Overview
Know when to trust an AI tool and when to question it
The Applied AI in Healthcare Certificate is built around four workplace-ready outcomes. Each one maps to a decision that healthcare staff are already being asked to make.
- Evaluate AI tools for fit, usefulness, and risk using practical workflow and quality criteria.
- Apply governance principles covering privacy, security, data handling, and policy compliance.
- Recognize ethical and operational risks, including bias, safety concerns, weak explainability, and over-reliance on AI output.
- Use a human-in-the-loop framework to decide when AI output can support a decision and when it is ready to share with a supervisor, leadership team, or a governance committee.
You also leave with a small-scale implementation plan customized to your area of interest and/or workplace, and the plain language you can use to share it with a supervisor or a governance committee.
AI Today
Why now? AI arrived faster than the training did
- 81% of physicians report awareness or use of AI in their practice in 2026, up from 38% in 2023. (AMA, 2026 Physician Survey on Augmented Intelligence)
- More than 80% of nurses say AI can help improve patient care at least somewhat. (McKinsey Nursing AI Insights Survey, 2026)
More than three quarters of nurses say they use AI in their daily work, and only about 10% are heavy users. (McKinsey, 2026)
Nurses’ most cited concerns are trust in the accuracy of AI outputs (33%), lack of human interaction (18%), and data privacy (16%). (McKinsey, 2026)
Admissions
Who is Applied AI in Healthcare for?
This program is for healthcare professionals who sit close to AI adoption decisions without sitting in a technical role.
- Registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, and licensed vocational nurses
- Medical and health services managers, practice managers, and department directors
- Physician assistants and physicians
- Health education specialists and patient education staff
- Healthcare social workers and care coordinators
- Quality improvement, compliance, and informatics staff who need a shared language with clinical teams
No coding or data science background is required. You will not write code and you will not build a model. If you’re a nurse or a healthcare administrator and you have been handed an AI tool without much explanation of when to trust it, this course is for you.
Curriculum
Over four weeks the course moves through workflow fit, tool evaluation, governance and privacy, ethical and operational risk, human oversight and escalation, and implementation planning.
Each week builds toward the final deliverable, a small-scale implementation plan for responsible AI adoption in your own workplace.
The course is fully online. You choose when you do the work each week, and each week has its own deadlines to keep you on track.
Course Modules
Week 1: Foundations of AI and Workflow Analysis in Healthcare
Learn how AI tools actually work, in plain language, and find the AI already operating in a healthcare setting you know, whether that’s your current workplace, a past one, or the case organization provided in the course. You map one workflow and judge whether AI fits it.
Deliverable: Workflow Analysis Brief
Week 2: Governance, Data Stewardship, and Vendor Risk Assessment
Learn what to ask before trusting AI: how it was validated, where the data goes and what HIPAA requires, what the vendor must disclose, and who is accountable when it’s wrong.
Deliverable: AI Tool Evaluation with a recommendation to adopt, adopt with conditions, or decline
Week 3: Algorithmic Bias, Ethical Risk, and Human Oversight
Work through documented cases where healthcare AI failed, learn where bias enters, and apply a human-in-the-loop framework for deciding when to act on AI output, when to review it, and when to escalate.
Deliverable: Ethics and Risk Memo written for a decision maker
Week 4: Decision Support, Implementation, and Evaluation
Keep the judgement and decision with the person, not the tool. Build your implementation plan with success metrics, failure signals, and oversight, and learn to present it in two minutes.
Deliverable: Applied AI Implementation Plan, your capstone, ready to bring to a supervisor, leadership team, or governance committee
Career Outlook
Healthcare organizations are adopting AI faster than they are writing the rules for it.
Someone in your department will end up deciding which tools get used and when a person has to check the output. Right now, that person usually has not been named.
This certificate makes you a credible candidate for that work. You leave able to say why a tool is or is not safe for your unit, and you’ll be able to communicate that to the people who sign off.
You’ll build the critical thinking skills to work alongside AI, question its output, and be the person organizations trust to sit on an AI committee, lead a pilot, or review the next vendor.
Why UVM?
Four weeks, and you keep your schedule
Comparable programs from other universities run eight weeks to a full academic year. This one is four, which is short enough to actually finish. You choose when you do the work each week, and each week has its own deadlines to keep you on track.
A credential that people recognize
The certificate comes from the University of Vermont, one of the country’s R1 research universities and the home of the UVM Medical Center, a Level 1 Trauma Center.
Written for the people who use the tools
You will not write code or build a model. You will learn to judge whether a tool fits your workflow, spot where it could go wrong, decide when a person needs to review the output, and make that case to your supervisor.
FAQ
No. This is a non-technical AI in healthcare course. You will not write code and you will not build a model. If you can read a policy and ask a hard question in a meeting, you have what this course asks for.
