FAQs

No, the CCL is an entirely virtual immersive training program held on Zoom.

• It’s to each participant’s advantage to attend all sessions in order to get the most out of the program, as each session builds on the prior and involves teachings, interactive practice opportunities, and group discussions that are key components of the training process.  You can review the Program Schedule here.
• To be eligible to receive Continuing Education Credits (if elected) and/or a Certificate of Completion from CCARE at Stanford University, participants must fulfill all program requirements. Participants must complete a Compassion Blueprint project and attend the following sessions:
  • Monthly Teaching Seminars / minimum 3 of 4 sessions
  • Monthly Peer-Compassion Pods / minimum 3 of 4 sessions
  • Two Immersive Retreats / Attendance at both retreats is required for a certificate of completion. Participants may only miss up to one hour of a retreat day (typically 5 hours) to be counted as present.
  • Two Compassion Lab sessions
• If you know ahead of time that you will need to miss multiple sessions or more, we suggest you wait to register for the program at a time when you’ll likely be able to attend all or most of the sessions. Having said this, our instructors are familiar with and understand the unpredictability of modern life and will help orient you to any materials if you miss a session.
• There will be no live makeup sessions. In case you do need to miss a session, all sessions will be recorded and available to watch in the CCL portal. Your access to this portal expires 120 days following the graduation retreat.
• If you’re already enrolled in CCL and know that you will miss part of the first session/retreat in advance, please contact the instructor by emailing CCARECompassionLab@stanford.edu
• For more information on receiving CE credits for this training, review the CE section here.

• Program materials (slides, handouts, documents, etc.) will be available to download for 120 days following the graduation retreat. Please make sure to download all materials before they expire.
• Program videos will be available to stream online for 120 days after the graduation retreat. To protect the integrity of the program and its educational content, as well as to respect participant privacy, videos will not be available for download. Please make sure to watch all videos before they expire.

The total program fee is $3950.

• Full Payment – $3950
  • Accepted Methods: Credit card or wire transfer.
  • Program Enrollment: Your spot in the program is confirmed once full payment is received and processed.
• Payment Plan – $4110
  • Accepted Methods: Credit card
  • Program Enrollment: Your spot in the program is confirmed once your first payment is received and processed.
  • Payment Obligation: Payment plan installments must be received according to the schedule outlined during your confirmed registration. Payments can be made at any time by logging into the registration portal. Reminder emails will be sent in advance of payment due dates, but it is your responsibility to make payments on time.
  • Payment Plan Schedule for Registration before December 1st:
    • Initial Payment | $1950 | Due at registration
    • 1st Installment | $720 | Due Dec 15
    • 2nd Installment | $720 | Due Jan 15
    • 3rd Installment | $720 | Due Feb 15
  • Payment Plan Schedule for Registration after December 1st:
    • Initial Payment | $1950 | Due at registration
    • 1st Installment | $720 | Due Jan 15
    • 2nd Installment | $720 | Due Feb 15
    • 3rd Installment | $720 | Due Mar 15
• STAP eligible upon approval (Stanford employees)

• Organizational Funding Information Sheet
• Editable Sample Letter (or PDF version)

Our cancellation policy reflects the intentional nature of the CCARE Compassion Lab. We maintain limited enrollment and invest significant time creating thoughtful participant groupings based on backgrounds and goals. Last-minute cancellations impact the experience we’re committed to providing.

Full refunds (minus a $225 processing fee) are available within 14 days of registration. After this period, all registrations are final and non-refundable.

Before registering, please confirm your availability for the full 4-month program and ensure this aligns with your current personal and professional commitments.

In exceptional circumstances involving genuine emergencies, we may consider transferring enrollment to a future offering. Please contact us at CCARECompassionLab@stanford.edu with any questions before registering.

To request a refund, email CCARECompassionLab@stanford.edu within 14 days of registration. You will receive an email the next business day with information on the refund process.

Since this is a new program, grants and scholarships are not currently available at this time. We hope to make these available for future CCL programs. 

If you are in a position to donate funds towards a grant or scholarship, please contact CCARECompassionLab@stanford.edu. Your support will go towards helping someone who doesn’t have the financial resources to participate in CCL. We appreciate your generosity!

Please visit our curriculum overview and program schedule pages for more information.

Participant attendance is required for the following sessions and final project:

1. Two immersive virtual retreats in January and May
2. Teaching Seminars (2 hours/month)
3. Compassion Labs (3-4 hours in March & April)
4. Peer-Compassion Pods (2 hours/month)
5. Completion of a Compassion Blueprint (2-4 hours/month)

Attendance is optional at the Community Practice Sessions (1 hour/month)

This training integrates findings from neuroscience, psychology, and contemplative traditions into a dynamic and experiential learning journey. Through this immersive training experience, participants will strengthen the inner resources of compassionate presence, emotional regulation, relational attunement, and ethical discernment, while fostering the courage to take compassionate action in the world. Participants will also be encouraged to draw from their own personal and professional wisdom and direct experience of compassion in relationship to themselves and others.

Thankfully, many excellent compassion programs exist in today’s world!

The CCARE Compassion Lab is a pioneering program designed as a response to the needs of the greater compassion community and the challenges they face as practitioners of compassion in today’s divisive and highly polarized environment. This living laboratory prioritizes practice and building the skills needed to sustain compassion in personal, professional, and community settings. 

The CCARE Compassion Lab is designed as a safe and supportive container for participants to rewire the mind and heart through the practice of returning to compassion in the heat of challenging moments, during difficult conversations, and when engaging with people of differing views.

