General Policies
1. When is the new Bloom Catalog available?
The Bloom catalogs are released twice a year. The Spring catalog is available in January. Spring workshops run from February – July. The Fall catalog is released in August. Fall workshops run from September – December. Workshops are not offered in January or August.
2. How do I receive a Bloom catalog?
To reduce our carbon footprint, we have discontinued printing and mailing the Bloom Catalog. However, the catalog will remain available on our website at www.ssw.umaryland.edu/cpe.
3. Who are you authorized by?
While most licensing boards (Social Work, Professional Counselors and Psychologists) accept CE credits provided by Accredited Schools/Colleges of Social Work, licensees are responsible for determining if specific courses meet their jurisdiction’s requirements. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit.
The Office of Continuing Professional Education is approved by the following organizations:
**Not every course is approved or authorized by each organization. It is the participant responsibility to check the approval statement on the website to determine which CE approvals are being offered for each course. **
4. What is the difference between Live Interactive Webinars, Live Webinars, and On Demand?
Live Interactive Webinars are Category I CEs in Maryland. Live Interactive Webinars are equivalent to face-to-face workshops and meet Maryland BSWEs standards.
Live Webinars are Category II CEs in Maryland. Live Webinars participants only see the instructor and communicate through the Q&A feature.
On Demand videos are Category II CEs in Maryland. On Demand are recordings from previous live webinars. You can view on demand content at your own time. After viewing the recording, you will need to pass a quiz to access your CE’s. (Please see #11 for more information about On Demand).
5. How do I register?
Create a CPE account here. After creating an account, you will be able to register and pay online. We accept Visa and Mastercard.
**We no longer accept personal checks.** All personal checks will be returned.
We highly recommend online registration. However, if that is not an option, we accept cashier checks and money orders. Please contact our office if you are unable to register online at 410.706.1839 or cpe@ssw.umaryland.edu.
6. What if my job is paying?
There are multiple ways for your employer to pay the registration fee.
If your employer needs additional information, please call 410.706.1839 or email cpe@ssw.umaryland.edu.
7. Can I register late?
Registration deadline is two weeks prior to the workshop(s). After the deadline, a non-refundable $20.00 fee will be added to the cost of each workshop. Early registration is encouraged.
You can still register up to 30 minutes after the workshop starts; however, CE’s will be adjusted for any participant that arrives late.
8. What if I registered but can’t attend the workshop?
You may cancel your registration by emailing us at cpe@ssw.umaryland.edu at least 24 hours prior to the start of the workshop.
**There is a $35.00 administrative fee that will be deducted from the refunded amount.**
If you do not wish to pay the administrative fee, you can receive credit for 100% base price. The credit is valid until the end of the following semester. However, should a credit go unused by the end of the following semester, the credit is forfeited by the registrant. (Please see #9 on how to redeem.)
Refunds or credit will not be granted for cancellations with less than 24 hours’ notice before the training.
9. How do I redeem credit?
Paid workshop fees are placed on your account that can be used at a later date. Once your credit is issued, it will be available in your account. A new tab labeled Gift Cards/Discounts will appear in your account.
To use the credit:
When you are ready to make a purchase, on the 4th step in the payment process (confirm cart and payment), you'll see the words credit letters in bold. Underneath that you will see your name and the balance. You need to click the apply credit letters button beneath your name.
Please note the expiration date as they cannot be extended in the system.
10. What if the workshop is cancelled?
The Office of Continuing Professional Education may cancel workshops that are undersubscribed, and participants will be notified by email.
One indication that a workshop is cancelled is not receiving a reminder email with the materials. If you do not receive any email from us before your workshop, please call us at 410.706.1839 or email us at cpe@ssw.umaryland.edu.
Participants of a canceled workshop may request either a course credit, valid through the end of the following semester, or a full refund at the time of cancellation.
If a credit is not used by the end of the following semester, it will be forfeited. Once a credit is issued, monetary refunds are no longer available.
11. How long do I have access to On Demand workshops?
Once the On Demand workshop is purchased, you have 30 days (from purchase date) to access the recording and complete the quiz, unless otherwise specified.
After the 30 days, you will lose access and will have to re-purchase the On Demand workshop to regain access.
Once purchased, On Demand content is NON-REFUNDABLE.
12. Are there any discounts?
We offer 10% discounts off the base price to:
To redeem a discount, please submit your request to cpe@ssw.umaryland.edu no less than three (3) business days prior to the workshop start date.
Discounts are not retroactive.
** No discounts on: On Demand, Specials, or Certificate Programs. **
13. How do I get the materials for the workshop?
Our office is paperless! Workshop materials will be uploaded to your CPE online account 24 hours before the start of the workshop. If handouts are available for the workshop, you will click the BLUE handout button.
We will NO longer have copies available for purchase.
14. How do I receive my CEs at the end of the webinar?
First, you MUST log into your CPE account and click the GREEN launch button specific to the workshop. This starts tracking your attendance. If you do not log on through your account, your attendance will not be tracked.
CE certificates will be made available to all participants who attend the webinar in full, and complete the evaluation found in their CPE account. The evaluation can be accessed by clicking the ORANGE certificate button in your account.
Failure to perform each step may result in a participant’s inability to receive CE credit.
Evaluations will be available for one (1) week after the workshop has ended. After the one (1) week, participants will no longer have access to the evaluation and will have to contact CPE about reactivation. There will be a reactivation fee of $25 per workshop.
**If you are outside of the DMV area, and you need an ASWB certificate, please notify our department via email at cpe@ssw.umaryland.edu.**
**IMPORTANT: ASWB credit does not apply to all workshops; please check the CE statement on the workshop.**
We encourage everyone to read our webinar policies, which can be found here.
15. Why do I only have access to the evaluation for one (1) week?
For CPE to maintain continuing education authorization with the Maryland Board of Social Work Examiners and the Association of Social Work Boards, participants are required to complete an evaluation after each workshop.
Evaluations are most effective when participants' memories are fresh. Therefore, this policy is designed to discourage participants from delaying completion of the evaluation for an extended period. Additionally, reactivating evaluations after they have closed requires significant staff time and resources. We hope that, as time goes on, this policy will no longer be necessary.
16. Do we offer ADA Accommodations?
We do! If you are requesting ADA accommodations, please contact us via email at least two weeks prior to the course date. Requests after that date may not be fulfilled.
17. What do I do if I have a complaint/grievance?
We take all comments and/or complaints seriously. If there is a concern, please notify us by email as soon as possible. While refunds are not guaranteed, refunds or credits will not be issued for partially or fully attended workshops. The Office of Continuing Professional Education team is available by email: cpe@ssw.umaryland.edu. If the response to a complaint is unfavorable, please see our grievance policy HERE.
Instructors reserve the right to dismiss participants who are not adhering to the Code of Conduct.
For questions, concerns, or to request special accommodations, please call: 410-706-1839.
For financial questions or concerns, please call: 410-706-5040.
Updated 1.15.2025
