Graduate Certificate Program

If you have earned or are scheduled to earn a baccalaureate degree prior to the intended enrollment term, you are eligible to apply to a graduate-level certificate program. Applications for graduate certificate programs are available for the following terms: Fall, Spring and Summer. Prospective students interested in pursuing coursework for professional development, or to explore graduate studies before applying to a degree program, should complete the Special Status enrollment application.

Rolling Admissions

To ensure that the Office of Admissions has adequate time to process the application, all required items should be submitted at least one week before the start of semester. For those looking to begin graduate-level coursework in Summer, applications can be submitted and processed through the start of any individual summer session.

A complete application file includes the following items

• Online Application, including $50 application fee
• Transcripts
  • Official copy of undergraduate degree
    • Applicants can submit unofficial copy of transcript if the undergraduate degree is pending
  • Copy (even unofficial) for any undergraduate transfer coursework **if applicable
  • Official copy of graduate or doctoral level transcripts **if applicable
• Professional Letters of Recommendation (if required for the program)
  • Some certificate programs will require 2 recommendations, see checklist of required supplemental items after submitting the online application
  • Electronic recommendation requests are available through the online application portal, however, if your recommender has forwarded the letter to you, please send to grads@esu.edu.
• Goals Statement (if required for the program)
  • The one-page letter should discuss, but not limited to, where your interest in the field stems from, how this program will help you professionally, how your educational and professional experiences have prepared you to be successful in a graduate program, where you see the degree taking you within the next five years.
• Resume/CV (if required for the program)
• Copy of state-certified instructional teaching certificate (if required by the program)