Academic Credit Certificate Requirements

See features of academic credit certificates.

Admission

To be admitted to an academic credit certificate program, students should have at least 56 units of academic credit with a minimum GPA of 2.0 or sufficient experience to demonstrate they can perform upper division work. Students who do not have 56 units are encouraged to apply and may be admitted to a program on a conditional basis.

Contact individual academic certificate program staff (listed in program descriptions) for specific admission procedures. In most cases, students may take academic certificate program courses without being formally admitted to a program.

Requirement Waivers

Academic credit, skills or experience acquired outside a certificate program may qualify students to challenge or waive certificate requirements.

Registration

Acceptance in an academic certificate program does not guarantee a space in any class. Spaces are reserved only when course registration forms and fees are received by SF State Extended Learning.

Fees

Course fees are noted at the end of each course description. There is a non-refundable $50 academic certificate program application fee.

Graduation

Graduation applications must be submitted at least four weeks before the end of the semester. Upon graduation, students receive a certificate signifying program completion.

To graduate, these requirements must be met:

1. The coursework used to satisfy the requirements of an academic certificate must be completed with a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 (C) and only courses with a grade of credit, C-, or better may be included to meet academic certificate program requirements. Note: Some programs may require students to maintain a B average. For more information, contact the appropriate program director or coordinator.

2. At least two-thirds of the units applied toward meeting the requirements of an academic certificate program must be graded on an A-F basis.

3. All requirements for academic certificate programs must be completed within a seven-year time period, defined as beginning with the date of registration for the first course used to meet the requirements for the certificate and ending with the date the last requirement is completed. Students should file an application for the award of the certificate within the same time period.

4. All financial obligations to the university must be cleared.

Writing Skills

Academic certificate program courses require good writing skills. Students enrolled in academic certificate programs who do not have baccalaureate degrees are asked to demonstrate their writing ability. Students may complete this requirement by passing the Junior English Proficiency Essay Test (JEPET) or ENG 414 (for those who fail JEPET). Alternately, students may take a Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR) course offered by their department. While students currently have two options to complete this requirement (JEPET test or GWAR class), all students admitted in Fall 2010 or after should take the GWAR course to meet the writing requirement because SF State will stop offering JEPET at that time.

For more information on the GWAR-approved course in a specific department, students should contact their program coordinator or director.

Subsidy Process

See Payment by Employer/Agency.

Financial Aid

See Financial Aid.