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Certificate Programs

Columbia Southern University’s certificate programs are designed to serve the need of matriculated and nonmatriculated students interested in developing specific skills and knowledge for personal and/or professional development in their field of study. Certificate programs are usually credit based, taught by regular, adjunct or visiting faculty, depending on the skill, experience, licensing, or certificate required. Certificates normally align with existing curricula. Certificate programs are offered at the Graduate or Undergraduate level. The program aligns experts in the field who may not otherwise be able to engage with students, creating relationships that benefit students, the University and the profession in which the certificates are offered.

Application for Degree Level Certificate Programs

Undergraduate Certificate Programs
Students complete four courses (12 semester hours) within a concentration to earn a Certificate at the bachelor level. For example, a student enrolled in the Certificate in Management program would complete four courses from the BSBA Management concentration.

Graduate Certificate Programs
Students select four courses (12 semester hours) from a graduate concentration to earn a graduate level certificate in the concentration area.

Admission Requirements

Undergraduate Certificate
An accredited official high school transcript (showing completion) or GED, or if you have previously completed a degree, you may provide CSU with the official accredited institutional transcript showing the conferred degree.

Graduate Certificate
Bachelor degree earned from institutions accredited by agencies that are recognized by the United States Secretary of Education and/or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or, for non-U.S. institutions, an accepted foreign equivalent that is listed in the International Handbook of Universities (1)
1 = The International Handbook of Universities. 17th ed. ISBN:0-333-92265-4 1, Paris: International Association of Universities; New York: Stockton Press, September 2003. Palgrave Macmillan Ltd, Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG21 6XS, England, http://www.palgrave.com.

Transfer Credit
No transfer credit is accepted into Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Programs. All courses must be completed as required by the certificate.

International Students
Applicants whose native language is not English and who have not earned a degree from an appropriately accredited institution where English is the principal language of instruction are required to submit one of the following official test score reports prior to admission:

• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) test score with the following:
  1. Undergraduate - A minimum of 500 in the paper-based version or 61 in the Internet-based version
  2. Master's - A minimum of 530 in the paper-based version or 71 in the Internet-based version
  3. Doctorate - A minimum of 550 in the paper-based version or 80 in the Internet-based version
• A minimum grade of Level 3 on the ACT COMPASS English as a Second Language Placement Test;
• A minimum score of 6.0 on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), including the academic writing and academic reading modules;
• A minimum grade of Pre-1 on the EIKEN ENGLISH PROFICIENCY EXAM;
• A transcript indicating completion of at least 30 semester hours of credit with an average grade of "C" or higher at an appropriately accredited/recognized college or university where the language of instruction is English;
• A transcript indicating a grade of "C" or higher in a 3 semester hour English Composition course from an appropriately accredited/recognized college or university (as verified by the International Handbook of Universities (21st ed.);
• An official high school transcript completed at an appropriately accredited/recognized high school where the medium of instruction is English. Transcripts not in U.S. equivalency must be translated through a National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) approved translating service. Please visit www.naces.org for more information.

Enrollment/Tuition

Academic Calendar
Students enrolling in a Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Program using the Per-Course Enrollment agreement may enroll at any time during the year.

Students wishing to receive tuition reimbursement from the Veterans Administration must enroll using CSU Term Enrollment. For more information regarding the Term Enrollment Academic Calendar and policies, please refer to the Academic Calendar

Enrollment
Enrollment in all Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Programs requires submission of the Application for Degree Level Certificate Programs (PDF) and a Per-Course Enrollment Agreement. Per-Course Enrollment allows students to take one course at a time or two courses simultaneously. The student will submit a Per-Course Enrollment each time he/she wishes to begin a course(s) required of the certificate program.

Per-Course
With the Per-Course Enrollment option, enrollment and registration are combined into a one-step process. The Per-Course Enrollment system qualifies students for the CSU Book Grant. Through this grant, textbooks are provided at no additional charge. A maximum of 10 weeks is allowed for each course. (Per-Course and Term Enrollment are the only enrollment systems allowed for Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Programs).

Tuition
The published Per-Course/Term Tuition Rate applies to Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Programs.

Completion
Students are responsible for enrolling in the appropriate courses as required of the named Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Programs. Upon completion of all course requirements, students must submit a Petition for Graduation. A graduation audit will be completed by the Registrar and if all tuition and academic requirements have been met, a diploma will be ordered for the student. A Graduation Fee of $40 must be submitted with the petition.

Students enrolled in Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Programs must maintain a 2.0 or higher cumulative GPA for undergraduate, and a 3.0 or higher for graduate.

Academic Credit

All Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Programs are comprised of courses that are assigned three semester hours at the undergraduate or graduate level. Students completing a Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Program and maintaining the required grade point average will be awarded the corresponding academic credit. Students may choose to receive Continuing Education Credit (CEU's) in lieu of Academic Credit. Each course is assigned 4.5 CEU credits.

Degree Transfer Information

Students may complete an Undergraduate/Graduate Certificate Program and transfer the program into a degree program with the corresponding concentration. This requires the student to enroll in the certificate program prior to enrolling in the degree program. Students may transfer a certificate program into a degree program concentration.

Curriculum

Undergraduate Certificate Programs

Require completion of four courses within one undergraduate concentration area.

Graduate Certificate Programs

Require completion of four courses within one graduate concentration area.