The Certificate in African Studies and the Advanced Certificate in African Studies are designed to promote the study of Africa from global, interdisciplinary and comparative perspectives and offer opportunities for stakeholders to engage with the diverse African continent. Students from any professional schools or departments have the opportunity to participate in the program through courses, internships, workshops and study in Africa. Check out the requirments to both certificates and see which one is right for your degree plan. Successful completion of a certificate can provide an important building block for careers in the Foreign Service, government, business, law, academe, and public service.
Enroll in the Graduate Certificate Program
Certificate in African Studies Requirements
- 12 credits of coursework with at least 25% or more Africa related content in each class. Out of these 12 credits, 9 of them can overlap with your major but 3 credits must be outside your major and in addition to the required credits in your major.
- 1 year language requirement or equivalent for an African language or 2 years for a European language spoken in Africa*
- Capstone research paper and graduation presentation**
Advanced Certificate in African Studies Requirements
- 18 credits to complete the certificate with at least 25% or more africa related content in each class. Out of these 18 credits, 15 of them can overlap with your major but 3 credits must be outside your major. Six out of the 18 credits can be fulfilled by African language coursework.
- In country experience fulfilled through a 3 credit internship or research project in Africa
- 2 years language requirement or equivalent for an African language or European language spoken in Africa*
- Capstone Research paper and graduation presentation**
* Language proficiency: Native speakers of an African language, or European language can have the language requirement waived.
**Capstone paper: This research paper/project is the culmination of the student’s learning experience and clearly demonstrates in–depth knowledge of African studies issues in at least one academic discipline. The capstone must be an assignment submitted as part of coursework, such as a final term paper and must have received a B or above grade.
• The paper must be at least 7 to 10 pages long and contain a minimum of 10 references
• The paper should have a cover sheet that shows the class title, the name of the professor, and the grade the paper received.
• Capstone papers must be received before graduation electronically.
** Graduation Presentation: The student will present on the culmination of their African Studies Certificate through sharing a PowerPoint about their capstone project and African studies experiences in a mini-forum to students, friends and family. Each student will have 5 minutes to present. They are allowed no more than five power point slides of talking points and pictures to guide their presentation. Presentations happen in December or April of the graduation year.
Other helpful Information
Research & Internships in Africa: Research and internships in an African country is a great opportunity to enhance one's knowledge of Africa and to make invaluable connections. Students may contextualize non-credit bearing internships that are required in various graduate degree programs as credit bearing experiences for the CAS certificate programs. Prior approval must be received from the academic advisor to pursue this option.
Graduation: All students are required to submit an application for graduation with the Office of the register. This usually happens a semester before you graduate.