Crowd of students and families walking in front of Boston University building on Commonwealth Avenue

About Us

We believe professionals and organizations working in health and social services deserve access to the most innovative teaching, training and research so they can excel in their work.

The Network for Professional Education and the Center for Aging & Disability Education & Research (CADER) are your training partners. We empower professionals and organizations working in health and social services to grow their expertise and support their workforce by expanding their competencies. We believe knowledge-sharing and collaboration create boundless opportunities to challenge norms and inspire innovation. We offer a supportive, committed, forward-looking community of practice.


What We Do

Our Offerings

Located at BU’s School of Social Work, The Network and CADER deliver a comprehensive array of high-quality training and workforce solutions to support health and social service professionals and organizations. Available both online and in-person, our programs cover a wide range of subject areas and meet rigorous credentialing requirements for continuing education credits (CEs). Our trainings are relevant and applicable, providing expertise and knowledge derived from real-life experience and grounded in current research. Each offering is developed as a skill-based program, targeting specific competencies, and designed to be user-friendly.

For Learners:

For Organizations:


Center for Aging & Disability Education & Research (CADER)

The rapid aging of our population and a changing landscape for health and social services demand that organizations in the aging and disability field provide integrated, interprofessional, and person-centered care. Founded in 2002 with a grant from The Atlantic Philanthropies, CADER is a national leader in supporting organizations and individuals by offering comprehensive, validated and skill-based online training through courses and certificate programs. As the primary training and research arm of The Network, CADER has supported over 25,000 workers and more than 500 agencies and organizations around the country who work in the field of aging. Inspired by the expertise of CADER, The Network aims to strengthen the workforce that provides support and services to people of all ages.


Origins

The Network was founded on a simple principle — a deep commitment to developing a highly trained, well-supported health and social services workforce, inspired by the long-standing history of BU’s School of Social Work’s Professional Education Programs (PEP) and Center for Aging & Disability Education & Research (CADER). Our portfolio of workshops and postgraduate certificate programs are now integrated into The Network to create a centralized resource for innovative training, tools, and knowledge for professionals and organizations. CADER will continue its focus on strengthening and supporting organizations and the people who work with older adults and people with disabilities. 

The Network was created to support professionals who are looking for learning opportunities to enhance their skillset and career pathways, and for organizations who want to partner with academic institutions to build the competencies of their workforce. We draw on our team’s decades of experience and leverage our network of talent and expertise to support lifelong learning. 

Community of Practice

The Trainers Hub provides an effective, efficient transfer of knowledge: serving as the go-to resource for organizations needing expert trainers to help strengthen their workforce — and for expert trainers seeking opportunities to share their knowledge and skills.

We offer a supportive, committed, forward-looking community of practice to help health and social service professionals thrive. Our community is based on the belief that we are more successful and have more impact when we work together — connecting, learning, and sharing information to increase our expertise and build partnerships. We know that through collaboration, we can be more nimble — moving more quickly and effectively to transfer knowledge and innovation into the hands of practitioners.