Non-Stop Course: Compassion at Work

Course overview

This course explores compassion at work and how it can support positive and compassionate working environments. You will develop your understanding of compassion and emotional labour, reflect on experiences of compassion, and gain practical skills for becoming a compassionate co-worker.

The course is a self-paced, non-stop online course that introduces you to key theories and concepts related to compassion in the workplace. You will also create a personal video testimony reflecting on an experience or observation of compassion.

Two course options

The course is offered at both Bachelor’s degree (EQF 6) and Master’s degree (EQF 7) level. Both options explore the role of compassion in working life, but the focus and level of application differ according to the student’s degree level.

• Option 1 on Bachelor’s level focus on developing an understanding of compassion at work and practical skills that support compassionate interactions and working environments.
• Option 2 on Master’s level build on these themes through deeper theoretical and critical analysis, with a particular focus on compassionate leadership and applying knowledge to real-world organisational contexts.

What you will learn

After completing the course you:

• have gained a theoretical as well as practical understanding of the main concepts: compassion, empathy, sympathy, ethics, and empathy fatigue.
• can analyse everyday situations, life domains, and work contexts where compassion is needed.
• demonstrate increased awareness of the important role of compassion at work from three distinct perspectives: for one's own well-being, for the well-being of others, as well as for organisations.
• learn to appreciate the benefits of learning from the best practices of other professions.
• can understand why compassion can be taxing on an individual and what emotional labor is.
• can understand what emotion regulation is and know of emotion regulation techniques and coping strategies to help sustain one´s own well-being.
• can reflect on the ethical aspects of situations where compassion is needed.
• can understand your personal experiences of compassion in relation to theoretical knowledge and the experiences from other professions.
• In the Master’s-level course you will also strengthen your ability to critically evaluate leadership practices, apply theoretical perspectives to real-world situations, and design actionable strategies that foster compassionate and sustainable leadership.

Study format and schedule

Study flexibly from anywhere. This non-stop course is delivered entirely online. The study period runs from September 2026 to 31 July 2027.