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Full Description

The Qualitative Research graduate certificate is for students who wish to improve their ability to design, conduct, analyze and quality-assess qualitative approaches to research used in the context of funded research, educational assessment, program evaluation, critical, creative, exploratory or theoretical endeavors or other applications.

The courses in this program offer students inter- and trans-disciplinary opportunities to learn and develop skills in qualitative methodologies, including grounded theory, phenomenology, ethnography and descriptive approach; as well as methods, including observation, interviewing, transcription, data analysis, use of software, analytic memoing and others.

For more information about graduate admissions, visit the graduate admission website. For more information on international admissions, visit the international admission website.

Admission Requirements

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
• Minimum 2.750 undergraduate GPA on a 4.000-point scale
• Official transcript(s)
• Résumé
• Goal statement
• Two letters of recommendations
• English language proficiency - all international students must provide proof of English language proficiency (unless they meet specific exceptions to waive) by earning one of the following:¹
  • Minimum 79 TOEFL iBT score
  • Minimum 6.5 IELTS score
  • Minimum 58 PTE score
  • Minimum 110 DET score

Review of applications will be handled by one of the certificate co-coordinators, who will also evaluate prerequisites (if substitute syllabi are submitted by student).

¹

International applicants who do not meet the above test scores will not be considered for admission.

Application Deadlines

• Fall Semester
  • Rolling admissions
• Spring Semester
  • Rolling admissions
• Summer Term
  • Rolling admissions

Program Learning Outcomes

Graduates of this program will be able to:

1. Argue for the value of qualitative methodological approaches and help others understand the value of this form of inquiry to enhance understanding within their respective fields.
2. Critique and review a wide variety of qualitative research in their respective fields.
3. Create and enact a variety of forms of high-quality, ethical qualitative research in their respective fields.

Program Requirements

Certificate Requirements

¹

These courses can be used to fulfill the requirement for other required courses if the following conditions are met: (1) the course was not previously taken to fulfill the required first course requirement; (2) the course is outside of the student's primary major or degree area.

²

Other courses that may be applied toward this elective requirement are special topics and independent study courses offered by faculty/departments with courses represented by the certificate—or in Anthropology (ANTH), Computer Science (CS), Interior Design (ID) or in others—as approved by a program co-coordinator.

Graduation Requirements

• Students declared in a doctoral degree should enroll in the doctoral-level version of these courses if offered.
• Prior coursework may be counted for all requirements, as long as it is substantially similar as judged by syllabi from the course and is less than six years old at time of earning the certificate. Students may substitute courses at the discretion of the program coordinators.

• Delivery:
  • In person
• Location:
  • Kent Campus