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Certificate of Graduate Study

Africana Studies

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Study the Black American Experience to Become More Effective in a Diverse Workplace

Prepare to make meaningful contributions to your field of work or study by earning a Certificate of Graduate Study in Africana Studies at UAlbany. Here you’ll gain perspective, and cultivate language and critical thinking tools, to help you more skillfully relate to and understand the Black community.

Coursework covers relevant history, sociology, politics and more to give you a nuanced understanding of Black Americans, as well as issues surrounding race, cultural competency and racial justice.

Upon completion of this certificate, you’ll be ready to deploy what you’ve learned in your current career or go on to further study. 

Additional Program Information

Graduate Bulletin  |  Course Index  |  Department Contact: Marcia Sutherland

Program of Study

programofstudy

The Africana studies graduate certificate program is designed for those interested in working skillfully and appropriately in diverse environments, especially in education, law, government, law enforcement and globalization.

The required coursework will give you familiarity with the essential social, historical, cultural, economic and political background issues central to the Africana experience. 

You’ll also gain an understanding of the central role of race in society and its intersectional relationship to other socially constructed categories, such as gender, class and sexual orientation in the histories and lived experiences of people of African descent.

Required Courses

18 credits selected from the following courses:

  • Human Services and the Black Community
  • Seminar in African American History
  • Law in the Black Community
  • Economic Development in the Black Community
  • The Sociology of Segregation
  • Topics in African History
  • Seminar in African Diasporic Research: Migration and Citizenship
  • Africa in World Politics
Career Outcomes

With a Certificate of Graduate Study in Africana Studies you will be equipped to intellectually engage with issues of racism, diversity and inclusion in your current or future workplace. This certificate could be especially useful to professionals or students in the following roles:

  • Teacher
  • Civil service worker
  • Manager
  • Public or private sector administrator
  • Post-baccalaureate student

 

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careers
Admissions Requirements
Deadlines
  • Fall: Rolling
  • Spring: Rolling
  • Summer: Not Available

There is no departmental assistantship consideration for this program.

Required Application Materials
  • Must hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university
  • Minimum of 2.7 GPA and/or 5 years of work experience (any setting)
  • Resume /CV
  • Personal Statement setting out experience, interests, and expectations for the certificate program
  • Three letters of recommendation from supervisors or colleagues, setting out the applicant’s qualifications, interests, and likely professional trajectory, including professional and/or academic references
admissions
Student Learning Objectives


Learning objectives that UAlbany students are expected to attain through their course of study within their academic program.

Certificate of Graduate Study
  • Demonstrate substantial cultural, political and social knowledge of the major events and historical experiences of people of African descent in Africa and its diaspora.  
  • Understand the central role of race and its intersectional relationship to other socially constructed categories, such as gender, class and sexual orientation, in the histories and lived experience of people of African descent.
  • Deploy acceptable methods of inquiry in order to conduct, interpret, analyze, assess and critique research in Africana Studies.
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