A graduate certificate program is a small coherent body of graduate-level study that culminates in a capstone or equivalent unifying experience. Graduate certificates are intended to enhance the education of matriculated graduate or professional students beyond their regular course of study, to provide students access to graduate education as a standalone graduate credential or serve as components of a stacked master’s degree [See Policy 1.4]. Graduate certificates are not open to undergraduate students.
[Note: Completed graduate certificates are recorded on the student’s UW transcript. UW also offers certificates that are not recorded on the UW transcript, for example certificates offered by UW Continuum College. These non-transcripted certificates are distinct from graduate certificates and are not under purview of the Graduate School.]
1.2.1 Requirements
1.2.1.1 General
- Students who are admitted to the University of Washington through a graduate certificate are matriculated graduate students and must meet the admission standards described in Policy 3.1.
- The curriculum must constitute a coherent body of study that culminates in a capstone or equivalent unifying experience.
- Time-to-completion limits should be established at the program level and clearly communicated to all newly enrolled students. In the absence of program-level limits, the Graduate School’s default policy is that all work applied to the certificate must be completed within six years from the time of first enrollment in a class applied toward the certificate. Periods spent on leave or out of status count toward this time. Students nearing or past the program’s limit should be placed on Academic Alert (potentially leading to Final Academic Alert and Academic Drop; Policy 3.7.3). Extensions of time to degree limits can be made at the program level.
- Within the time-to-completion limit, graduate certificates can be awarded even if a student has not maintained registration.
- Programs must petition to award graduate certificates past the time-to-completion limit.
1.2.1.2 Coursework
- A graduate certificate must include a minimum of 15 credits, nine of which must be earned in courses numbered 500 and above, and nine of which must be from numerically graded courses.
- Courses at the 300 level and 400 level may be part of a student’s course of study and applied toward graduate degree requirements when confirmed by the Graduate Faculty with oversight of a graduate program to have a level of rigor and depth appropriate to the graduate program and to have a subject matter closely aligned with the graduate certificate’s learning outcomes. Coursework at the 300 level may not be applied towards the minimum 9 graded credits.
- A minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 is required for courses applied to a graduate certificate, and a minimum of 2.7 is required in each course that is counted toward a graduate certificate. Courses at the 300 level are not included in the calculation of the GPA. .
1.2.2 Coursework that may be applied towards graduate certificate requirements.
1.2.2.1 Credit sharing
- There are no restrictions on credit sharing between a graduate certificate and a graduate degree program. However, the culminating experiences of each certificate and degree must be distinct. Applying credits from a previously earned degree toward a certificate requires approval from the graduate program offering the certificate.
- No credit sharing is allowed between graduate certificates.
1.2.2.2 Transfer Credits
- With program approval and confirmation of policy compliance by the Graduate School:
- A maximum of 6 applicable Graduate Non- Matriculated (GNM) or graduate-level transfer credits may be applied towards a graduate certificate.
- A maximum of 6 credits of 400-level or 500-level coursework, taken as a senior while an undergraduate at the University of Washington, may be applied towards graduate certificate requirements.
- Credit taken while enrolled as a non-matriculated student or while matriculated as a post-baccalaureate student at the University of Washington may not be applied towards graduate certificate requirements.
- Credit by independent study or advanced credit examination is not transferable.
Policy 1.2 created: March 2008. Revised: June 2012, July 2022, January 2026.
Policy 1.2.1 revised November 2023