Look at an AI tool and say whether it belongs in your workflow, name the privacy and safety questions it raises, decide when a person has to check its output, and hand your supervisor a written plan for using it.
Four weeks at 7 to 10 hours a week. You choose when you do the work, and each week has its own deadlines.
A UVM Certificate of Completion in Applied AI in Healthcare.
Products change too fast for that to be worth much. You learn how to evaluate any of them, and specific tools show up as examples along the way.
No, and it puts you in a useful position. The course covers AI governance in healthcare settings, including how to raise the right questions and how to talk to the people who will end up writing that policy.
Yes. Registered nurses, LPNs, and LVNs are among the largest groups this program is built for, alongside healthcare administrators, practice managers, and department directors. You do not need an informatics or IT background to keep up.
Yes. This Applied AI in Healthcare Certificate is online and asynchronous, which means you choose when you do the work, and each week has its own deadlines.
It does not qualify you for a specific title on its own. What it gives you is the vocabulary and the credential to take part in AI decisions where you already work, which is how people move toward governance, quality, and management roles. If you are looking at AI in healthcare jobs, this is the credential that shows you can evaluate a tool rather than build one.
No. The course is fully online and asynchronous, but it is broken down into modules that will be worked through together week by week as a class. You are welcome to read ahead, but there will be assignments and discussions (including responsive discussions) that will open week by week. Each module is designed to build upon what was learned in previous modules.
We estimate that you will dedicate 7-10 hours per week on course work, which includes readings, videos, and related activities (e.g., discussions, assignments, and quizzes).
If a student needs to cancel their attendance, they must do so at least 10 business days prior to the start date of the course to receive a 75% refund. No refunds will be issued for cancellations made after this 10-business day deadline. Student cancellation requests can be initiated through the Modern Campus LLEE student portal.
No prior degree is required. This is a non-credit professional certificate open to adults of varied backgrounds.
Weekly office hours will be made available by your instructor.
Yes, this program is eligible for 4.5 UVM PACE Continuing Education Units (CEUs). These CEUs are automatically awarded to students who successfully complete the program. CEUs are listed on the downloadable certificate you can access through your Modern Campus LLEE student portal.
Many professional organizations, licensing boards, or certifying bodies accept CEUs from accredited providers like the University of Vermont, but acceptance is not automatic and varies by organization. Professionals should always verify in advance with their specific regulating body or association whether the CEUs from the particular UVM course you are taking will count toward their requirements.
To request recognition of UVM PACE CEUs with your professional organization:
Download or request an official certificate or verification letter for the completed course/program.
Submit the official UVM documentation directly to your professional organization, licensing board, or certifying body through their required process (often an online portal, application form, or mailed packet).
Include any additional materials they may require, such as course descriptions, agendas, or learning objectives (available on the program webpage or by request to PACE).
If your organization requires specific formatting or additional verification, contact UVM PACE at learn@uvm.edu or (802) 656-2085, and we will be happy to assist with documentation. Early confirmation with your professional body is recommended to avoid any delays in CEU approval.
If you are a non-credit student seeking accessibility support, please email access@uvm.edu and the UVM Student Accessibility Services team will be able to assist. In your email, please include that you do not have a 95 number/NetID.
Have questions about taking an online education course? Visit the Online Education FAQ page.
Have more basic questions about Professional and Continuing Education? Visit our About Us and FAQs pages.
The Applied AI in Healthcare Certificate is 4 weeks long. There are 4 modules, each spanning one week. Each module starts on Mondays at 9:00 AM and ends on Sundays at 11:59 PM. To better accommodate students’ work and life schedules, we provide early access to each module on the Friday before the module starts. You will continue to have access to the course for six months after the last day of the course.
For most modules, you will be expected to post to the discussion boards by Friday and/or Sunday and to complete a quiz by Sunday. Any module assignments will also be due on Sunday.
The course is delivered through UVM’s online learning platform called Brightspace. It’s important to note that Brightspace will only work with a desktop or laptop computer. It is not designed to be used with phones or tablets (e.g., iPads), so please make sure you have access to a desktop and/or laptop computer for the duration of the class.
Our Advisors are here to help. Please call us at 802-656-2085 or submit the inquiry form available on this site.
Advising and Student Support
You have the goal; we’ll help you achieve it
We are dedicated to helping you access UVM. It is our role to get to know your experience and goals, assist you in choosing courses, guide you through registration, and serve as your resource throughout your time at UVM.
Curious if your past college credits apply at UVM? Want to understand where a program will take you after completion? Looking for resources for financial aid, tutors, or UVM policies? We’re here to help.
Ready to get started?
Request Information
Submit this form to receive additional program information.