Cultivating a Compassionate Heart is an 8-week class designed to be a powerful introduction to the science and practice of compassion for self and others. It provides a meaningful foundation and offers a potent reinforcement for the ongoing journey into compassion.

CCH might be right for you if you are:
– Newer to mindfulness and compassion training
– Interested in the science of compassion
– Looking to cultivate compassion in yourself
– Ready for a shorter program (8 weeks)
– Seeking a lower financial commitment

The CCARE Compassion Lab takes that foundation to the next level, offering a longer (4-month) immersion into the study and practice of compassion through interactive skill building experiences. CCL combines small group peer collaboration, simulated role-play exercises, in-depth community practice sessions, and experiential compassion labs that integrate applied learning and practice. Although attending CCH is not a requirement for CCL, it would provide a beneficial foundation for anyone new to compassion training.

CCL might be right for you if you are:
– Already familiar with mindfulness or compassion training
– Ready for immersive skill-building and real-time practice to deepen compassion for self and others
– Looking to apply compassion in today’s divisive world
– Seeking a longer commitment (4 months)
– Prepared for a moderate financial commitment

The Applied Compassion Training, formerly offered through CCARE, was an 11-month program that centered around the Principles of Applied Compassion and introduced participants to the science of compassion. A major emphasis of ACT was supporting participants to develop a Capstone Project, designed to apply compassion to a real-world issue in their organization, community, or other settings (e.g., burnout in the workplace).

The CCARE Compassion Lab is a new 4-month immersive living laboratory for skill-building and transformation in compassion, designed to respond to the challenges of today’s divisive world. Participants will strengthen the core competencies of compassion (ie: compassionate dialogue, emotional regulation, perspective-taking, conflict navigation, collaboration, and bridge building skills) through practice-based methods and interactive compassion experiments. CCL provides real-time, simulated practice in a collaborative and supportive environment of peer-compassion pods. The CCARE Compassion Lab is designed to help participants sustain compassion as a way of life, especially in the face of reactivity, conflict, or difficulty.

A culminating aspect of the CCARE Compassion Lab, the Compassion Blueprint, integrates evidence-based practices from neuroscience, psychology, and contemplative traditions with lived experience. Based on program insights and transformation, participants will develop a practical blueprint for reliably living compassion in the world.

A culminating aspect of the CCARE Compassion Lab, the Compassion Blueprint, integrates evidence-based practices from neuroscience, psychology, and contemplative traditions with lived experience. Throughout the program, participants will engage in compassion micro-experiments and track how their transformation in compassion enabled a more skillful, compassionate response toward themselves, others, and the systems that they engage with. Based on their program insights and transformation, participants develop a practical blueprint for reliably living compassion in the real world. The Compassion Blueprint serves as a demonstration of how participants moved beyond understanding and experiencing compassion to living it consistently, even in the most difficult moments.

This program is the right fit for those willing, ready, and able to be fully engaged participants. We ask that all program participants commit to participating actively- with  their cameras/videos on throughout the program – and to come prepared to engage in self-reflection, group discussion, and immersive practice exercises with other program participants. This training is the right fit for people looking to cultivate compassion as a practical, consistent, and embodied way of being in daily life.

CCL is a new program, yet aims to draw from the same audience as other CCARE programs: professionals, changemakers, caregivers, educators, parents, and retirees.

No. CCL is not a program to train or certify participants to teach a specific protocol.

Upon successful completion, graduates of the CCARE Compassion Lab receive a Certificate of Completion from Stanford University’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE). This certificate signifies in-depth training in the study and practice of compassion, demonstrating the graduate’s ability to integrate evidence-based methods of compassion with lived application in personal, professional, and community contexts. 

A certificate of completion from CCARE at Stanford University serves as a mark of personal and professional credibility—enhancing leadership and relational skills—which can be highlighted on résumés, CVs, bio’s, and other professional profiles. Beyond recognition, the certificate of completion also reflects a graduate’s commitment to embodying compassion in their work, communities, and daily life, contributing to positive impact in a divided and rapidly changing world.

Here are some meaningful things graduates of the CCARE Compassion Lab could do with their certificate of completion:

Professional Development & Career Impact

• Demonstrate advanced training in compassion science, leadership, and applied practice to employers, clients, or collaborators.
• Enhance professional credibility in fields like healthcare, education, psychology, coaching, business, social work, conflict resolution, or community leadership.
• Include the training on CVs, résumés, and LinkedIn profiles to signal commitment to evidence-based compassion practices.
• Differentiate oneself in competitive environments by showing experience in emotional intelligence, compassionate dialogue, conflict resolution, and bridge-building.

Practical Application

• Integrate compassion practices into workplaces or community projects
• Apply compassion skills in leadership roles, improving team culture, patient care, classroom dynamics, or organizational climate.
• Develop and lead compassion-based initiatives or workshops informed by the tools and practices gained through the program.

Academic & Personal Growth

• Use the certificate towards continuing education credit (see info below)
• Support applications to advanced programs in psychology, leadership, or related disciplines.
• Join or strengthen a global network of compassion practitioners through the CCARE alumni community.
• Demonstrate personal transformation and a sustained commitment to living compassionately in challenging times.
• Be an ambassador of compassion within your community, workplace, and family.

Yes, 36 Continuing Education Credits are available for health professionals for an additional fee of $175. It is the sole responsibility of the participant to attend the entire session (must arrive within 15 mins of start time), always have their video on, participate in the session, and submit a separate training evaluation form at the end of the final session. No partial CE credit is available if the minimum program attendance requirements are not met. Learn more here.

No, the CCARE Compassion Lab does not currently offer academic credit.

No, due to the highly immersive and participatory nature of the program, only registered participants may attend.