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Academic Certificate Programs

Academic Certificates are micro-credentials: clusters of courses that students complete in order to earn official recognition from their home institutions.  They are a way for non-degree students, including refugee and displaced learners, to obtain credits and formal evidence of sustained university study, and they provide a way for all students to signal to employers, graduate programs, and others that they have engaged in serious, sustained study in particular interdisciplinary subject areas. Students who complete Certificate Programs receive transferable academic credits, formal attestations of program completion, and transcript recognition or the equivalent from their home institutions.

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT

Students currently enrolled in the following Academic Certificate programs must complete their certificate by Summer 2025.

  • Food Studies
  • Global Educational Development
  • Public Policy and Economic Analysis
  • Sustainability and Social Enterprise

The Civic Engagement and Human Rights certificates are currently open for student applications.

New certificate programs in Democracy, Global Humanities, Global Studies, Sustainability and Climate Solutions, and Technology and Society will be announced in Fall 2025.

Our Programs

There are currently six Undergraduate Academic Certificate Programs:

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    Civic Engagement

    Students are provided with a structured path for merging curricular and co-curricular civic pursuits to deepen their knowledge and understanding of civic engagement.

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    Food Studies

    Students deepen theoretical and applied knowledge of food studies through a scholar-practitioner approach focused on sustainability and local practices. Classroom instruction is augmented by experience in food-related work environments.

  • Global Education Development
    Global Education Development

    The certificate is a progressive micro-credential that combines coursework and practicums for students in the field of global educational development policy and practice.

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    Human Rights

    The certificate provides a structured path for students interested in deepening their knowledge and understanding of human rights theory and practice. Students engage in co-curricular activities outside of the classroom that inform their academic work. 

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    Public Policy and Economic Analysis

    The program serves future policymakers committed to the principles of economic stability and economic rights for all by providing a set of cutting-edge interdisciplinary analytical techniques and theoretical approaches to tackle urgent twenty-first century problems.

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    Sustainability and Social Enterprise

    Students receive leadership training to develop critical thinking skills and other skill sets needed to create and build both nonprofit and mission-driven, for-profit organizations.