of Meridian University's California state approval and WSCUC (WASC) accreditation. WSCUC is a higher education accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education. WSCUC is also the accreditor for Stanford University, UCLA, and the University of California at Berkeley.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the application requirements?
The documents below are required to complete an application for certificate programs:
- Certificate Application (opens in a new tab)
- Application Fee: A non-refundable application fee of $50 USD is required to process your application at the time of submission
- Official Bachelor's Transcript: Must be received in a sealed envelope and may be mailed directly to the University's Los Angeles Campus (2450 Colorado Avenue, Suite 100E, Santa Monica, CA 90404) from the academic institution. Electronic transcripts are accepted if sent directly from the academic institution to admissions@meridianuniversity.edu
- Personal Statement (500 words): Included as part of the application form and should highlight the formative and significant experiences in your life, and how those experiences have influenced you in choosing to pursue a certificate program
- Information Meeting Attendance: In addition to submitting application materials, it is necessary that applicants attend an information meeting with certificate program faculty prior to moving forward in the application process. Prior to scheduling an information meeting, we require prospects to meet with an Admissions Advisor to discuss their certificate program interests further
- If you have not already done so, please schedule this Advising Appointment using this link. Once you meet this requirement, we will follow up with the next steps to schedule an Information Meeting with the faculty
What is the Health Coaching Certificate?
The Health Coaching Certificate is a 16-credit program offered by Meridian University that provides a comprehensive foundation in Health Coaching. The certificate draws on courses from Meridian's graduate curriculum, offering rigorous, faculty-led coursework aligned with the certificate's focus area.
How long does it take to complete the certificate?
The certificate can be completed in as few as 6 months (taking 8 credits per quarter) or up to 12 months (taking 4 credits per quarter). Each course is 4 credits, and the program requires a total of 16 credits.
How much does the certificate cost?
Tuition for the Health Coaching Certificate is $476 per credit. The total cost for the 16-credit certificate is $7,616.
Can I apply these credits toward a Meridian degree?
Yes. Credits earned in the Health Coaching Certificate may be applied toward a Meridian University graduate degree program, as applicable. This allows you to build on your certificate work if you choose to pursue further graduate study at Meridian.
Is the certificate accredited?
Yes. The Health Coaching Certificate is part of Meridian University's California state approval and WSCUC (WASC) accreditation. WSCUC is a higher education accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education, and is also the accreditor for Stanford University, UCLA, and the University of California at Berkeley.
What courses will I take as part of the certificate?
Certificate participants take courses from Meridian's graduate curriculum that are offered during the period of their enrollment. The specific courses available each quarter are drawn from the anchor and other parts of the graduate curriculum, providing a rich and varied learning experience grounded in the certificate's focus area.
What technology do I need to participate?
You will need an email account, a high-speed internet connection, and access to a computer, iOS or Android device. For live video sessions, you will need a webcam and microphone for your device. Course video calls are conducted with participants video-enabled.
How many courses do I need to complete?
The certificate requires four courses. At Meridian, each course is 4 credits, so the 16-credit certificate is completed by taking four courses. You can take up to two courses per quarter (8 credits) to finish in 6 months, or one course per quarter (4 credits) to finish in 12 months.
How can I reach program support?
The program support team will be available to assist from start to finish. Please send your questions, requests, or issues to admissions@meridianuniversity.edu